A portable telecommunications system (PTS), and discovery and update protocol provides an ad-hoc system in which PTS systems can detect one another over a wide area network (WAN). The system may be compact in a way that allows mobility and rapid deployment with minimal on-site configuration. PTS systems exchange multicast packets and peer-to-peer data exchanges. A protocol manager sets up these communications channels, manages exchanges between PTS systems, and passes the data to or from internal system nodes. The protocol manager also performs key oversight functions such as signaling to other systems that a PTS is joining or leaving the community, keeping track of which other PTS systems are in the community and active, and determining when data needs to be updated and exchanged.