Scalability through Prefix Filtering

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Revision as of 14:55, 2 February 2015 by JonathanCoe (talk | contribs) (Added some more content)
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Introduction

This page describes a proposal for a way to make Bitmessage scalable.

NOTE: This proposal is not yet complete, as some aspects of proposed system are not yet resolved. Suggestions and contributions are welcome.

Summary of the proposal

  • Each Bitmessage address has a 'prefix' and a 'prefix length'. These values determine the balance between anonymity and efficiency that the owner of the address will have when retrieving messages from the network.
  • Each node in the Bitmessage network has a 'prefix' and a 'prefix length'. These values determine what part and what proportion of the total network traffic the node will handle.
  • Groups of nodes form overlapping 'streams' based on their prefix values. As the network grows or shrinks, nodes change their stream in order to handle a smaller or greater proportion of the network objet traffic.
  • Nodes maintain long-lived connections to nodes in their own stream and 'nearby' streams that are 'nearby' in the stream hierarchy, but also temporarily connect directly to nodes in any stream when necessary.
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Reasoning behind the proposal

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Proposed changes

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Prefix Filter Streams Hierarchy.png

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Node Connections Diagram.png


Examples

Example 1

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Example 2

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Example 3

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Notes

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Idea: POW variable by prefix specificity

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Unresolved Questions

Rules for nodes moving between streams

As the overall size of the network changes, nodes will need to adjust the proportion of the network traffic that they handle. This will require moving between streams. How should this be done?

Rules for addresses moving between streams

As the overall size of the network changes, addresses will need to move between streams in order to preserve the balance between anonymity and efficiency that their owner has selected. How should this be done?