IPFS & Data Integrity
IPFS stands for Interplanetary File System. It’s a distributed file system used for storing and sharing files, data, and websites. The system has unique benefits such as decentralization and data integrity. More information here.
IPFS is decentralized by creating a peer-to-peer network that can be hosted anywhere. It provides data integrity by linking to it’s content instead of the location. For example:
https://ipfs.io/ipfs/QmWATWQ7fVPP2EFGu71UkfnqhYXDYH566qy47CnJDgvs8u
The QmWAT… is the hash of the content “Hello World”.
If someone were to change “Hello World” to “Goodbye World”, the hash and thus the link will change.
https://ipfs.io/ipfs/QmP8CvqzGRgH3WyeVKm8F1Pr6S4PGfuaCx6NVWuc929HWf
It’ll be impossible to change the content without changing the link, which is great for data integrity. But…
What if the content changes?
If the content changes, the hash will change and the link will change.
This can be a headache if you‘re adding/updating content. Imagine a blog with new articles everyday. You’ll have to generate a new hash every time something changes.
Everything downstream will also be changed. If you have a domain name (myawesomeipfswebsiteblog.com), then you’ll have to update the values to the new hash.
Terminal.co
Terminal aims to simplify web development into one seamless workflow. Simply push changes to Git and Terminal will automatically update, pin and deploy changes downstream.
Some features:
- Terminal accommodates many frameworks such as gatsby, jekyll, create-react-app etc.
- Terminal also handles DNS records. Either purchase a domain from them or point it to a domain you purchased elsewhere.
- No need to manually update hashes, TXT values etc.
- Terminal provides a CID (content identifier) for more IPFS features such as verification and self hosting.
More Info
- To request early access, visit Terminal Beta.
- For more details, check out their documentation. (More content soon)
- For additional questions and 24/7 support, join their Slack.
