DFOS Protocol

P2P Protocol

A formal specification for Ed25519-signed chains that establish self-certifying identity, content-addressed commitments, and author-controlled proof surfaces. Separates the proof surface (public cryptographic commitments, verifiable offline) from the content surface (application-layer, private by default). Defines the did:dfos DID method, DAG-based chain structure with deterministic convergence, and a relay network of verifying HTTP endpoints that distribute proofs without trusting each other.

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Detalhes

Licença Permissive (MIT); https://github.com/metalabel/dfos — TypeScript reference implementation; cross-language verification in Go, Python, Rust, Swift against deterministic test vectors
Status de Dev 🟢 Ativo
Detalhe do Status de Dev Released / Active (specification under active development; MIT license; CLI ships pre-built binaries; DFOS platform runs on protocol in production)
Proprietário Metalabel (company behind the DFOS platform); open specification; reference implementation by Metalabel team
País USA
Ano de Início 2022
Stack TypeScript/JavaScript (primary SDK: @metalabel/dfos-protocol on npm); Go, Python, Rust, Swift (cross-language verification implementations); CLI pre-built binaries (Linux, macOS, Windows, Homebrew, Docker)
Financiamento Unknown (Metalabel is a company; funding status not publicly disclosed)
Última Investigação 1 de jul. de 2026

Domínios de Caso de Uso

Platform Evolution & Sovereignty

P2P Protocol Atributos

Origins Decentralized authorship / publishing (motivated by the structural condition that platform identity is platform-granted; designed to invert this by making proofs self-certifying and content-surface separation architectural rather than a setting)
Database N/A (protocol defines chain structure, not storage; DFOS platform implements storage separately)
Query Language N/A (chains resolved by DID / cryptographic key; no query interface in protocol)
Data Formats Custom binary/JSON (Ed25519-signed operation records); CID (content-addressed commitments); did:dfos DID documents
Collaborative Live Editing N/A (protocol governs authorship proofs, not collaborative editing)
Rich Text Editing N/A (content surface is application-layer concern; protocol only sees hashes)
Mobile Support Library-level (cross-platform SDKs; no dedicated mobile app in protocol spec)
Web Support Yes (TypeScript SDK; CLI accessible via web tooling; DFOS platform is web-based)
Native Apps Yes (CLI pre-built binaries for Linux, macOS, Windows; Homebrew and Docker install paths)
Terms Free / Open source (MIT license for protocol and reference implementation)
Funds Unknown
Based On Ed25519 (signatures); CID (content addressing); DAG (chain structure); did:dfos (self-certifying DID method derived from genesis operation)
P2P Architecture Relay mesh (verifying HTTP relay endpoints distribute proofs without trusting each other; DAG-native chains are transport-agnostic — valid from API, USB, or P2P exchange)
Overlay Network Global (relay network is open; any relay implementing the spec participates; proof propagation is gossip-like across relay nodes)
Content Addressing Yes (CID-based content commitments; chain keys are deterministic hashes of genesis operations; content-addressed throughout)
Local-First Yes (verification is offline-first; chain carries everything needed for proof verification with no network required)
E2EE No (protocol does not encrypt; privacy comes from separation — proof surface is public, content surface governed by application-layer access control)
CRDTs Lib N/A (DAG convergence is deterministic by highest createdAt timestamp with lexicographic CID tiebreaker; no CRDT library used)
Byzantine Fault Tolerance No (no consensus mechanism; forks are valid and convergence is deterministic without coordination)
Signature Ed25519 (all operations signed; chains are self-certifying; verification is a pure function requiring no external authority)
Permissions Cryptographic Capabilities (knowledge of DID / public key authorizes chain operations; content access governed separately at application layer)
Semantic Web Compatibility N/A (protocol operates on hashes and cryptographic commitments; no RDF or linked data vocabulary defined)
Smart Contract No (no blockchain or smart contract component; self-certifying without on-chain registry)
Protocol Stack Position Application-layer (built on TCP/IP)
Asset / Value Embedding None — DFOS Protocol is an authorship proof and identity layer with no native token or value transfer.
Protocol Maturity / Standardization Proprietary Open Standard (MIT-licensed specification under active development; multiple cross-language implementations against deterministic test vectors; not submitted to formal standards body; governed by Metalabel)