A Groove Networks developer discusses the contrast between peer-to-peer and client/server access control and describes Groove's architectural approach to access and role. The session covers data replication within Groove, and public and private keys.

Peer-to-peer (P2P) is a powerful computing model that is already changing the way computer users collaborate and communicate with one another. The way this technology enables computer users to circumvent firewalls and other established business/security systems is capturing the attention of industry experts, the media, IT professionals and the developer community.

However, confusion still reigns in the area of P2P security. In particular, the ad-hoc nature of P2P which allows individual devices to talk to one another, often makes peer-based applications look like security risks and explains how developers/users can securely implement tools into a peer-to-peer environment like Groove.