Editing Universal Plug and Play (section)

{{Short description|Set of networking protocols}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2023}}
[[File:UPnP logo.png|thumb|UPnP logo as promoted by the UPnP Forum (2001–2016) and [[Open Connectivity Foundation]] (2016–present)]]
'''Universal Plug and Play''' ('''UPnP''') is a set of [[networking protocol]]s on the [[Internet Protocol]] (IP) that permits networked devices, such as personal computers, printers, [[Gateway (telecommunications)|Internet gateways]], [[Wi-Fi]] access points and mobile devices, to seamlessly discover each other's presence on the network<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Universal Plug and Play Device Architecture |url=https://upnp.org/specs/arch/UPnPDA10_20000613.htm |access-date=2025-05-22 |website=upnp.org}}</ref> and establish functional network services. UPnP is intended primarily for residential networks<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=OCF - UPnP Standards & Architecture |url=https://openconnectivity.org/developer/specifications/upnp-resources/upnp/ |access-date=2025-05-22 |website=Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF) |language=en-US}}</ref> without enterprise-class devices.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}

UPnP assumes the network runs IP, and then uses [[HTTP]] on top of IP to provide device/service description, actions, data transfer and [[event notification]]. Device search requests and advertisements are supported by running HTTP on top of [[User Datagram Protocol|UDP]] ([[Port (computer networking)|port]] 1900) using [[multicast]] (known as HTTPMU). Responses to search requests are also sent over UDP, but are instead sent using [[unicast]] (known as HTTPU).

Conceptually, UPnP extends [[plug and play]]—a technology for dynamically attaching devices directly to a computer—to [[zero-configuration networking]]<ref name=":0" /> for residential and [[Small office/home office|SOHO]] wireless networks. UPnP devices are plug-and-play in that, when connected to a network, they automatically establish working configurations with other devices, removing the need for users to manually configure and add devices through [[IP address]]es.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Velimirovic |first=Andreja |date=2022-01-13 |title=What is UPnP (Universal Plug and Play)? |url=https://phoenixnap.com/blog/what-is-upnp |access-date=2023-09-27 |website=phoenixNAP Blog |language=en-US}}</ref>

UPnP is generally regarded as unsuitable for deployment in business settings for reasons of economy, complexity, and consistency: the multicast foundation makes it chatty, consuming too many network resources on networks with a large population of devices; the simplified access controls do not map well to complex environments.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}