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Filecoin in One Word
Mara McMahonNov 22, 20243 min read

Filecoin in One Word

Filecoin in One Word
4:26
Filecoin’s innovative Proof of Replication and Proof of Spacetime create a system of continual data verification you can depend on.

Verification, verification, verification - kind of like location in real estate.  I wasn’t planning on doing this, but every path I went down related to verification came down to trust or not to trust.  So I am beginning with trustlessness.  Every time i see that word I actually think - don’t you mean trustworthy?  Which is sort of a different question . . . let me explain.

Part 2 - Filecoin in one word

A trustless system is a system that allows participants to reach a consensus without needing to trust each other or an authority. Instead, trust is placed in code, algorithms, and economic incentives. Trustless systems are designed to work without the need for trust, so participants don't need to rely on anyone's word or reputation. The system does not require trust so it is trustless.

As opposed to being trustworthy, a promise has been to do an action, and based on the background check done, the action doer is trusted to deliver. Is that too esoteric? Ok, real world example. A hosting company, let’s say IBM, has provided you with a contract to store your archive data and prevent it from being accessed and/or changed, and also available every day. You are trusting that IBM will uphold the contract. If they don’t uphold it, you are trusting they will let you know that there was a breach. IBM archive services look to be good, and you know others who are happy with it.

With that understanding of the definition of trustless, we come back to Filecoin, which is a trustless system. Filecoin is also trustworthy because there is no reliance on a person, company, or government, the trustworthiness is proven by code and algorithms. I might say it this way.  Would you rather have your most valuable belongings, being checked on by a person or persons, or through automated confirmation from a pool of computing resources (100s and 1000s) who all must agree that everything is perfect at the same point in time?  These code and computing algorithms are called consensus.  Consensus delivers a proof (kind of like geometry class) at a predetermined cadence - with Filecoin it is once every 24 hours.

How does Filecoin verify data?

Filecoin is a consensus network which means there are many (100s) of computer resources checking that the work that was committed to is actually being done. This verification of work being done is a proof that can be viewed. This is where Filecoin’s special verification technology comes into play. If you looked down below and you are non-techie (like me) DON’T LEAVE - it sounds difficult to understand, but it is actually ok. It uses two main techniques:

  1. Proof of Replication (PoRep): Think of it as a way to prove that your locker (or in this case, a storage provider) is actually holding onto your stuff. Filecoin asks the provider to create a unique “fingerprint” of the data they’re storing. This fingerprint is like a snapshot of your items in the locker. If someone tries to cheat and not actually store your data, they wouldn’t be able to create the right fingerprint, and they'd get caught.
  2. Proof of Spacetime (PoSt): Now, imagine that someone comes by at random times to check if your stuff is still in the locker. This is what PoSt does. It’s a way of continuously checking that the storage provider hasn’t messed with the data over time. If they can’t prove they’re still holding onto the data, they don't get paid.

Storage providers are responsible for proving that they are storing the correct data over time. Other nodes in the network verify the proofs, which are then added to the Filecoin blockchain. Anyone can use the blockchain to verify the content being stored, how many copies there are, and who it's stored with.

Why does this matter?

Proof beats promises. Traditional storage solutions rely on promises (with varying degree of consequences should they fail called SLAs). You trust a company to keep your data secure. But with Filecoin, there’s a system that constantly checks and verifies that your data is exactly where it should be, safe and sound. Read the next installment and understand one of the most impactful and overlooked aspects of Filecoin and why you can believe in it. 

Read the next blog in the series “Filecoin in one word” to understand the next layer in Filecoin based services.

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