Any-source multicast is the more traditional form of multicast

Multicast

In computer networking, multicast is the delivery of a message or information to a group of destination computers simultaneously in a single transmission from the source creating copies automatically in other network elements, such as routers, only when the topology of the network requires...

 where you can have multiple senders on the same group/channel, as opposed to source-specific multicast

Source-specific multicast

Source-specific multicast is a method of delivering multicast packets in which the only packets that are delivered to a receiver are those originating from a specific source address requested by the receiver...

 where a single particular source is specified.

Any-source nulticast allows a host

Host (network)

A network host is a computer connected to a computer network. A network host may offer information resources, services, and applications to users or other nodes on the network. A network host is a network node that is assigned a network layer host address....

 computer to map IPs and then sends IPs to a number of groups via IP address

IP address

An Internet Protocol address is a numerical label assigned to each device participating in a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication. An IP address serves two principal functions: host or network interface identification and location addressing...

. This method of multicasting allows hosts to transmit to/from groups without any restriction on the location of end-user computers by allowing any receiving host group computer to become a transmission source. Bandwidth

Bandwidth (computing)

In computer networking and computer science, bandwidth, network bandwidth, data bandwidth, or digital bandwidth is a measure of available or consumed data communication resources expressed in bits/second or multiples of it .Note that in textbooks on wireless communications, modem data transmission,...

 usage is nominal allowing Video Conferencing to be used extensively. However, this type of multicast is vulnerable in that is allows for unauthorized traffic and denial-of-service attack

Denial-of-service attack

A denial-of-service attack or distributed denial-of-service attack is an attempt to make a computer resource unavailable to its intended users...

s.

Commonly, any-source multicast is used in IGMP

Internet Group Management Protocol

The Internet Group Management Protocol is a communications protocol used by hosts and adjacent routers on IP networks to establish multicast group memberships....

 version 2; however, it can also be used in PIM-SM, MSDP, and MBGP. ASM utilizes IPv4

IPv4

Internet Protocol version 4 is the fourth revision in the development of the Internet Protocol and the first version of the protocol to be widely deployed. Together with IPv6, it is at the core of standards-based internetworking methods of the Internet...

 in association with the previously stated protocols; in addition, MLDv1 protocol is used for IPv6

IPv6

Internet Protocol version 6 is a version of the Internet Protocol . It is designed to succeed the Internet Protocol version 4...

addresses.

Benefits

• Scalability for large tasks
• The reduction of group management
• Ability to use existing technologies