Welcome to the Treehouse Community

Want to collaborate on code errors? Have bugs you need feedback on? Looking for an extra set of eyes on your latest project? Get support with fellow developers, designers, and programmers of all backgrounds and skill levels here with the Treehouse Community! While you're at it, check out some resources Treehouse students have shared here.

Looking to learn something new?

Treehouse offers a seven day free trial for new students. Get access to thousands of hours of content and join thousands of Treehouse students and alumni in the community today.

Start your free trial

Databases

Matthew Francis
Matthew Francis
6,967 Points
Posted by Matthew Francis
Matthew Francis
6,967 Points

What is a port number? (eg; port 80)

What is a port number and what's the importance of a port number? For example, when launching a web, we need to launch port 80. I'm guessing a port number/server/IP address are all interrelated?

1 Answer

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,269 Points
Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,269 Points

Your guess is very good! Just like an IP address identifies a particular machine, a port number identifies a particular connection with that machine. Many port numbers are associated with particular services, and port 80 identifies HTTP traffic for a Web server and is the most common well-known port. The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) maintains an official registry of port numbers and associated services.

There's also a Wikipedia page you may find useful.