libp2p is the networking stack of IPFS, a modular networking library to solve P2P application needs.
libp2p is the product of a long and arduous quest to understand the evolution of the Internet networking stack. In order to build P2P applications, dev have long had to made custom ad-hoc solutions to fit their needs, sometimes making some hard assumptions about their runtimes and the state of the network at the time of their development. Today, looking back more than 20 years, we see a clear pattern in the types of mechanisms built around the Internet Protocol, IP, which can be found throughout many layers of the OSI layer system, libp2p distils these mechanisms into flat categories and defines clear interfaces that once exposed, enable other protocols and applications to use and swap them, enabling upgradability and adaptability for the runtime, without breaking the API.
We are in the process of writting better documentation, blog posts, tutorials and a formal specification. Today you can find:
- libp2p.io - The libp2p Website (WIP)
- Specification (WIP)
- Talks
- Articles
To sum up, libp2p is a "network stack" -- a protocol suite -- that cleanly separates concerns, and enables sophisticated applications to only use the protocols they absolutely need, without giving up interoperability and upgradeability. libp2p grew out of IPFS, but it is built so that lots of people can use it, for lots of different projects.
With its modular nature, libp2p can be found being used in different projects with different sets of features, while perserving the same top level API. js-libp2p is only a skelleton and should not be installed directly, if you are looking for a prebundled libp2p stack, please check:
- libp2p-ipfs-nodejs - The libp2p build used by js-ipfs when run in Node.js
- libp2p-ipfs-browser - The libp2p build used by js-ipfs when run in a Browser (that supports WebRTC)
If you have developed a libp2p bundle, please consider submitting it to this list so that it can be found easily by the users of libp2p.
Again, as noted above, this module is only a skeleton and should not be used directly other than libp2p bundle implementors that want to extend its code.
npm install --save libp2pDisclamer - We haven't solidified libp2p interface yet, it might change at anytime.
libp2p becomes very simple and basically acts as a glue for every module that compose this library. Since it can be highly customized, it requires some setup. What we recommend is to have a libp2p build for the system you are developing taking into account in your needs (e.g. for a browser working version of libp2p that acts as the network layer of IPFS, we have a built and minified version that browsers can require)
Defined by interface-libp2p
> npm run lintList of packages currently in existance for libp2p
| Package | Version | Dependencies | DevDependencies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bundles | |||
libp2p-ipfs-nodejs |
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libp2p-ipfs-browser |
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| Transports | |||
libp2p-utp |
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libp2p-websockets |
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libp2p-webrtc-star |
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| Connection Upgrades | |||
interface-connection |
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| Stream Muxers | |||
interface-stream-muxer |
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libp2p-spdy |
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libp2p-multiplex |
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| Discovery | |||
libp2p-mdns-discovery |
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libp2p-railing |
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| Crypto Channels | |||
libp2p-secio |
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| Peer Routing | |||
libp2p-kad-routing |
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| Content Routing | |||
interface-record-store |
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libp2p-record |
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libp2p-distributed-record-store |
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libp2p-kad-record-store |
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| Generics | |||
libp2p-swarm |
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libp2p-ping |
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multistream-select |
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| Data Types | |||
peer-book |
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peer-id |
THe libp2p implementation in JavaScript is a work in progress. As such, there's a few things you can do right now to help out:
- Go through the modules and check out existing issues. This would be especially useful for modules in active development. Some knowledge of IPFS/libp2p may be required, as well as the infrasture behind it - for instance, you may need to read up on p2p and more complex operations like muxing to be able to help technically.
- Perform code reviews. Most of this has been developed by @diasdavid, which means that more eyes will help a) speed the project along b) ensure quality and c) reduce possible future bugs.
- Add tests. There can never be enough tests.
MIT © David Dias