The internet is undoubtedly the most revolutionary technological advancement that has changed the lives of billions all over the world. If you have been using the internet, then you must be familiar with the HTTP or Hypertext Transfer Protocol. HTTP presently dominates the internet, and the setbacks evident in it have become the primary reasons to look for an IPFS tutorial. When users visit a website on the internet, the browser has to connect directly with the computers which serve the concerned website.
The connection with servers is mandatory for access to the website, even if the website’s servers are at far-off locations. In this case, the transfer process could consume a major share of bandwidth. Therefore, the need for InterPlanetary File System or IPFS is quite significant for resolving these setbacks. The following discussion serves as a detailed introduction to IPFS and its different components.
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Need for IPFS
In recent times, the major share of data on the internet has shifted to cloud storage. Many of the applications we use regularly store all our personal information in data centers under the ownership of Amazon, Microsoft, or Google. Now, developers want to create a better internet in the form of Web 3.0. So, they are shifting to decentralized data networks for improving data resiliency.
At the same time, they can also develop new models surrounding data ownership. Therefore, the arrival of new technologies such as IPFS blockchain applications presents favorable opportunities for improving the underlying protocols of Web 2.0. Basically, IPFS aims at fostering safety and security on the internet through the distribution of data throughout a massive worldwide network of peers. Let us take a look at how IPFS came into existence.
Origins of IPFS
IPFS emerged in 2015 as an outcome of initiatives by Protocol Labs for creating a system that can change the fundamental way of transmitting information throughout the globe. All accounts of IPFS explained properly show that it aims at creating a distributed web with improved resilience.
Over the course of time, IPFS has become a preferred choice for various use cases. It has been successful in improving information management infrastructure across various industries. For example, IPFS projects have been successful in enabling weather risk protection for businesses in agriculture. Interestingly, IPFS has also been a crucial factor for removing intermediaries from the music industry.
Protocol Labs presently includes projects such as IPFS tutorial alongside the modular protocols and tools for supporting it. The tools are capable of serving thousands of enterprises and millions of people all over the world.
What is IPFS (InterPlanetary File System)?
Although it is clear that IPFS has evolved as a solution for setbacks in the HTTP protocol, it is important to understand ‘what is IPFS’ clearly. As a matter of fact, any discussion on IPFS is incomplete without its definition. So, what exactly do you mean by IPFS? It is actually a distributed system for ensuring storage and access for files, data, applications, and websites. The most credible highlight with IPFS is the independence from conditions in different transport layers. Therefore, it can easily communicate across different transport layers such as transmission control protocol (TCP), Bluetooth, UDT, TOR, QUIC, and uTP.
The rules of IPFS tutorial are responsible for governing the movement of data and content throughout the network. The rules employed with IPFS are quite similar to that of Kademlia, a peer-to-peer DHT or distributed hash table. Kademlia is largely popular for its application in the BitTorrent protocol. The file system layer helps in ensuring ideal opportunities to address different remarkable use cases for distributed websites running completely on client-side browsers.
Simple Way for Understanding IPFS
The efficiency of an IPFS tutorial depends on how well you can understand its definition. Till now, you have found that IPFS offers a distributed system for storage and access to files, data, websites, and applications. However, a beginner or a layman needs a simple explanation for IPFS.
Let us assume an example where you want to search for information on hoverboards. It is quite obvious to start with the Wikipedia page by entering the URL in the browser’s address bar. Now, your computer would ask one of the computers of Wikipedia, which could be located on another side of the country, for the page you have requested.
Quite a time-consuming process, isn’t it? Even if your requested web page loads in a few seconds, it takes up considerable time and resources to serve your request. IPFS stores a mirror of Wikipedia and could help you get the page on hoverboards easily. IPFS can easily find out the page you are looking for on the basis of contents rather than location.
Basically, the IPFS or InterPlanetary File System does not ask the computers of Wikipedia for the page you have requested. On the contrary, IPFS requests many computers around the world to share the requested page with you if they have it. Furthermore, IPFS also ensures that users could not only download files from others but also have their system distributing the files. For example, if one of your friends needs the same information on hoverboards, then they could get it from you.
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Crucial Traits of IPFS
The three traits of IPFS are an important aspect in any account of IPFS explained properly. IPFS focuses on decentralization, content addressing, and participation. These three factors are quite crucial in understanding how IPFS works. So, here is an explanation of the three different critical aspects of IPFS.
1. Decentralization
One of the foremost aspects that establish IPFS blockchain alignment refers to decentralization. IPFS ensures the possibility of downloading a file from multiple locations which are not under the management of one organization only. Therefore, decentralization offers the following crucial value advantages.
- First of all, IPFS decentralization ensures support for better resilience on the internet. Therefore, users could have the assurance of receiving information from somewhere else if any unfortunate incident messes up web servers.
- The files on IPFS tutorial come from various locations. Therefore, it is difficult for states, corporations, or anyone to censor content on IPFS. However, IPFS can also offer distinct approaches for making your way around censorship actions.
IPFS or InterPlanetary File System gets its name from the fact that it can enable access to the web even in faraway locations or even in a disconnected state. IPFS enables people to get a file from another individual in a nearby location rather than from a distant server. So, locally networked communities without good internet connectivity are likely to find better value with IPFS. IPFS strives to establish a system capable of working across places that are disconnected or far away from each other.
2. Content Addressing
One of the most striking highlights of IPFS projects is the fact that they do not search for information according to location. You can find traditional URLs and file paths like the following examples,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/hoverboards
/Users/Jenny/Documents/presentation_paper.doc
C:\Users\John\My Documents\term_paper_presentation.ppt
Now, you could clearly witness that these examples look for a file according to its location. The location could refer to the computer where you can find the file or the hard drive of the computer where it is located. Such a type of approach is not suitable in situations where the file could be located at multiple places.
Rather than depending on location, IPFS identifies a file by its content. So, you are likely to find the IPFS link to the hoverboards page in the following form.
/ipfs/QmXoypizjW3WknFiJnKLwHCnL72vedxjQkDDP1mXWo6uco/wiki/hoverboards.html
The long string of letters following ‘/ipfs/’ is known as the content identifier. The content identifier is basically a cryptographic hash of the content at the specified address. Even if the hash may appear short in comparison to original content, the hash is unique for concerning content. The importance of mentioning ‘content’ rather than ‘web pages’ or ‘files’ reflects on the work of content identifier. Actually, a content identifier could just point out various types of data such as metadata, a single small file, or part of a larger file.
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Flexibility of Content Addressing
It is important to note that the address of a file in IPFS is generated from the content. Therefore, it is difficult to change links in IPFS. IPFS does not allow moving content to a different address. In the case of IPFS, the old link can also point to the same content even after moving the content of the page to a new one. It is clear that people would look for opportunities to ensure updating and modification of content at all times. However, they don’t want to send new links with every new process. On the contrary, IPFS projects help in achieving this functionality easily. The use of concepts such as DNSLink, IPNS, and the Mutable File System with IPFS allow flexible content modifications.
However, it is also crucial to note certain important factors related to content addressing in IPFS. The use of IPFS has to be collaborative and participatory. If there is no one using IPFS with the content identified by a specific address for general access, then users cannot access the content. Furthermore, content could never be removed from IPFS until someone is eager enough for its availability. Interestingly, the person interested in the availability of specific content on IPFS tutorial could be the original author or someone else.
3. Participation
The most talked-about factor in any IPFS tutorial generally has limitations to decentralization and content addressing only. However, one of the basic precedents with IPFS refers to modification in the ways of communication in networks. The modern World Wide Web relies profoundly on access and ownership. Therefore, you can get files from the owners or authors with their permission. On the other hand, IPFS focuses on possession and participation. Possession implies that many people have each other’s files in storage, and participation refers to the efforts of people in ensuring the availability of the files.
This is a clear indicator of the fact that IPFS blockchain and other applications depend profoundly on active participation. If you are using your computer for sharing files through IPFS, then people wouldn’t be able to access the files from you if your computer is turned off. So, you have to make sure that there are copies of the concerned files stored on multiple operational computers running IPFS. As a result, the files would always be available to other IPFS users needing the files.
Most important of all, this approach should happen automatically as the computer shares a file with others for a limited duration after you download it with IPFS. It is possible to ensure that the content is permanently available by pinning it. Therefore, it can save the file to the computer and ensures its availability on the IPFS network. Collaboration with one another could help in accessing and sharing files easily. As a result, IPFS can help in creating a reliable, equitable, and distributed web with collaboration among all participants.
IPFS vs HTTP – Differences between IPFS and HTTP
It is clear that IPFS aims at offering a decentralized web solution. So, it is inevitable to draw comparisons between IPFS and HTTP in any IPFS tutorial. The differences between IPFS and HTTP can be classified into different factors for evaluating the two protocols.
Let us take a look at the head-to-head comparison of IPFS and HTTP across different benchmarks:
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Retrieving Files
The first criteria for IPFS vs. HTTP comparison refer to the flexibility of retrieving a file. In the case of HTTP, the identifier for a file points out the location. Therefore, it helps in finding out the computers that host the concerned file and asking them for it. The file retrieval approach in HTTP is flexible and easy. However, it is not useful in scenarios where you are offline. HTTP is also not suitable in scenarios involving large distributed systems, and you have to ensure load minimization throughout the network.
On the contrary, IPFS tutorial involves a two-part approach for retrieving files. First of all, it would ensure file identification through content addressing. Subsequently, it would find the file with the peer-to-peer overlay for faster routing.
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Centralization
HTTP has one of the most prominent setbacks which affect their popularity in comparison to IPFS. Servers owned by large companies like Amazon and Google help in hosting the files. Therefore, government and other intermediaries could get control for content censorship and modification.
On the other hand, you are most likely to find decentralization benefits as the common entry in IPFS blockchain and other use cases. The internet we see today is completely the opposite of the actual intention behind its design. The internet was supposed to be a purely decentralized web. However, when you look at the existing state of the internet, it appears the complete opposite. IPFS can offer the valuable and assured proposition of an open and flat web. As a result, the facility of a genuinely decentralized web can ensure promising levels of individual privacy.
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Availability
Many concerns related to HTTP protocol largely point out to the average lifespan of a web page. With just around 100 days before a webpage passes into oblivion, it presents a critical issue for the internet. Furthermore, people have to depend on the operational status of servers to ensure the availability of information. If a server moves to a new location or faces a natural calamity, it cannot serve the content links. So, you need to access the new location of the server or have copies of data on the server beforehand. This is where you should note how HTTP depends on location-based addressing.
On the other hand, accounts of IPFS explained properly show that it relies on content-based addressing. So, you don’t have to depend on only a single server for retrieving the data you want. IPFS enables users to access data from any of the millions of computers powered by IPFS with copies of the desired file.
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Cost
The final element of comparing IPFS and HTTP in an IPFS tutorial refers to the cost factor. In the case of HTTP, data is very expensive when it comes to the serving. The cost is exceptionally higher when the server is on completely another side of the world. HTTP was basically tailored for transferring web pages rather than massive volumes of data. Since modern lifestyles rely profoundly on data, HTTP usage would gradually imply the need for powerful and costly resources.
On the other hand, P2P IPFS could ensure around 60% reduction in bandwidth for videos. Even large streaming services like Netflix are exploring the possibility of P2P solutions for content streaming. IPFS tutorial can enable users to download content in the internal context of their own ISP. Therefore, you can also overcome unnecessary obstacles with IPFS, thereby reducing cost.
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Bottom Line
On a final note, it is clear that IPFS or the InterPlanetary File System could spell the beginning of new internet. The different use cases of IPFS, especially in blockchain, can revolutionize blockchain technology. IPFS can enable storing hashes of data on the blockchain for reducing cost. Other than the aspect of decentralization, IPFS tends to be better on the grounds of content addressing.
With IPFS, users don’t have to worry about the accessibility of servers anymore. If anyone in the IPFS network has the file you want and they have their computer on, then you can get the file. It’s quite simple and easy! You can learn more about IPFS to become an expert.
*Disclaimer: The article should not be taken as, and is not intended to provide any investment advice. Claims made in this article do not constitute investment advice and should not be taken as such. 101 Blockchains shall not be responsible for any loss sustained by any person who relies on this article. Do your own research!
