Centralized network. Alternative Internet: list of decentralized services

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This study explains how the failure of one Autonomous System (AS) affects the global connectivity of a region, especially when it comes to the country's largest Internet Service Provider (ISP). The connectivity of the Internet at the network level is determined by the interaction between autonomous systems. As the number of alternative routes between ASs increases, fault tolerance arises and the stability of the Internet in a given country increases. However, some paths become more important than others, and having as many alternative paths as possible is ultimately the only way to ensure system reliability (in the AS sense).

The global connectivity of any AS, whether it is a minor Internet provider or an international giant with millions of service consumers, depends on the quantity and quality of its paths to Tier-1 providers. As a rule, Tier-1 means an international company offering global IP transit service and connection to other Tier-1 operators. However, there is no obligation within a given elite club to maintain such a connection. Only the market can motivate such companies to unconditionally connect with each other, ensuring high quality service. Is this enough incentive? We will answer this question below in the section on IPv6 connectivity.

If an ISP loses even one of its own Tier-1 connections, it will likely be unavailable in some parts of the world.

Measuring Internet Reliability

Imagine that the AS experiences significant network degradation. We are looking for an answer to the following question: “What percentage of AS in this region can lose connection with Tier-1 operators, thereby losing global availability”?

Today we will learn how to create and transfer static websites to a decentralized network. Roughly speaking, the entire frontend of your website will be on a decentralized network, and the logic will be in the clouds.

1. Collect the sources of your site

Each site must have source codes; if you ordered your site from a company or a programmer friend, ask for the source codes. If you wrote the site yourself, then you are lucky, the source code is always nearby! In any case, you can always download them from your existing hosting. Create a folder "My First Decentralized Site", put everything you need in it.

2. Move all possible logic to the cloud

If your portfolio site or landing page has comments, dynamic data (for example, a post feed), use comments through the Disqus platform. The feed of posts, if necessary, can be taken from Facebook, vk, twitter, medium, spark!

If you have a form where you save some data that is visible only to you, use cloud databases.

3. Check what you edited

Open the folder where your brand new website is located, which is about to be uploaded to the decentralized network. Find the index.html file there (if it doesn’t exist, then create and fill it out), also create a 404.html file whose contents are appropriate.

Open index.html in the browser, if there are any problems, go to step 2, most likely you have not all the logic transferred to the clouds.

Once you've tested everything, create zip archive, with your site.

4. Create a profile in a decentralized network

Go to DeNet Alpha, log in via Google or register yourself.

By default you will receive 50 tokens that can be spent on hosting your sites, you can earn them soon.

5. Upload the site to the decentralized network

Click "Add site"
Fill in information about the site (Fig. 1)
Next, click on the pencil (Figure 2)
Select "Download new version"
Send your .zip archive
Profit

Fig 1

Fig 2

Enough for 3-4 months

Here is a note for those attentive:

The network is now distributed, not decentralized
Registration is required only for your convenience and the convenience of users.
Currently, tokens can only be spent on creating a website
Tokens can be earned
Tokens can be purchased at the token sale.
Even we will not know what data you want to place with us.

The rental application will be ready at the beginning of April hard drive, subscribe to us to get the privilege of being the first users and earn tokens.

The flow of information today is enormous, so it is difficult to store it in such a way that you can easily find what you need at any time. To store large amounts of information, databases are used, which represent an ordered set of information. All databases can be divided into three types:

. In this case, all data is recorded in a single array, which is stored on one computer. To obtain information, you need to connect to a host computer called a server.

. In this case, there is no single central repository. Several servers provide information to clients. These servers are connected to each other.

Distributed . There are no data warehouses. Information is contained on all nodes. All clients are equal and have the same rights.

Application of databases

Although databases have been around for a long time, there are a number of challenges to using them.

Safety. Anyone who has access to the information server can add, change, and delete data.
Reliability. When several requests arrive at the same time, the server may crash and stop responding.
Availability. If problems occur in the central repository, you will not be able to obtain the information you need until the problems are resolved. Moreover, although different users different needs, the process of accessing information is unified and may be inconvenient for clients.
Data transfer rate. If the nodes are in different countries or continents, connecting to the server may be difficult.
Scalability. Centralized networks are difficult to expand because server performance and communication line capacity are limited.

Decentralized and distributed databases can solve all these problems.

Security of Decentralized Databases

Such databases do not have a centralized storage. This means that all data is distributed between network nodes. If something is added, edited or deleted on any computer, it will be reflected on all computers on the network. If authorized changes are made, the new information is distributed throughout the network to other users. IN otherwise, the data will be recovered from backup copy to make them match other nodes. Thus, the system is self-sufficient and self-regulating. Such databases are protected from deliberate attacks or accidental changes to information.

Reliability, availability and speed of data transfer in decentralized networks

Decentralized networks can withstand significant load.

The data is available on all network nodes. Therefore, incoming requests are distributed among nodes. Thus, the load falls not on one computer, but on the entire network. The overall performance of such a network is significantly higher than that of a centralized one.

Given that decentralized and distributed networks consist of a large number of computers, a DDoS attack will only be successful if its performance is much higher than the network's performance. But organizing such an attack would be extremely expensive. Therefore, we can assume that decentralized and distributed networks are secure.

Users can be located all over the world, and everyone can have problems with the Internet. In decentralized and distributed networks the client has the opportunity to select a node through which he can work with the necessary information.

Scaling across different databases

The centralized network cannot be expanded significantly.

The centralized model involves connecting all clients to the server. Data is stored only on the server. Therefore, all requests to receive, change, add or delete information go through the main computer. However, server resources are limited. Therefore, it can only work effectively with a certain number of network participants. If there are more clients, the server load may exceed this limit during peak periods. Decentralized and distributed models avoid such problems by distributing the load across multiple computers.

Application of decentralized and distributed databases

Such databases make it possible to speed up interaction between different parts of the production chain.

Consider the following example. During its service life, a car goes through different stages - assembly, sale, insurance, and so on, right up to disposal. At each stage, many different documentation and reports are created. If any clarification is necessary, requests are sent to the relevant authorities. This takes a lot of time. Physical location, different working languages and bureaucracy are just some of the challenges.

Blockchain technology avoids all these problems. All information about each car can be stored online. This data cannot be deleted or changed without the consent of the participant. And you have access to the necessary information at any time. This scheme is being implemented in practice by the authors of the CarFix project. Based on the idea of smart contracts, they are working to ensure that the entire life path of any vehicle is recorded on the blockchain.

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And each node (peer) is both a client and performs server functions. Unlike client-server architecture, this organization allows the network to remain operational with any number and any combination of available nodes. Participants in the network are peers.

Story

The phrase “peer-to-peer” was first used in 1984 during the development of IBM's Advanced Peer to Peer Networking (APPN) architecture.

Peer-to-Peer Network Device

There are a number of machines on the network, each of which can communicate with any of the others. Each of these machines can send requests to other machines to provide any resources within this network and, thus, act as a client. Being a server, each machine must be able to process requests from other machines on the network, sending back what was requested. Each machine must also perform some support and administrative functions (for example, maintaining a list of other known "neighbor" machines and keeping it up to date).

Any member of this network does not guarantee its presence on an ongoing basis. It can appear and disappear at any time. But when a certain critical size of the network is reached, a moment comes when many servers with the same functions simultaneously exist in the network.

Private P2P networks

Partially decentralized (hybrid) networks

In addition to pure P2P networks, there are so-called hybrid networks, in which there are servers used to coordinate work, search or provide information about existing machines on the network and their status (on-line, off-line, etc.). Hybrid networks combine the speed of centralized networks and the reliability of decentralized ones thanks to hybrid schemes with independent indexing servers that synchronize information with each other. If one or more servers fail, the network continues to function. Partially decentralized networks include eDonkey, BitTorrent, Direct Connect, The Onion Router.

Peer-to-peer file sharing network

Many files distributed on such networks that are not legally free for distribution are distributed on them without the permission of the copyright holders. Video publishing and recording companies claim that this results in significant lost profits for them. Adding to their problems is the fact that it is technically impossible to stop the distribution of a file in a decentralized network - this will require physically disconnecting from the network all the machines on which this file is located, and there can be very, very many such machines (see above) - depending on file popularity, their number can reach several hundred thousand. IN lately video publishers and record companies began suing individual users such networks, accusing them of illegally distributing music and videos.

Peer-to-peer distributed computing networks

The technology of peer-to-peer networks (not subject to quasi-synchronous calculation) is also used for distributed computing. They make it possible to perform a truly enormous amount of calculations in a relatively short time, which even on supercomputers would require, depending on the complexity of the problem, many years or even centuries of work. This performance is achieved due to the fact that some global task is divided into large number blocks that are simultaneously executed by hundreds of thousands of computers participating in the project. One example of such use of peer-to-peer networks was demonstrated by Sony on Sony PlayStation game consoles.

Peer-to-peer payment systems

Decentralized payment systems called cryptocurrencies. The main idea of their developers: modern payment systems are imperfect and depend on the will of high-ranking officials. Decentralized systems based on p2p technologies are a fairer means of mutual payments between users.

Other decentralized services

Peer-to-peer broadcasting

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Notes

An excerpt characterizing the Peer-to-Peer network

Count Turen led him into a large reception room, where many generals, chamberlains and Polish magnates were waiting, many of whom Balashev had seen at the court of the Russian emperor. Duroc said that Emperor Napoleon would receive the Russian general before his walk.
After several minutes of waiting, the chamberlain on duty came out into the large reception room and, bowing politely to Balashev, invited him to follow him.
Balashev entered a small reception room, from which there was one door to an office, the very office from which the Russian emperor sent him. Balashev stood there for about two minutes, waiting. Hasty steps were heard outside the door. Both halves of the door quickly opened, the chamberlain who opened it stopped respectfully, waiting, everything became quiet, and other, firm, decisive steps sounded from the office: it was Napoleon. He had just finished his riding toilet. He was wearing a blue uniform, open over a white vest that hung down over his round belly, white leggings that hugged the fat thighs of his short legs, and boots. His short hair had obviously just been combed, but one strand of hair hung down over the middle of his wide forehead. His white, plump neck protruded sharply from behind the black collar of his uniform; he smelled of cologne. On his youthful, plump face with a prominent chin there was an expression of gracious and majestic imperial greeting.
He walked out, shaking quickly with every step and throwing his head back a little. His entire plump, short figure with wide, thick shoulders and an involuntarily protruding belly and chest had that representative, dignified appearance that forty-year-old people living in the hallway have. In addition, it was clear that he was in the best spirits that day.
He nodded his head, responding to Balashev’s low and respectful bow, and, approaching him, immediately began to speak like a man who treasures every minute of his time and does not deign to prepare his speeches, but is confident in what he will always say. ok and what needs to be said.
- Hello, general! - he said. “I received the letter from Emperor Alexander that you delivered, and I am very glad to see you.” “He looked into Balashev’s face with his big eyes and immediately began to look ahead past him.
It was obvious that he was not at all interested in Balashev’s personality. It was clear that only what was happening in his soul was of interest to him. Everything that was outside of him did not matter to him, because everything in the world, as it seemed to him, depended only on his will.
“I do not want and did not want war,” he said, “but I was forced into it.” Even now (he said this word with emphasis) I am ready to accept all the explanations that you can give me. - And he clearly and briefly began to state the reasons for his displeasure against the Russian government.
Judging by the moderately calm and friendly tone with which the French emperor spoke, Balashev was firmly convinced that he wanted peace and intended to enter into negotiations.
- Sire! L "Empereur, mon maitre, [Your Majesty! The Emperor, my lord,] - Balashev began a long-prepared speech when Napoleon, having finished his speech, looked questioningly at the Russian ambassador; but the look of the emperor’s eyes fixed on him confused him. “You are confused “Get over yourself,” Napoleon seemed to say, looking at Balashev’s uniform and sword with a barely noticeable smile. Balashev recovered and began to say that Emperor Alexander did not consider Kurakin’s demand for passports a sufficient reason for the war, that Kurakin acted this way on his own. without the consent of the sovereign, that Emperor Alexander does not want war and that there are no relations with England.
“Not yet,” Napoleon interjected and, as if afraid to give in to his feelings, he frowned and nodded his head slightly, thereby letting Balashev feel that he could continue.
Having expressed everything that he was ordered, Balashev said that Emperor Alexander wants peace, but will not begin negotiations except on the condition that... Here Balashev hesitated: he remembered those words that Emperor Alexander did not write in the letter, but which he certainly ordered that Saltykov be inserted into the rescript and which Balashev ordered to hand over to Napoleon. Balashev remembered these words: “until not a single armed enemy remains on Russian land,” but some complex feeling held him back. He could not say these words, although he wanted to do so. He hesitated and said: on the condition that the French troops retreat beyond the Neman.
Napoleon noticed Balashev's embarrassment when uttering his last words; his face trembled, his left calf began to tremble rhythmically. Without leaving his place, he began to speak in a voice higher and more hasty than before. During the subsequent speech, Balashev, more than once lowering his eyes, involuntarily observed the trembling of the calf in Napoleon’s left leg, which intensified the more he raised his voice.
“I wish peace no less than Emperor Alexander,” he began. “Isn’t it me who has been doing everything for eighteen months to get it?” I've been waiting eighteen months for an explanation. But in order to start negotiations, what is required of me? - he said, frowning and making an energetic questioning gesture with his small, white and plump hand.
“The retreat of the troops beyond the Neman, sir,” said Balashev.
- For Neman? - Napoleon repeated. - So now you want them to retreat beyond the Neman - only beyond the Neman? – Napoleon repeated, looking directly at Balashev.
Balashev bowed his head respectfully.
Instead of the demand four months ago to retreat from Numberania, now they demanded to retreat only beyond the Neman. Napoleon quickly turned and began to walk around the room.
– You say that they require me to retreat beyond the Neman to begin negotiations; but they demanded of me in exactly the same way two months ago to retreat beyond the Oder and Vistula, and, despite this, you agree to negotiate.
He silently walked from one corner of the room to the other and again stopped opposite Balashev. His face seemed to harden in its stern expression, and his left leg trembled even faster than before. Napoleon knew this trembling of his left calf. “La vibration de mon mollet gauche est un grand signe chez moi,” he said later.
“Such proposals as clearing the Oder and the Vistula can be made to the Prince of Baden, and not to me,” Napoleon almost cried out, completely unexpectedly for himself. – If you had given me St. Petersburg and Moscow, I would not have accepted these conditions. Are you saying I started the war? Who came to the army first? - Emperor Alexander, not me. And you offer me negotiations when I have spent millions, while you are in an alliance with England and when your position is bad - you offer me negotiations! What is the purpose of your alliance with England? What did she give you? - he said hastily, obviously already directing his speech not in order to express the benefits of concluding peace and discussing its possibility, but only in order to prove both his rightness and his strength, and to prove Alexander’s wrongness and mistakes.

In connection with the total wiretapping of Internet channels and the transparency of commercial Internet companies, government agencies are now faced with the acute question of countermeasures. For the user, the most effective option is to use cryptographic tools and decentralized services.

AnoNet

AnoNet is a decentralized network between friends using VPN and software BGP routers.

Bitcoin

Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency.

BitPhone

BitPhone is a mobile communications device powered by a Bitcoin-style decentralized network.

BitMessage

BitMessage is a P2P communication protocol used to exchange encrypted messages from one user to many subscribers.

Commotion Wireless

Commotion Wireless open source communication tool running on mobile phones, computers and others wireless devices to create decentralized mesh networks.

Cryptosphere

Distributed encrypted cloud storage based on the Git data model.

Drogulus

Drogulus (WIP) is a programmable P2P data storage with cryptography support.

eDonkey Network (eD2k)

The eDonkey network is a decentralized file-sharing network for exchanging large files.

Freenet

Freenet - free software for anonymous file sharing, website publishing (only available via Freenet), chats and forums.

Freifunk

Freifunk is a non-profit initiative to create a free, decentralized mesh network. Freifunk firmware is based on OpenWRT and OLSR or B.A.T.M.A.N.

GNUnet

GNUnet is a framework for secure peer-to-peer communications without the use of central or intermediate servers.

Grimwire

Grimwire is a browser application that uses Web Workers for process isolation and WebRTC for peer-to-peer communications.

Guifi

Guifi is a European (mainly Spanish) large mesh network with over 22,000 active WiFi nodes and 25 km of fiber.

I2P

I2P is an anonymizing network that uses several levels of encryption.

Kademlia

Kademlia is a distributed hash table for P2P networks.

NameCoin

NameCoin - distributed system DNS on Bitcoin technology.

Nightweb

Nightweb is an experimental application for Android or PC that allows you to publish content and communicate via BitTorrent over I2P.

LibreVPN

LibreVPN is a virtual mesh network with configuration scripts that allow you to set up your own mesh VPN.

OpenNIC

OpenNIC Project is an open and democratic alternative DNS provider.

Osiris

Osiris - software for a decentralized portal managed and operating via P2P.

PeerCDN

PeerCDN - automatically distributes static resources on the site (images, videos, files) through a P2P network made up of visitors who at the moment are on the website.

PeerCoin/PPCoin

PeerCoin/PPCoin is the first cryptocurrency based on the implementation of both proof-of-stake and proof-of-work systems.

PeerServer

PeerServer is a peer-to-peer client-server technology using WebRTC, where your browser acts as a server for other browsers via WebRTC peer-to-peer P2P channels.

Phantom

Phantom is a system of decentralized Internet anonymity.

Project Byzantium

Project Byzantium is a Linux distribution with support for wireless mesh networks that will provide communication in the event of a natural disaster or Internet provider failure.

Project Meshnet

Project Meshnet aims to create a sustainable, decentralized alternative internet.

Quick mesh project

Quick mesh project - OpenWRT-based firmware for creating mesh networks.

Retroshare

Open source, decentralized communication platform for chats and file sharing.

Serval Project

Serval Project allows you to make calls between mobile phones without using base stations.

Syndie

Syndie is an open source system for supporting distributed forums.

Tahoe-LAFS

Tahoe-LAFS - free distributed file system with duplication of information.

Unhosted

Unhosted - serverless web applications that run in the client's browser.

Vole

Vole- social network in the browser, without a central server, uses Bittorrent, Go and Ember.js, as well as Bittorrent Sync.

ZeroTier One

ZeroTier One is an open source application for creating huge distributed Ethernet networks. End-to-end encryption is used for all traffic. There is a commercial and free version.