Definition: Peer Guardian is a simple software firewall designed for use with Microsoft Windows P2P file sharing clients. Peer Guardian works, first, by maintaining a database of IP addresses, logging and/or blocking incoming requests coming from those addresses. Secondly, Peer Guardian may prevent outcoming connections to fake P2P servers.
The Peer Guardian IP database contains those IP addresses suspected to be used by the music industry to probe and identify MP3 music file sharing servers. These IP addresses, for example, may represent computers owned by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) or the Motion Picture Association of America. The maintainers of Peer Guardian refresh its IP database regularly.
Peer Guardian vs Peer Guardian 2
Two different Peer Guardian applications exist. The original Peer Guardian application was packaged with some popular P2P file sharing clients like Kazaa Lite. It has since morphed into the free "ProtoWall" utility. A newer application, Peer Guardian 2, was started by members of the original Peer Guardian team who wished to provide a comparable Open Source alternative.Nomenclature notwithstanding, Peer Guardian 2 does not obsolete the original Peer Guardian system. On the contrary, both applications can be useful add-ons for today's P2P file sharing clients.
