What is IPFS And How Does IPFS Work?

In 2017, Filecoin broke the record and created a miracle of the global ICO (an initial coin offering), which made it a well-deserved star project comparable to Ethereum back then! Filecoin could gain such high attention largely due to its infrastructure IPFS (InterPlanetary File System).

What is IPFS?

The InterPlanetary Filing System (IPFS) is a totally new hypermedia text transfer protocol, which can be understood as a website supporting distributed storage. IPFS has the potential to revolutionize the way we share and access files on the internet, by providing a decentralized and censorship-resistant alternative to traditional file sharing systems.

The counterpart of IPFS is the centralized storage site that starts with HTTP we are familiar with currently. What is the difference between IPFS and the websites we usually use like Google and Amazon?

Everyone just thinks about it for a moment, is the data you store in the U disk or network disk absolutely safe? The answer is no! It may be lost or even harmonized, isn’t it? For example, in the former Jinshan network disk, when the official channel of the 360 network disk has been closed, the files need to be transferred in a large amount, which resulted in a waste of time and energy. In addition, like the Baidu network disk, the use-free space is limited and security is not fully guaranteed. If you want to increase the storage capacity, you have to charge it.

How Does IPFS Work?

The IPFS network storage file uses the decentralized fragmentation encryption storage technology, which divides the file into multiple segments and stores them on each node of the network. These nodes are the computers we use. When you download a file or want to open a file, the IPFS network will automatically restore the file for you.

This can stop someone or an organization from taking control of your data and from being hacked. The data we stored won’t be tampered with or deleted at will! In addition, using the IPFS network for file storage and file download is also quite fast in terms of speed, and also can let us completely say goodbye to the common freeze and 404 errors of the traditional HTTP protocol.

At present, IPFS can realize the transition from HTTP to IPFS through an HTTP gateway, and now some browsers have allowed access to IPFS. It is believed that users will soon be able to switch to IPFS to complete the storage, distribution, and service of the Web network.