Descriptive of a relationship between equals. A peer-to-peer architecture is a network design based on computers that share the same responsibilities and use the same programs to communicate. Machines operating in such a network communicate with each other as equals, with each acting as a server for the others. Such a network differs markedly from a client/server network, where some machines are designated as servers to serve the needs of client machines. A peer-to-peer network is also markedly different from a network characterized by master/slave relationships between machines. See also client/server and master/slave.