What can slow down the implementation of IPFS

Hornbeam

3 min

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A bright future has long been predicted for the protocol. We talked about this in one of our previous materials . And today we decided to take a look at how things are going with the implementation of IPFS and what factors are slowing down the spread.

/ Unsplash.com / Pier Monzon

A little context

IPFS is an open source protocol that connects devices into a network with a distributed file system. Thus, data is stored on several devices at once and does not depend on central servers as in the classic client-server model.

The protocol is already in practical use. Based on it, e-commerce sellers build digital storefronts, and medical institutions use it to exchange data on diseases. A laboratory at the University of Southern California and Stanford University has designed an IPFS-based repository and stores records of historical significance there. At the same time, secure data storage facilities, as well as tools for developers, are created for the ecosystem .

But despite the variety of projects, it is too early to talk about mass distribution of the protocol. What is slowing down the implementation of IPFS?

What are the difficulties?

One of the key problems is the established Internet infrastructure. It is operated by thousands of providers, telecommunications companies and corporations. This “distribution” is one of the strengths of the Internet. But it also makes it impossible to make fundamental changes that could break the functionality of applications for millions of people. We can also say that AJAX and REST API “ cemented ” the basis of computer-to-computer interaction using the HTTP API.

In such conditions, it is difficult to push through even incremental modifications. A good example would be IPv6, which has not gained serious traction for decades. Only at the end of April its share in network traffic for the first time  crossed the 40% mark.

The second difficulty relates to the presentation of addresses. IPFS is based on hash addressing, that is, the value returned by the hash function is used as the address. The result is a URL that is difficult to write and read. For example, at the address below is the Wikipedia logo:

ipfs://QmRW3V9znzFW9M5FYbitSEvd5dQrPWGvPvgQD6LM22Tv8D/

Even the protocol developers themselves note that the search and implementation of effective mechanisms related to converting IPFS addresses into constructs understandable to people will help the spread of the technology.

The third problem is related to the speed of protocol development. Seven years after its launch, versions of it are still starting from scratch . The latest version - 0.16.0 - was released on October 4, 2022. So far, as Hacker News residents note, the protocol’s performance leaves much to be desired. It can work quickly, but through caching proxies. A common situation is when you have to wait 45 seconds to start downloading a file.

/ Unsplash.com / Metin Ozer

Finally, the issue of cybersecurity remains open. In early November, a group of information security specialists reported that attackers use IPFS as an infrastructure for phishing and store entire families of malware there - for example, Hannabi Grabber information theft software written in Python. Although this cannot be called a unique problem, since hackers do the same thing under the current Internet architecture.

So is there a future?

There is no consensus on this issue in the IT community. There is an opinion that IPFS will really solve many problems of Internet architecture and make it more stable. The Internet Archive has long argued that the new protocol will help preserve the legacy of the Internet. We are talking about graphics, videos, software and website pages whose average lifespan does not exceed one hundred days .

However, IPFS still has a long way to go, both in terms of popularization and technical development.

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