Decentralized Applications (dApps) on Blockchain

Introduction

Decentralized applications (dApps) are digital applications. They exist and run on a blockchain or peer-to-peer network of computers rather than a single computer. These are independent of any single authority’s control. Dapps use a decentralized network to run their backend code (smart contracts), rather than a centralized server and data storage. Data is stored in a decentralized fashion utilizing Ethereum blockchain and platforms such as The InterPlanetary File System (IPFS). IPFS is a file-sharing system that can be leveraged to more efficiently store and share large files. It relies on cryptographic hashes that can easily be stored on a blockchain.

dApps vs Apps

The creation of dApps, or “decentralized apps,” is still in its genesis state. DApp is the application layer for blockchains, similar to how many IT technologies have underlying (infrastructure) and application layers. The performance and advancement of dApps will decide whether blockchain technology is widely adopted. There are some significant distinctions between a dApp and an app. To begin with, the process of a dApp is fully transparent and reported on the public ledger. Unlike the traditional applications, once data is created it cannot be deleted and transactions are irreversible and immutable. Apps are simple to use, even for non-technical people. They are simple to create since they function in all browsers without additional dependencies such as wallets, extensions, etc. Apps are easier to use and better in terms of user experience because apps use user IDs/names and passwords for identification and authentication whereas dApps use wallet’s public and private keys for this purpose. DApps are scalable because they are blockchain-based applications with peer-to-peer validation. They’re mostly free and open-source applications. All developers around the world can make improvements and add value to the app for all users.

Advantages of dApps

• Censorship-resistant — With no single point of failure, controlling the network is extremely difficult for governments or influential individuals.
• No downtime — Because the dApps are built on a peer-to-peer scheme, they continue to run even if individual machines or parts of the network go down.
• Blockchain-based — Because they’re also built on smart contracts, they can easily incorporate cryptocurrencies into the dApp’s core functions.
• Open-source — This facilitates the growth of the dApp ecosystem, allowing developers to create better versions of dApps with more useful and interesting features.

dApps are still in the early stages of growth. Thousands of dapps already exist. They are offering a wide range of services such as gaming, money trading, and even developing your own digital currencies.

Challenges of dApps

The most significant issue with decentralization is the scope of the problems. The paces with which decisions must be taken during the feedback loop. Even if the governance model is great, the speed at which the group chooses solutions would be too slow and ineffective, particularly if there is already competition. DApps infrastructure is harder to maintain and develop because they require smart contracts to be developed and integrated with the front-end application. If the smart contract is deployed on Ethereum Mainnet and anything needs to be changed so the contracts need to be redeployed which is very costly.

In order to interact with the smart contract, we need to make transactions that make the dApps dependable and slow while payments are processed. This adds lag time to processes we have come to expect as instantaneous. Unlike traditional applications, dApps are resistant to attacks than normal applications. If a centralized application is attacked or taken down, the entire system stops working, whereas a dApp can only be taken down if every single computer in the network is down which is near to impossible.