Abstract: A system and method for managing connections between one or more local terminals and one or more remote systems over a packet-switched network is disclosed. The invention includes a gateway computer that forms a bridge between the local terminals and the one or more host systems, the gateway and the local terminals including computer software instructions for embedding and filtering special connection identification information in each transaction request. The local terminals embed connection identification information into each request packet requesting a connection to a remote host system, and the gateway filters this information and verifies that the gateway and local terminal(s) are synchronized. The gateway then manages the communication to the host system using the native protocol of the host, thereby minimizing communication over the packet-switched network.