Welcome to the first part of our Arweave FAQs series! As the landscape of the decentralized web expands, Arweave’s unique proposition for permanent data storage sets it apart.  With its growing prominence, there's a surge in curiosity about what Arweave offers and how it functions. In this series, we aim to address the most commonly asked questions surrounding Arweave. Let's embark on this journey to demystify Arweave!

Introduction to Arweave

In today's digital age, where data is invaluable, Arweave promises preservation. Whether it's a piece of art, a business document, or even an entire web application, your data remains intact and accessible for generations.

What is Arweave?

Arweave is a unique storage system designed for everyone - from individuals to enterprises. Unlike many storage solutions where there's a risk of data loss or recurring fees, Arweave promises that with a low cost, one-time payment, your data remains safeguarded forever. This concept was brought to life by its founder, Sam Williams. Since its launch in June 2018, Arweave continues to grow as a trusted choice for those prioritizing data permanence and security.

What is Arweave's native token?

Arweave's native token is the AR token. It plays a central role in the platform's ecosystem, facilitating transactions, incentivizing miners, and serving as the primary means of payment for storage.

Functionality

In the ever-evolving digital landscape, Arweave stands out by offering functionalities that cater to a diverse range of needs. Whether you're an individual looking to preserve memories or an enterprise aiming for secure and scalable storage solutions, Arweave has got you covered.

Who can benefit from using Arweave?

Arweave is designed for everyone, from individuals wanting to store cherished memories to enterprises seeking robust data solutions. Its versatility allows for the storage of simple items like photos and documents, as well as complex web applications. With a suite of tools, like ArDrive (Dropbox for permanent data storage), ArweaveKit (one-stop shop for Arweave developers), Pianity (digital hub for music NFTs), and Warp (smart contracts on Arweave), users can choose from straightforward options or craft tailored solutions. Whether you're a casual user or a tech-savvy developer, Arweave has something to offer.

How much data can you store on Arweave?

Arweave is designed for limitless storage. There's no set cap on the amount of data you can store. The network can efficiently manage data storage requests of varying sizes. Interestingly, as more data is stored on Arweave, not only does the network scale and become more robust but also reduces the cost of data storage. Checkout this tweet thread for a deeper dive into how increased storage scales the network.

Can data be edited/deleted from Arweave?

Arweave's core principle is permanence. Once data is stored, it's there for good, ensuring its integrity and authenticity. This feature is especially valuable for use cases like historical records or legal documents. However, users can make requests to nodes to avoid storing specific data, as detailed in the Arweave standard ANS 106.

What if I want to store data for a limited time?

Arweave is designed for permanent storage, ensuring the integrity and authenticity of data for generations. For temporary storage needs, other services might be a better fit.

Comparison with other platforms

In the realm of decentralized storage, various solutions aim to address the challenges of data preservation. Arweave, emphasizing permanent storage, distinguishes itself from other storage solutions and blockchain networks. Let's explore further to understand Arweave's unique position in this domain.

Is Arweave like IPFS?

While both Arweave and IPFS aim to address the challenges of decentralized storage, they have distinct approaches. Arweave emphasizes permanent data storage at an affordable cost, ensuring that once data is stored, it remains accessible indefinitely. This contrasts with IPFS, which optimizes for recording the location of data rather than the data itself, eventually leading to the deletion of unaccessed data unless it's "pinned." Pinning in IPFS requires users to pay recurring fees to keep the data stored for extended periods.

Further, Filecoin, a P2P network built on IPFS, aims to ensure persistence through off-chain deals negotiated between users and providers for both data storage and retrieval. Once these deals are agreed upon, they are posted on-chain, detailing data size, pricing, and duration. On the other hand, Arweave uses a special block linking structure called "blockweave." In this system, each new block is not only linked to the previous one but also includes a reference to a random piece of historical data. This design incentivizes the nodes to store the entire dataset for quick referencing, ensuring data permanence and redundancy.

Refer to this tweet thread for a deeper understanding on how Arweave's core infrastructure ensures data permanence.

Is Arweave built on top of Ethereum?

Arweave is not a protocol built on Ethereum; it has its own blockchain and corresponding ecosystem. Projects on Ethereum and other networks face high storage costs. Sometimes reaching over $100 for one simple transaction.

Arweave, offering low-cost permanent decentralized storage, can be an alternative or work with these networks as a cost-effective solution, alleviating storage costs and facilitating more sustainable data management.

Is Arweave compatible with other chains?

Yes, Arweave's versatility is evident in its compatibility with various blockchains. Tools like Bundlr facilitate cross-chain payments for storage. Several blockchains and projects leverage Arweave's cost-effective, permanent storage for diverse applications, ranging from NFTs to extensive data archiving. For instance, Metaplex, a Solana based protocol and toolset for NFT creators relies on Arweave for data storage, while Lens Protocol, a Polygon based project, uses Arweave to optimize the way social interactions are processed on-chain to mirror the user experience of traditional platforms.

Understanding Arweave’s Storage Cost

Navigating the world of decentralized storage can be complex, but Arweave simplifies it with a transparent and cost-effective approach. Arweave's unique pricing model ensures users get the best value for their data storage needs.

How affordable is Arweave?

Arweave offers a unique pay-once-store-forever pricing model. The cost of using Arweave is influenced by the amount of data being stored, prevailing market conditions, the total available storage, and the rewards funding this storage. As a reference, the approximate real-time cost to store  1 GB of data (a 20 min movie in HD) on Arweave is only around $3.826 USD (at the time of writing). This one-time payment guarantees at least 200 years of storage with a minimum of 20 replicas, ensuring the longevity and safety of your data.

For a deeper understanding of Arweave's storage pricing, dive into the insights shared in this tweet thread. To explore the latest price of storage on Arweave, checkout this calculator.

Stay Tuned!

In this initial installment of our Arweave FAQs series, we've unveiled Arweave's revolutionary approach to decentralized storage, emphasizing its commitment to data permanence, security, and affordability. As we progress in this series, anticipate deeper insights into Arweave's utility and tokenomics. Stay tuned as we continue to answer FAQs and delve deeper into the intricacies of this groundbreaking platform in our upcoming segments.

And if you find yourself with more questions or wish to engage further, we invite you to join the Community Labs Discord community!