EXTRANET

An Extranet is a private network that uses the internet protocol and the public telecommunication system to securely share part of business information or operations with - suppliers, vendors, partners, customers, or other businesses.
Through e-mail, documents are prepared and sent electronically. The recipients need not
be present at the other end to send the message. The message gets stored in the electronic
mailbox of the addressee. The recipient can open the mailbox whenever he is free and can read
or print the message.

An Extranet can be viewed a-part of a company's intranet that is extended to users outside
the company. It has also been described as a "state of mind" in which the internet is perceived as
a way to do business with other companies as well as to sell products to customers. Extranet
extends the intranet from one location to another across the internet by securing data flow, to
another intranet to a business partner. In these way intranets of business partners, suppliers,
creditors, distributors, customers, and the like are connected to extranets by agreements.
An Extranet requires security and privacy. These require firewall server management, eissuance
and use of digital certificate or similar means of user authentication, encryption of
messages, and the use of virtual private networks that tunnel through the public network.