🔢What Are Ports?
Ports are a crucial part of networking.
Think of them as tiny doorways on your computer or device that allow it to communicate with other devices over the internet or a local network.
Each port has its own unique number, usually between 0 and 65535, and is used to identify which application or process should receive incoming data.
For example, if you want to access a website in your web browser, your computer will send a request specifying that it wants to connect to port 80 (for HTTP) or port 443 (for HTTPS).
The server hosting the website will then respond over the same port - this is how your browser can display the website for you.
⚡Why Ports Are Important?
Ports are essential for network communication, as evidenced by Google's research revealing that nearly 95% of websites accessed are done utilizing a secure HTTPS connection through Port 443.
Using ports helps different applications coexist on the same device since each one can use its own specific port number to communicate with outside devices.
To give another example, let's say you have an online game hosted on your laptop - when you play against someone else online, both computers need their ports open so that they can send data back and forth.
This allows players to move around within the game and interact with others.
Overall, ports enable communication between two devices by providing each one with an identifiable endpoint for sending data back and forth.
To gain a deeper understanding of ports, you may find it informative to watch this video: