Telnet

What Does Telnet Mean?

Telnet (TN) is a networking protocol and software program used to access remote computers and terminals over the Internet or a TCP/IP computer network. Telnet was conceived in 1969 and standardized as one of the first Internet standards by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).

Techopedia Explains Telnet

Designed for remote server access, management and client/server architectures, Telnet works through a purpose-built program that provides connectivity between a remote computer/server and host computer. Upon providing correct login and sign-in credentials, a user may access a remote system’s privileged functionality. Additionally, Telnet’s commands may be executed on a supported client or server device.

Telnet sends all messages in clear text and has no specific security mechanisms. Thus, in many applications and services, Telnet has been replaced by Secure Shell (SSH).

Related Reading

Margaret Rouse

Technology Specialist

Margaret is an award-winning writer and educator known for her ability to explain complex technical topics to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles in the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret’s idea of a fun day is to help IT and business professionals to learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.

All Articles by Margaret Rouse