The prospect of decentralized storage applications

The definition of decentralized storage

Centralized storage systems store data in large servers, with risks of censorship, data loss, or information theft; decentralized storage models protect data integrity, accessibility, and security by distributing file hosting across peer-to-peer networks sex. Decentralized storage applications store data on a distributed network run by computers in multiple locations. Nodes store and secure data and are responsible for making files available to owners. Nodes on the decentralized storage network are incentivized in the form of tokens paid by users. Decentralized storage solutions are not controlled by a single entity, but a peer-to-peer node that keeps the network running. In a decentralized management model, data storage can eliminate single points of failure and reduce the risk of users’ counter-parties.

How decentralized storage works

Using centralized cloud storage requires uploading files to a server over the Internet and sending the request to the same server. Decentralized cloud storage uses different mechanisms to store data. Users still need to upload data and can request it at any time, but the way data is stored is very different from a centralized solution.

Encryption: Data uploaded to the decentralized storage network is automatically encrypted using a hashing mechanism that requires the use of a private key to access the data and prevents unauthorized entities from decrypting the information.

Sharding: Files are broken into smaller parts and sent to different nodes on the network. Sharding ensures that no single node owns the complete dataset, preventing censorship and privacy violations. Bits of data are transmitted over the network, but others cannot read user information or restrict access.

Storage: Finally, fragments of the file are sent to multiple nodes located in different geographic areas. If the user needs the file, the network retrieves the component from the node where the file is stored and reassembles it for download.

The advantages of decentralized storage network

Data is also known as the “new oil”. The development of e-commerce, web applications, the Internet of Things, and artificial intelligence has stimulated the generation of large amounts of data, making this feature even more pronounced. To extract value from data, businesses invest heavily in data storage and management. Companies often choose to build custom data centers or rely on cloud storage services such as Google Drive, Dropbox, and AWS.

However, centrally storing information is problematic. Large databases are vulnerable to malicious attacks by hackers. Also, since the information is stored on an external server, if the service provider goes offline or restricts access, the owner loses control and cannot access the information. These are some of the problems that decentralized storage networks aim to solve. Decentralized storage services provide a powerful and secure way to store information by sharing storage responsibilities among different participants.

1. Data Security

In today’s digital economy, data security is more important than ever. Vulnerable data storage systems are prone to data breaches, identity theft and other issues that are costly to companies and users. Centralized storage services have not delivered on their promise to solve data storage problems. For example, Dropbox, one of the world’s largest cloud storage companies, was hacked, resulting in 68 million passwords being leaked on the dark web.

Decentralized peer-to-peer networks are theoretically more secure than centralized networks. It’s also a potential option for them to protect important data from malicious attackers. To attack a decentralized storage service, a hacker would need access to every node running the protocol, and the huge cost of executing an attack on this vulnerability is often enough to remove a hacker’s incentive to steal.

2. Privacy

Storing sensitive information on centralized enterprise servers breeds a lot of privacy violations. Even if the company encrypts the information, the key is still stored on the server. Savvy hackers still have ways to steal keys and access users’ private information. Decentralized storage can solve this problem. Data files are divided into bits to prevent unauthorized viewing. To recreate the file, the bits must be assembled, which is nearly impossible without the private key or proper permissions.

3. Efficiency

On the surface, centralized cloud storage seems to work. Users can easily retrieve files from Google Drive or Dropbox folders by logging into their account. In practice, centralized data storage and management are inefficient. Since users’ information is stored in a few data centers, this information is inaccessible if the system goes offline for any reason. DDoS attacks are enough to bring down a seemingly robust network and prevent users from using centralized servers. Additionally, the concentration of data centers in certain regions may make it difficult for remote users to retrieve information and may require more bandwidth to download information stored on cloud storage platforms.

In contrast, decentralized storage services run on a robust peer-to-peer architecture, where multiple nodes in different locations hold copies of files. User information is available even when multiple nodes are offline. The fault-tolerant nature of the system allows a few nodes to fail without affecting their operation. Blockchain-powered storage can theoretically reduce bandwidth ge. The servers that store user files are scattered around the world, making it easier to find servers closer to the user’s location, making downloading files easier and reducing bandwidth.

4.Data integrity

Data integrity refers to the ability of data to maintain its quality throughout its life cycle. In other words, data files should still be accessible in their original form after 5 to 20 years. Since traditional storage stores information in a location-specific manner, it is difficult for centralized storage systems to achieve data integrity.

Suppose the user needs to visit a specific web page on the site, usually by placing a link to the file path in the browser to get it. This link points to where the web page or data is hosted. When a user enters a link on a search engine, data is requested from the server (computer). If the file is in its original location, the user should get the page. However, if there is a problem with the specific server that holds the file, or if the web page itself is moved to another location, the data will become unavailable. For example, an error 404 is because the requested content no longer exists at that location.

To address data persistence and integrity issues, decentralized storage systems use a content-specific approach. This method identifies data by content rather than location. For example, web links stored on IPFS systems often have long alphanumeric strings. Alphanumeric strings are called Hasches, and each has a unique Hasche. Therefore, users can use Hasche as a unique identifier for data to find information on decentralized storage networks such as IPFS. When the user enters this link, the request is not taken to the exact location of the page. Instead, anyone who has a version of the page on the web can provide it. The hash value is unique to the content, and it is impossible for anyone to disguise a fake file as a real one. By decentralizing storage, you can ensure that your data remains accessible and immutable at all times.

5.Cost of use

Cloud storage companies must create specialized facilities to store information. Running a data center also incurs additional overhead costs that are ultimately passed on to users. Decentralized storage is cheaper because they don’t require a lot of overhead costs. Encourage people to lend storage space for unused equipment. It also means users can pay less to store their data.

The representative projects of decentralized storage network

Decentralized storage is an evolving field, and here are some of the decentralized storage networks currently available.

IPFS: Created by Protocol Labs, IPFS is a decentralized protocol for storing and accessing data such as files, websites, and applications. IPFS uses content addressing to maintain data integrity and ensure long-term persistence and immutability of data.

Filecoin: Filecoin is a blockchain running on top of IPFS. While users can upload data to IPFS for storage, nodes have no incentive to keep it forever. Filecoin ensures that content is always available by rewarding nodes (miners) for storing content. These rewards come from transaction fees that users pay to store information on the Filecoin network. Filecoin uses a storage certificate mechanism to verify that miners are storing information as required.

Storj: Storj is a decentralized file hosting protocol running on the Ethereum blockchain. Nodes running the STORJ software sell their hardware space and bandwidth to earn STORJ tokens. The STORJ network encrypts and segments files before storing them in a distributed network of nodes. Because the STORJ network runs multiple nodes, it is immune to censorship, data loss, malicious attacks, and service failures.

ARWEAVE: Decentralized Storage Network ARWEAVE aims to challenge and disrupt traditional cloud storage providers like Google. It allows anyone with extra space to connect their computer (node) to the network and store data on behalf of others. Those who sell storage on the ARWEAVE network will receive the network’s native token AR as payment. This will incentivize them to keep these documents for their clients. ARWEAVE believes this incentive structure can help create a modern library that can permanently preserve human information.

Summary

The centralized storage service has been running for many years, but its disadvantages are becoming more and more obvious. Decentralized storage networks running on blockchains may provide better, cheaper and more secure mechanisms for storing information. Although decentralized storage networks are still in their early stages of growth, their adoption has already started to increase. With the surge in demand for efficient data storage, the decentralized storage model is likely to become an integral part of users and businesses in the future.