Point-to-Point Communication

Point-to-Point Communication is a networking and distributed systems concept where two endpoints (e.g., processes, devices, or nodes) establish a direct, dedicated connection to exchange data. It enables reliable, ordered message passing between a single sender and a single receiver, often used in parallel computing, message queues, and inter-process communication. This model contrasts with broadcast or multicast communication, focusing on one-to-one interactions.

Also known as: P2P Communication, Point-to-Point Messaging, Direct Communication, One-to-One Communication, PTP

Why learn Point-to-Point Communication?

Developers should learn this concept when building distributed systems, parallel applications, or microservices that require direct, reliable data exchange between specific components, such as in MPI (Message Passing Interface) for high-performance computing or message brokers like RabbitMQ for task distribution. It's essential for scenarios needing guaranteed delivery, low latency, or synchronization between two entities, like in client-server architectures or peer-to-peer networks.

Learning Resources

• tutorial: MPI Tutorial
• docs: RabbitMQ Tutorials
• book: Distributed Systems: Principles and Paradigms
• tutorial: Point-to-Point Communication in Computer Networks
• course: Coursera: Cloud Computing Concepts