Content-Addressed Data

Plex utilizes a decentralized storage protocol, IPFS, for managing file storage in its scientific computing workflows. Within IPFS, all data is content-addressed, meaning each file is given a unique content identifier (CID).

CIDs are derived from a file's content rather than its location.

Using CIDs not only enhances file retrieval but also promotes data integrity since the identifier changes if the content does, making any alterations immediately noticeable.

Plex pins all input and output data to IPFS. See Input / Output for more details.

An example of content-addressed data:

"protein": {
    "class": "File",
    "filepath": "6d08_protein_processed.pdb",
    "ipfs": "QmeTreLhxMmBaRqHemJcStvdyHZThdzi4gTmvTyY1igeCk"
}

The CID, QmeTreLhxMmBaRqHemJcStvdyHZThdzi4gTmvTyY1igeCk, can be used to access the content in multiple ways.

Source	Access
IPFS-enabled browser (ie, Brave)	ipfs://QmeTreLhxMmBaRqHemJcStvdyHZThdzi4gTmvTyY1igeCk
IPFS Desktop	QmeTreLhxMmBaRqHemJcStvdyHZThdzi4gTmvTyY1igeCk
IPFS http gateway	http://bacalhau.labdao.xyz:8080/ipfs/QmeTreLhxMmBaRqHemJcStvdyHZThdzi4gTmvTyY1igeCk