Just Another Communications Stack (JACS) - Web 3.0 Internet Address Allocation
Christos Hatjoullis
Creative Director - Animation - Moving Image / Digital / VR / Mentor
The Internet
which has radically altered society as we know it on Planet Earth in little over a generation may be one of the best things since sliced bread but it's actually just a whole load of computers wired together with clever routing and as such, it relies on a system for allocating addresses so that all of the connected devices can communicate with each other. (spoiler alert - there is a reference to blockchain in this article) ??
Each Connected Device
requires it's own unique address and there are currently about 7 billion devices connected, almost 1 for each person alive today. It had been anticipated for many years that the 32 bit IPv4 system of address allocation would be unable to keep up with predicted future demand and so IPv6 was developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force - IETF in 1998 to counter the problem.
The eventual jump to 128 bits (ratified as an internet standard in 2017) created an intergalactic potential of unique addresses to rely on, but like many other aspects of life, the allocation of IP addresses is not a perfect system and relies on a very few allocators (5 regional registries per continental territory) meaning it's a highly centralised operation. Centralised systems often monopolise the market, have singular failure points and are often slow to respond adequately or swiftly to change through a lack of flexibility, innovation and competition.
Renewal Fees
To add to the centralisation problem, address stack renewals require address stack renewal fees to be paid repeatedly and with the advent of the Internet of Things meaning a whole new generation of everyday electrical appliances; think robots - requiring their own multiple internet addresses, (not least so that they can report maintenance issues and important marketing user data back to the factory) and the roll out of ultra-high bandwidth 5G networks, address stack renewal fees will begin to stack up ever higher as ever more addresses will be required over the long term.
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Internet Addresses for Everything
When fully immersive virtual reality (& autonomous robots) becomes everyday business and business for the everyday and it / they will.. (have you tried the ILM Xlab - Star Wars Void experience yet?) the requirement for internet addresses will go through the roof and this is the kind of problem which keeps (some) network consultants awake at night.
Disruptive Solutions
However, the blockchain revolution wouldn't be a real revolution if it didn't offer a whole host of disruptive solutions across all sectors where technology is applied (basically everything) and it's something leading network consultant and Viablock's Founder, Mohamed El Dessouki has been thinking about for some time. Along with Co-Founder and rising blockchain guru Moustafa Amin, they have come up with a truly revolutionary and blockchain solution to this thorny internet address problem.. and with impeccable timing.
JACS
(Just Another Communications Stack) effectively provides a new communications stack, totally different from TP/IP and it aims to change the way data networks currently work.
It's also a hybrid solution, combining blockchain with Connection-Less Network Services (CNLS) which offers a staggering 160 bits to play with. Blockchain projects have a reliable track record of producing novel solutions to endemic problems. De-centralisation offers blockchain based services the healthy benefit of lowering fees and cutting out middlemen. That's one of the reasons why blockchain enthusiasts get so enthused about blockchain in the first place. The implications of this new wave of software are enormous when combined with other innovative technologies; opportunities can be created which were previously inaccessible or thought of as impossible.
Globalised & De-centralised with Added Security
In true Blockchain style, JACS addresses the challenge of address stack renewal with no renewal fees and a truly global de-centralised system for the allocation of internet addresses. It comes equipped with a few perks or bonus features. It not only tackles head on the imminent exhaustion of IPv4 addresses (the system could in theory give every grain of sand on Earth an address), Viablock have worked out how to radically tighten up network security by the proper announcement and propagation of IP prefixes between domains, or using the internet terminology (AS), Autonomous Systems which can lead to denial of service. It's easy to understate how critical tackling Internet Address Advertisement Hijacking is or how JACS functions, addressing current loopholes in existing security protocols... it's a genius piece of use case thinking.
One More Neat Trick
Although JACS will normally be used in conjunction with TCP/IP, It can be used as a fail-safe mechanism with the ability of dual stack nodes to bring down their TCP/IP stack and depend solely on JACS in the case of a Denial of Service or similar attack. This function is known as The Network Saver and it's one which government departments, financial institutions such as banks and large tech enterprise could & (probably will be compelled to) take immediate advantage of. EPIC FEATURE RIGHT THERE The business model for JACS includes rolling out a white box model with a small Linux-based Universal NOS installer - Pre-installed on bare metal switches allowing “Out of the Box” network based installs.
Internet 3.0
What's really exciting about JACS is it's function as an Internet 3.0 contributor. Internet 3.0 is a phrase often used to describe new & emerging web based technologies aiming to decentralise internet infrastructure, taking the internet back to it's originally envisaged open and democratic roots.
Blockchain is the obvious thread in furthering this objective and several projects have already attempted to decentralise various aspects of the many layers which together make up our everyday experience of the Internet. Filecoin (file storage), namecoin (domain name), golem (p2p processing), Steemit (social media platform), IPFS (peer to peer hypermedia protocol) (& storj (cloud storage) are examples of blockchain projects which are part of this landscape.
File storage, DNS & computational power (also used to map out the Universe) are the things which power the everyday so harnessing the power of blockchain to decentralise the internet is a powerful toolkit for the future.
For example, storj cloud storage is much more cost effective than the centralised competition and is virtually Zombie Proof due to it's Alphanet global network of over 150k nodes. It offers a far higher level of privacy / security due to it's (ahem), encrypted technology and is of course, far more resistant to denial of service attacks and hacks. It's a permissionless ledger system; nodes are free to come and go and because the token can be mined using any spare storage available, it's very efficient.
Internet3.0 even has it's own social media platform
You may have heard of steemit. It's based on Graphene, runs at a lightning 100,000 tps and uses proof of brain as a consensus algorithm. The network is secured through a series of democratically elected nodes (Delegated Proof of Stake) and users are awarded steemit's crypto tokens for posting content through a user driven, upvoting system. It is supported by yet another internet3.0 contributor The Interplanetary file system IPFS, which as a peer to peer hypermedia protocol, hosts steemit's image posts and video content for Dtube. Steemit is also one of the most active blockchain networks. Unlike bitcoin or Ethereum it operates with zero transaction fees and a reward pool which is shared among the community. steemit.com
JACS adds an extra dimension
to the emerging web3.0 equation making a truly decentralised internet a real possibility in the very near future. Tokenisation is a concept which had been discussed but not brought to life years before cryptocurrencies were just a twinkle in the eye of Satoshi Nakamoto. It's happening now and the most important and relevant projects have nothing to do with the volatile price of bitcoin and everything to do with the blockchain revolution.
For more information about JACS visit www.JACS.tech
This article is written as an informational resource and is not intended as investment advice. The author encourages all potential investors to conduct their own research and due diligence and not rely solely on the advice of others. The author is currently working with JACS on branding development but nonetheless in his humble opinion, it is an excellent use case for blockchain. Remember, the blockchain revolution is happening and although it may not be televised, it is coming to the internet.. near you