A decentralized storage network where node operators provide hard-disk capacity for hosting files, paid in FIL.
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Filecoin is a decentralized storage network created by Protocol Labs (the team behind IPFS, the InterPlanetary File System). Users pay FIL to store files; storage providers (node operators) commit hard-disk capacity to the network and earn FIL for storing data and proving they continue to hold it over time. The network launched in October 2020 and has grown into one of the largest decentralized storage networks by total committed capacity.
Storage providers stake FIL collateral and prove they store data through Proof-of-Replication (showing they have a unique encoded copy) and Proof-of-Spacetime (periodic proofs that they still have the data). If a provider fails to produce proofs, their staked FIL is slashed. Users find providers through a market mechanism: storage deals are negotiated based on price, retrieval speed, and provider reputation. Filecoin Plus (Fil+) gives bonus FIL rewards to providers storing "useful" data verified by community gatekeepers.
Long-term archival storage of public datasets (Wikipedia archives, Internet Archive backups, research data). Hot storage for Web3 applications (NFT metadata, video streaming). Backup and redundancy for centralized services. Some scientific consortia use Filecoin for distributed data preservation. Retrieval performance has historically been a weak point compared to centralized CDNs but has improved through retrieval markets and caching layers.
Filecoin emphasizes proof of storage rather than retrieval performance, which means accessing stored files can be slower than centralized alternatives. The market for "useful" storage (Fil+) has been gamed by providers padding capacity with low-value data. Token economics include large emissions to storage providers, which has historically created supply pressure on FIL price.
See the CDN entry for the centralized alternative model.