Iroh

Decentralized Data Protocol

A modular P2P networking stack providing direct, encrypted connections between devices using public key addresses instead of IP addresses. Built by n0, Inc. (Rust; open source; 8K GitHub stars). The core primitive is the Endpoint — a QUIC-based peer identified by a cryptographic key rather than IP address, enabling persistent addressability regardless of network topology. All connections are E2EE over QUIC with no certificate management required. Composable protocol modules include Blobs (resumable, verifiable content-addressed data transfer), Gossip (topic-based broadcast to groups of endpoints), and Documents (realtime multiwriter key-value sync with CRDTs). NAT traversal and relay fallback are built in. Used in production by Delta Chat (real-time sync), Spacedrive (file sync), Nous (distributed AI training), Holochain (DHT transport), and Paycode (offline POS payments).

Comunidade
Links
Visitar Comunidade

Detalhes

Licença Open source (MIT/Apache-2.0); https://github.com/n0-computer/iroh
Status de Dev 🟢 Ativo
Detalhe do Status de Dev Released (production deployments; v0.97+ with custom transports; 8K GitHub stars; active blog and release cadence; paid hosting and observability services available)
Proprietário n0, Inc. (Number Zero); https://github.com/n0-computer/iroh; contact: matthewschutte (calendly)
País USA
Ano de Início 2022
Stack Rust (core library and all protocol modules); QUIC (transport via quinn crate); Ed25519 (keypair identity); WebAssembly (browser compatibility)
Financiamento Venture / Commercial (n0, Inc. commercial entity; paid services; specific VC funding unconfirmed)
Última Investigação 1 de jul. de 2026

Domínios de Caso de Uso

Platform Evolution & Sovereignty

Decentralized Data Protocol Atributos

Origins P2P networking / Infrastructure (motivated by the fragility of IP-address-based networking; public key addressing enables persistent, location-independent device identity; reduces cloud costs via direct peer connections; designed as modular infrastructure layer for any application requiring P2P connectivity)
Database DHT (for peer discovery and relay coordination); local SQLite (Documents protocol state); in-memory options for Blobs and Gossip
Query Language N/A (networking library; no query language)
Data Formats QUIC packets (transport); content-addressed blobs (BLAKE3 hashed data chunks); CRDT documents (key-value pairs with vector clocks); gossip messages (topic-scoped broadcast events); custom ALPN protocol identifiers
Collaborative Live Editing Yes (Documents protocol provides realtime multiwriter key-value sync with CRDTs)
Rich Text Editing N/A (networking library)
Mobile Support Yes (Android, iOS — Rust FFI bindings; embedded systems including ESP32, Raspberry Pi)
Web Support Partial (WebAssembly build for browser; primary use is native applications)
Native Apps Yes (Windows, macOS, Linux native; embedded hardware)
Terms Free (open source core); paid hosting and observability services via services.iroh.computer
Funds Undisclosed
Based On QUIC (transport standard — RFC 9000); Ed25519 (cryptographic identity); BLAKE3 (content hashing for Blobs); MLS-compatible (E2EE pattern); custom ALPN protocol identifiers for composable application protocols
P2P Architecture Key-addressed P2P mesh (each endpoint identified by Ed25519 public key; QUIC for transport; built-in NAT traversal (hole punching); relay fallback when direct connections fail; no IP address dependency; asynchronous and serverless)
Overlay Network App-wide (scoped to network of Iroh endpoints; composable across DHT, gossip groups, and document namespaces; deployable from embedded IoT to cloud)
Content Addressing Yes (Blobs protocol: BLAKE3 content addressing; resumable and verifiable data transfer; content integrity guaranteed by hash)
Local-First Yes (Documents protocol: local-first CRDT key-value sync; offline edits merge on reconnect; Gossip: offline-tolerant broadcast)
E2EE Yes (Documents protocol: E2EE at QUIC transport layer for all connections; application-layer E2EE composable on top)
CRDTs Lib Yes (Documents protocol: multiwriter CRDT key-value sync; specific CRDT type unconfirmed — likely Automerge or custom implementation)
Byzantine Fault Tolerance Partial (QUIC provides transport-layer reliability and ordering; application-level BFT depends on application design; no built-in consensus mechanism)
Signature Ed25519 (all connections; keypair identifies endpoint; signatures on QUIC handshakes)
Permissions Application-defined (permissions delegated to application layer via ALPN protocol dispatch; Iroh core enforces authenticated connections but not application-level access control)
Semantic Web Compatibility No (networking library; no semantic web features)
Smart Contract No (no smart contract capability; pure networking stack)
Protocol Stack Position Transport layer (sits at transport/application boundary of the network stack; provides secure authenticated transport for higher-level protocols; analogous to TLS + connection management but with persistent key-based identity)
Asset / Value Embedding N/A (networking library; no native asset or value embedding; applications built on Iroh can embed value)
Protocol Maturity / Standardization Released / Production (8K GitHub stars; production use in Delta Chat, Spacedrive, Nous, Holochain, Paycode; paid commercial services; active blog and release cadence; custom transports added v0.97; Bluetooth transport; no formal IETF standardization but built on QUIC RFC 9000)