P2PCompute - A Peer-to-Peer Computing Model

Peer-to-peer (P2P) networks consist of nodes which have both client and server capabilities and on which communication and data sharing is carried on directly between nodes, rather than being arbitrated by an intermediary node. The P2P architecture was popularized by file-sharing, one of the widely-used applications of the Internet. Many applications that are based on this architecture have been developed. It also provides an efficient platform to harness the computing power of a network of desktop computers. P2P computing power can help solve computationally complex problems that require powerful supercomputers. However, it has not been as widely used as the file-sharing P2P applications. Almost all of the current P2P computing applications are noncommercial endeavors. Users make their computing power available for these endeavors because they believe in the applications\u27 objectives, for example, the SETI project analyzes radio telescope data in the quest for life in other parts of the universe. This thesis proposes P2PCompute - a viable commercial model in the P2P computing field. It harnesses existing technologies- P2P, Java, the Internet and the UDDI registry, to enable distributed processing of tasks on multiple servers. It is well-suited to the heterogeneous environment on the Internet and has the potential to provide the spark that would lead to the development of more commercial P2P computing applications

A Case for P2P Delivery of Paid Content

P2P file sharing provides a powerful content distribution model by leveraging users' computing and bandwidth resources. However, companies have been reluctant to rely on P2P systems for paid content distribution due to their inability to limit the exploitation of these systems for free file sharing. We present TP2, a system that combines the more cost-effective and scalable distribution capabilities of P2P systems with a level of trust and control over content distribution similar to direct download content delivery networks. TP2 uses two key mechanisms that can be layered on top of existing P2P systems. First, it provides strong authentication to prevent free file sharing in the system. Second, it introduces a new notion of trusted auditors to detect and limit malicious attempts to gain information about participants in the system to facilitate additional out-of-band free file sharing. We analyze TP2 by modeling it as a novel game between malicious users who try to form free file sharing clusters and trusted auditors who curb the growth of such clusters. Our analysis shows that a small fraction of trusted auditors is sufficient to protect the P2P system against unauthorized file sharing. Using a simple economic model, we further show that TP2 provides a more cost-effective content distribution solution, resulting in higher profits for a content provider even in the presence of a large percentage of malicious users. Finally, we implemented TP2 on top of BitTorrent and use PlanetLab to show that our system can provide trusted P2P file sharing with negligible performance overhead

Towards a Framework for DHT Distributed Computing

Distributed Hash Tables (DHTs) are protocols and frameworks used by peer-to-peer (P2P) systems. They are used as the organizational backbone for many P2P file-sharing systems due to their scalability, fault-tolerance, and load-balancing properties. These same properties are highly desirable in a distributed computing environment, especially one that wants to use heterogeneous components. We show that DHTs can be used not only as the framework to build a P2P file-sharing service, but as a P2P distributed computing platform. We propose creating a P2P distributed computing framework using distributed hash tables, based on our prototype system ChordReduce. This framework would make it simple and efficient for developers to create their own distributed computing applications. Unlike Hadoop and similar MapReduce frameworks, our framework can be used both in both the context of a datacenter or as part of a P2P computing platform. This opens up new possibilities for building platforms to distributed computing problems. One advantage our system will have is an autonomous load-balancing mechanism. Nodes will be able to independently acquire work from other nodes in the network, rather than sitting idle. More powerful nodes in the network will be able use the mechanism to acquire more work, exploiting the heterogeneity of the network. By utilizing the load-balancing algorithm, a datacenter could easily leverage additional P2P resources at runtime on an as needed basis. Our framework will allow MapReduce-like or distributed machine learning platforms to be easily deployed in a greater variety of contexts

Coordination and P2P computing

Peer-to-Peer (P2P) refers to a class of systems and/or applications that use distributed resources in a decentralized and autonomous manner to achieve a goal. A number of successful applications, like BitTorrent (for file and content sharing) and SETI@Home (for distributed computing) have demonstrated the feasibility of this approach. As a new form of distributed computing, P2P computing has the same coordination problems as other forms of distributed computing. Coordination has been considered an important issue in distributed computing for a long time and many coordination models and languages have been developed. This research focuses on how to solve coordination problems in P2P computing. In particular, it is to provide a seamless P2P computing environment so that the migration of computation components is transparent. This research extends Manifold, an event-driven coordination model, to meet P2P computing requirements and integrates the P2P-Manifold model into an existing platform. The integration hides the complexity of the coordination model and makes the model easy to use

Heuristic Algorithms for Optimization of Task Allocation and Result Distribution in Peer-to-Peer Computing Systems

Recently, distributed computing system have been gaining much attention due to a growing demand for various kinds of effective computations in both industry and academia. In this paper, we focus on Peer-to-Peer (P2P) computing systems, also called public-resource computing systems or global computing systems. P2P computing systems, contrary to grids, use personal computers and other relatively simple electronic equipment (e.g., the PlayStation console) to process sophisticated computational projects. A significant example of the P2P computing idea is the BOINC (Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing) project. To improve the performance of the computing system, we propose to use the P2P approach to distribute results of computational projects, i.e., results are transmitted in the system like in P2P file sharing systems (e.g., BitTorrent). In this work, we concentrate on offline optimization of the P2P computing system including two elements: scheduling of computations and data distribution. The objective is to minimize the system OPEX cost related to data processing and data transmission. We formulate an Integer Linear Problem (ILP) to model the system and apply this formulation to obtain optimal results using the CPLEX solver. Next, we propose two heuristic algorithms that provide results very close to an optimum and can be used for larger problem instances than those solvable by CPLEX or other ILP solvers

P2P Network Trust Management Survey

Peer-to-peer applications (P2P) are no longer limited to home users, and start being accepted in academic and corporate environments. While file sharing and instant messaging applications are the most traditional examples, they are no longer the only ones benefiting from the potential advantages of P2P networks. For example, network file storage, data transmission, distributed computing, and collaboration systems have also taken advantage of such networks.The reasons why this model of computing is attractive unfold in three. First, P2P networks are scalable, i.e., deal well (efficiently) with both small groups and with large groups of participants. In this paper, we will present a summary of the main safety aspects to be considered in P2P networks, highlighting its importance for the development of P2P applications and systems on the Internet and deployment of enterprise applications with more critical needs in terms of security. P2P systems are no longer limited to home users, and start being accepted in academic and corporate environments

Community-based asynchronous wakeup protocol for wireless peer-to-peer file sharing networks

Ubiquitous Peer-to-Peer (P2P) networking is widely expected to be manifested in a wireless environment in the near future. However, to realize such an interesting mobile computing platform, energy efficiency is one of the most critical resources management issues yet to be tackled. Unfortunately, energy efficient wireless P2P networking is still a relatively less explored topic as it is quite challenging to tackle the energy management problem without centralized control. In this paper, we meet this research challenge by proposing a new distributed protocol, called Community-Based Asynchronous Wakeup Protocol, CAWP, for energy conservation in wireless P2P file sharing networks. Simulation results show that our proposed CAWP is found to be highly effective in that it can remarkably increase the energy efficiency of the participants in a wireless P2P system. © 2005 IEEE.published_or_final_versio

Analog to Digital: Harnessing Peer Computing

Twenty years ago the recording industry alleged consumers were killing music sales by recording their own cassette tapes at home. Today, this argument is directed at peer-to-peer (P2P) networks: Illegal file-sharing kills the sales of recorded music. In an effort to determine copyright law\u27s affect on innovation in peer comuting, this Note examines the recording industry\u27s response to P2P networks. The recording industry employs five strategies: (I) public education; (2) licensed online music subscription services; (3) warnings, injunctions, and enforcement; (4) Digital Rights Management; and (5) lobbying Congress for expanded copyright protection. However, the industry\u27s strategy also chills investment in peer computing and drives development in unpredictable directions. While P2P networks are rife with copyrighted works, innovative uses of peer communication are also reshaping how Americans consume and distribute content. In many ways, innovation in peer computing might determine the future of communication. The recording industry and Congress have a choice: shape a future for peer computing, or eliminate a novel form of communication