The UDP-based File Transfer Protocol (UFTP) is a
communication protocol
A communication protocol is a system of rules that allows two or more entities of a communications system to transmit information via any variation of a physical quantity. The protocol defines the rules, syntax, semantics (computer science), sem ...
designed to
transfer files to multiple recipients.
To accomplish this, UFTP
multicast
In computer networking, multicast is a type of group communication where data transmission is addressed to a group of destination computers simultaneously. Multicast can be one-to-many or many-to-many distribution. Multicast differs from ph ...
s the files to recipients via the
User Datagram Protocol
In computer networking, the User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is one of the core communication protocols of the Internet protocol suite used to send messages (transported as datagrams in Network packet, packets) to other hosts on an Internet Protoco ...
(UDP). The
reference implementation
In the software development process, a reference implementation (or, less frequently, sample implementation or model implementation) is a program that implements all requirements from a corresponding specification. The reference implementation ...
of UFTP is
open-source software
Open-source software (OSS) is Software, computer software that is released under a Open-source license, license in which the copyright holder grants users the rights to use, study, change, and Software distribution, distribute the software an ...
distributed under the
GNU General Public License
The GNU General Public Licenses (GNU GPL or simply GPL) are a series of widely used free software licenses, or ''copyleft'' licenses, that guarantee end users the freedom to run, study, share, or modify the software. The GPL was the first ...
Version 3. The author of UFTP and its reference protocol is Dennis Bush.
UFTP can perform effectively in a
wide area network
A wide area network (WAN) is a telecommunications network that extends over a large geographic area. Wide area networks are often established with leased telecommunication circuits.
Businesses, as well as schools and government entities, use ...
with high
network delay
Network delay is a design and performance characteristic of a telecommunications network. It specifies the latency for a bit of data to travel across the network from one communication endpoint to another. It is typically measured in multiple ...
, as well as in
communication satellite
A communications satellite is an artificial satellite that relays and amplifies radio telecommunication signals via a transponder; it creates a communication channel between a source transmitter and a receiver at different locations on Earth. ...
transmissions.
Bush published a pre-release version of UFTP on July 6, 2001. After two more intermediate releases, version 1.0 was published on December 17, 2002. He based UFTP on the Multicast File Transfer Protocol (MFTP), which was designed and developed at Starburst Communications. In 1997 and 1998, Starburst had submitted
drafts of the MFTP specification to the
Internet Engineering Task Force
The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is a standards organization for the Internet standard, Internet and is responsible for the technical standards that make up the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP). It has no formal membership roster ...
, with a view to promoting adoption of the protocol. Starburst later sold MFTP, along with their Omnicast file distribution software, to the Fantastic Corporation. Stratacache, a
digital signage
Digital signage is a segment of electronic signage that uses Electronic visual display, digital display technologies to present multimedia content in both public and private environments. Content may include video, images, text, or interactive me ...
company in the United States, announced in February 2004 that they had purchased the property from Fantastic.
See also
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Comparison of file transfer protocols
This article lists communication protocols that are designed for file transfer over a telecommunications network.
Protocols for shared file systems—such as 9P and the Network File System—are beyond the scope of this article, as are file ...
*
Point-to-multipoint communication
In telecommunications, point-to-multipoint communication (P2MP, PTMP or PMP) is communication which is accomplished via a distinct type of one-to-many connection, providing multiple paths from a single location to multiple locations.
Point-to ...
References
Further reading
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External links
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File transfer protocols
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