changed 3 years ago  
Published Linked with GitHub

Exploring ways to improve IPNS!

slides: https://hackmd.io/@hugodias/ipns

Who are we?

  • Hugo Dias & Adin Schmahmann
  • Porto, Portugal & Boston, USA
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  • IPFS Core Developers
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Note:
ask who knows about IPFS, IPNS and DHT

IPNS

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Inter-Planetary Naming System
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IPFS is Immutable

> echo 'IPNS' > test.txt
> ipfs add test.txt
/ipfs/Qmcpr6B63t55cMni4zsZwdfsmc76bBWPgdP8fuoaGeat4x

> echo 'mutable' >> test.txt
> ipfs add test.txt
/ipfs/QmdfuCQQZG3ZknEcUs4vGuf8rWXFpZWD3eakTth74HbpNw

Note:
IPFS is powered by content-addressed data, which by nature is immutable: changing an object would change its hash, and consequently its address, making it a different object altogether.
However, there are several use cases where we benefit from having mutable data. This is where IPNS gets into the equation.

IPNS enables the creation of mutable pointers to a content path.

Note:
Each time a file is modified, its content address changes. As a consequence, the address previously used for getting that file needs to be updated by who is using it. As this is not pratical, IPNS was created to solve the problem.

IPNS is Mutable

> echo 'IPNS' > test.txt
> ipfs add test.txt
/ipfs/Qmcpr6B63t55cMni4zsZwdfsmc76bBWPgdP8fuoaGeat4x

> ipfs name publish /ipfs/Qmcpr6B63t55cMni4zsZwdfsmc76bBWPgdP8fuoaGeat4x
/ipns/QmcjrwMdCoLLSUk4bidy8PxFdDHFJLq4dq2i3k2Z3t8esv

> echo 'mutable' >> test.txt
> ipfs add test.txt
/ipfs/QmdfuCQQZG3ZknEcUs4vGuf8rWXFpZWD3eakTth74HbpNw

> ipfs name publish /ipfs/QmdfuCQQZG3ZknEcUs4vGuf8rWXFpZWD3eakTth74HbpNw
/ipns/QmcjrwMdCoLLSUk4bidy8PxFdDHFJLq4dq2i3k2Z3t8esv

Note:
IPNS is based on Self-certifying File System (SFS). It consists of a PKI namespace, where a name is simply the hash of a public key. As a result, whoever controls the private key has full control over the name. Accordingly, records are signed by the private key and then distributed across the network.

An IPNS record is a data structure containing the following fields:

  • value (eg. /ipfs/bafy…)
  • sequence
  • signature
  • public key
  • validity
  • validity type
  • ttl

Note:

  • value
    • It can be any path, such as a path to another IPNS record, a dnslink path (eg. /ipns/example.com) or an IPFS path (eg. /ipfs/Qm…)
  • validity
    • Expiration date of the record
  • Signature
    • Concatenate value, validity field and validity type. Sign the concatenation result with the provided private key.
  • Validity type
    • Allows us to define the conditions under which the record is valid.
  • Sequence
    • Represents the current version of the record (starts at 0)
  • Pubkey
  • Ttl
    • A hint for how long the record should be cached before going back to, for instance the DHT, in order to check if it has been updated.

Current Overview

ipns overview

Note:
Routing

  • DHT acts as a KV store and router
  • Right now PubSub works mostly to get faster updates

Multiple routers

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We don't need to choose just one router!
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  • DNS
  • MDNS
  • Workers
  • PubSub
  • DHT

Note:
Strategies: fastest, guaranteed of freshness, offline only.

IPNS over DNS

dig TXT bafybeicagsz6fho75fzralubljnhmvayrnkzgm4vtujedd7ldsojzn3xym.dns.ipns.dev

/ipfs/QmdfuCQQZG3ZknEcUs4vGuf8rWXFpZWD3eakTth74HbpNw

image alt

Note:

  • we built a package called ipns-ns
  • Nameservers for a domain (ipns.dev)

IPNS over DNS

IPNS over MDNS

  • Works offline
  • MDNS annouces ipns.local
  • Browser can resolve ipns.local

IPNS over Cloudflare Workers

  • Just a HTTP API with GET and PUT
  • Prototype to understand how IPNS works
  • It's still self-certifying
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  • Shows that any KV store can be used as a backend
  • Runs in the edges
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IPNS over DHT

  • Put and Get IPNS records into DHT
    • Resolve/Publish decentralized
  • On resolve ask for multiple records to confirm we have the latest version
    • Slow resolves since we need to find multiple records

IPNS over PubSub

  • Publish/Resolve records to/from interested peers
  • Fast record updates
  • Discover peers with:
    • DHT
    • DNS or MDNS
    • Rendezvous servers
  • Resolve speed depends on peer discovery method
  • Enables advanced use cases (e.g. multiple writers)

Note:

  • Publish/Resolve records to/from interested peers
    • Decentralized given interested peers
  • Discover peers with:
    • Any KV store
  • Resolve speed depends on peer discovery method
    • DHT peer discovery much faster than DHT record search

TLDR

  • multiple routers
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  • ipns can be fast
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  • ipns can be flexible
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  • ipns can be simple
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IPFS = *Content => Content
IPNS = **Content => *Content

Future work

  • Revocation and Rotation of IPNS keys
  • Multiple writers to a single IPNS key
    • Including access control/capabilities
  • Third-party republishing
  • Flexible strategies for multiple routers

Thank you!
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You can find us online with the handles

@hugomrdias @aschmahmann

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