It occurs to me that I don't know how to formally define "port" in any context in which I know the word.
Yes I know that but what does the 80 *do* that 79 *doesn’t*
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Absolutely nothing :) That's the beauty. Ever use a web browser to connect to your home router on port 8080? Functionally identical to Port 80, they just use 8080 so as not to conflict with anything listening on 80
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Yes I know this but there has to be some logic that filters by those values. Where is it and how is it implemented. # I should just read the spec
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Each protocol has their own spec. Wanna send an email without an email client? Use telnet to connect to Port 25 on your email SMTP server. Use the smtp spec to find out what to type to send an email (usually a HELO command).
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You’re explaining me things I already know but you’re answering different questions. I know specs exist. How are they *implemented*
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Ports are essentially post office boxes. When the kernel receives a packet, it sorts the packet to the correct buffer by port number. If a program has informed the kernel it wants to listen on that port, then the kernel also wakes that program up to let it read the packet
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A metaphor is not a formal definition
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Fair. Would "it's a persistent identifier that enables routing within a machine" be what you're looking for? There's not a lot to formally define; they're routing numbers that, unlike IP addresses, don't require negotiation or cooperation between systems
End of conversation
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