https://github.com/gordonbrander/magnetize

Content-addressed data over HTTP using magnet links
https://github.com/gordonbrander/magnetize

censorship-resistance content-addressed-storage content-addressing decentralization ipfs

Last synced: about 1 month ago
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Content-addressed data over HTTP using magnet links

• Host: GitHub
• URL: https://github.com/gordonbrander/magnetize
• Owner: gordonbrander
• License: mit
• Created: 2025-04-09T12:27:59.000Z (about 2 months ago)
• Default Branch: main
• Last Pushed: 2025-04-17T21:35:53.000Z (about 1 month ago)
• Last Synced: 2025-04-18T13:37:43.256Z (about 1 month ago)
• Topics: censorship-resistance, content-addressed-storage, content-addressing, decentralization, ipfs
• Language: Rust
• Homepage:
• Size: 151 KB
• Stars: 17
• Watchers: 1
• Forks: 2
• Open Issues: 2
• Metadata Files:
  • Readme: README.md
  • License: LICENSE-MIT

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README

        
# magnetize

> "We have IPFS at home"

Content-addressed data over HTTP using magnet links.

```url

magnet:?cid=&cdn=&cdn=

```

Minimum viable decentralization is n > 1. Magnetize achieves minimum viable decentralization by combining a CID with multiple redundant places to GET it over HTTP.

Notably, you do not have to trust the servers listed in the magnet link to serve the correct data. The CID acts as a cryptographic proof for the data, ensuring you get exactly the data you requested.

Magnetize offers a CLI with several tools for content-addressed data over HTTP:

- `mag get `: fetch content addressed data over HTTP(S) using a magnet link. This command will try locations until it finds one that succeeds.

- `mag link ...`: create a magnet link from one or more HTTP(s) URLs.

- `mag serve `: simple file server for content addressed data. The server is written in Rust, so is reasonably fast.

- `mag add `: add content addressed data from a file. This command will create a new file in the working directory who's name is the CID and who's contents is the file bytes.

See `mag --help` for a full list of commands and features.

## TODO

- [x] `link` - create magnet for any HTTP URL

  - [x] Fetch URL

  - [x] Generate CID

  - [x] Integrity check

  - [ ] Generates infohash

  - [x] Return magnet

- [ ] `get` - fetch file using redundant sources

  - [x] Fetch magnet using http

  - [ ] Fetch magnet using BitTorrent

- [x] `add` - add content-addressed data to directory

- [ ] `mirror` - fetch content from URL/CDN and add it to directory

  - [ ] Fetch single CID

  - [ ] Federate with another mirror

- [ ] `serve` - content-addressed file server

  - [x] GET content by CID

  - [x] POST content to server

  - [x] Option to turn off POST

  - [x] Store-and-forward federation

  - [ ] Pull federation (sync)

  - [ ] Option to require secret to POST

  - [ ] Option to encrypt content ala Magenc

  [ ] JS library for parsing/fetching magnetized links

## Magnet links

Magnet links bundle together multiple ways to fetch the same data. They are frequently used for locating data on BitTorrent, but are a general-purpose protocol that can be used in various contexts. Magnetize extends magnet links, adding parameters to support content-addressed data over HTTP.

While magnet links are a de facto standard, with no formally standardized semantics,there have been [attempts to coordinate the way BitTorrent clients use parameters](https://wiki.theory.org/BitTorrent_Magnet-URI_Webseeding). Magnetize tries to remain broadly compatible with these efforts.

Magnet link parameters supported by Magnetize:

- `cid`: the CID.

- `cdn`: URL to a location where you can GET the data by CID. E.g. if `cdn=https://example.com/ipfs`, then you can GET `https://example.com/ipfs/`.

- `ws`: "Web Seed". A direct HTTP link to the data. Unlike `cdn`, this option does not require the source to conform to a URL format.

- `dn`: "Display Name". A suggested file name.

- `xt`: "Exact Topic". A BitTorrent infohash, allowing this magnet link to be used with BitTorrent clients.

Note it is possible to construct a hybrid magnet link that works with both Magnetize and [BitTorrent](https://blog.libtorrent.org/2020/09/bittorrent-v2/) by including the `xt` parameter.

```url

magnet:?xt=urn:btmh:&cid=&cdn=https://example.com/ipfs

```

This gives the magnet link added resiliency by allowing clients to fall back to BitTorrent's p2p network when an HTTP source is unavailable. When used with BitTorrent, you can think of the `ws` and `cdn` parameters as high availability peers you can try first, while falling back to BitTorrent's DHT if they go down.

> TODO see if we can bundle a Torrent client into `mag get`.

## CIDs

Magnetize supports one kind of IPFS CID:

- Multibase: base32

- CID: v1

- Multicodec: raw bytes

- Multihash: sha256

In string form, the cid is always encoded in multibase lowercase base32. This means the CID string will always have prefix of `b` (multibase flag for base32).

Once deserialized to bytes, a CIDv1 has the following byte structure:

```

```

1. A CID version number, which is currently always 1.

2. A content codec, which is currently always `0x55` (multicodec flag for raw bytes)

3. A hash function, which is currently always `0x12` (multihash flag for sha256)

4. A hash size, which is the size in bytes of the hash digest. Always `32` for sha256.

5. A hash digest, which is the hash of the raw bytes.

This CID type is described in more detail here: [dasl.ing/cid.html](https://dasl.ing/cid.html).

## Development

### Installing binaries on your path with Cargo

From the project directory:

```bash

cargo install --path .

```

This will install the binaries to `~/.cargo/bin`, which is usually added to your path by the Rust installer.