What Does Bang Path Mean?
A bang path is a mostly obsolete kind of address function that shows each server in a message trajectory over a complex network, for example, the Internet. It is called a bang path because each designated server is separated by an exclamation point, also known as a bang.
Techopedia Explains Bang Path
The bang path is part of a UNIX-to-UNIX copy (UUCP) protocol that helps transfer files and messages between individual computers. Each exclamation point on the bang path is sometimes called a “hop.” In the days before a fully integrated global Internet, prior to the late 1990s, addresses utilizing bang paths were common, and it wasn’t unusual to have up to eight or ten hops where the entire address spelled out each server on the message trajectory.
As far as the use of bang paths today, they are not typically used in much larger networks. Conventional DNS protocols have taken over in routing the majority of Internet traffic. However, bang paths are still used in smaller network setups such as “usenet” networks and small UNIX-to-UNIX networks.
