
BitTorrent Sync Beta API Now Available to Developers - jimbobob
http://blog.bittorrent.com/2013/11/05/bittorrent-sync-beta-api-now-available-to-developers/
======
DoubleMalt
I really like the project and I would love to use it for
[https://cloudfleet.io](https://cloudfleet.io) (shameless plug), but ... show
us the source, bittorrent!

However I am hopeful that some other projects will come up (maybe based on
[http://www.gocircuit.org/](http://www.gocircuit.org/) ) that will give us the
same functionality with a verifiable code base.

~~~
gcommer
The best open source alternative I've heard of so far is clearskies
([https://github.com/jewel/clearskies](https://github.com/jewel/clearskies)).
The implementation isn't complete yet, but it started right with a clear, open
protocol definition based on standard technologies.

I've been waiting for some free time to write a client myself - go circuit
looks very interesting for that!

~~~
jewel
Thanks for mentioning ClearSkies. I have only mentioned it in a comment thrice
on hacker news when it seemed appropriate (and pretty much nowhere else), and
it's amazing to see someone else bring it up!

We've been working to get it to a point where it'd be ready for a "Show HN".
We finally got connection encryption working last night, so hopefully that
will be in a week or two.

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sschueller
Without source it just can't be trusted.

~~~
yapcguy
Has there been any kind of official response from Bittorrent about this?

Are they planning on open sourcing the code at a later date or have they
simply kept quiet this whole time, hoping the issue will go away?

~~~
TheSisb2
They yesterday claimed they would make it public once it was stable.
[http://forum.bittorrent.com/topic/24050-i-apologize-ahead-
of...](http://forum.bittorrent.com/topic/24050-i-apologize-ahead-of-time-can-
the-devs-stop-being-assholes-and-release-the-cryptoarchitectural-
documentation-please/?p=71474)

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Torgo
If I am reading this right, the API supports creating encrypted-only peers,
they can hold your data without knowing the decryption key. My interest has
just been piqued.

~~~
unsignedint
Testing this out, looks like generating secret key through API generates three
keys, encrypted, readonly, and readwrite, and I can see when I plug in an
encrypted key to one node, I can see encrypted blobs are being populated from
other nodes of all types, including other "encrypted" node.

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flog
So according to the terms you're unable to resell the service... so does that
mean you can't build a paid SaaS service which uses this as a distribution
mechanism for files?

~~~
louhong
(Disclaimer: I work on Sync at BitTorrent) Sorry if that language is confusing
- we'll try to clean it up. If you build a SaaS product using Sync that's
totally fine and you're welcome to sell your service. What we're trying to
prevent is people who try to sell something that we are giving away for free.
Happy to try to clarify if there are any other questions.

~~~
nuttendorfer
Since you are already answering questions: when can we expect BitTorrent Inc
to publish the protocol or at least add the option to run and use your own
tracker for syncing?

SyncApp is wonderful but I don't feel comfortable with it being closed source
and your infrastructure being used. Thus I use it only to transfer files
between computers I wouldn't mind sharing with the world.

~~~
louhong
Thanks for the question and feedback. First, keep in mind that Sync is a beta
product and we’re still actively building it, things are evolving every day.
We’re investing a ton of time and money into it, there’s a ton of great stuff
happening and more coming.

As for your question, yes, we're planning on releasing a version that will
allow for you to use your own tracker - unfortunately we don’t have timing yet
for that but it is in the works. We're working hard to make a great product
and to support everyone as best we can.

Also, we do have a dedicated forum for the Sync API
[http://forum.bittorrent.com/forum/106-developers/](http://forum.bittorrent.com/forum/106-developers/)
in case you have other questions/comments. Thanks!

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kylebrown
Why do I have to register in order to read the API docs? So annoying..

~~~
autofill
You shouldn't need to register to view them. There's a link under the Register
button:

[http://www.bittorrent.com/sync/developers/api](http://www.bittorrent.com/sync/developers/api)

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srgseg
Does anyone know if by using BitTorrent sync, my internet connection will
start to be used by other strangers as an intermediary node (to help them
traverse firewalls?)

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wslh
What's are the protocol differences against libtorrent capabilities? I assume
it can sync differences between files, can libtorrent do that?

~~~
icebraining
If the files haven't changed size, you don't need explicit support, just put
the files in the right directory and let libtorrent treat them like
damaged/incomplete downloads (it'll checksum the blocks and download the
changes).

Dunno if it works for files of different sizes, though. It probably won't,
since the blocks won't be in the same positions.

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sinhpham
Does anyone know which algorithm they use underneath for duplication
detection/delta encoding? Is it rsync or something else?

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tegansnyder
Is anyone using this for application deployment?

~~~
cmsd2
twitter apparently uses murder: [https://blog.twitter.com/2010/murder-fast-
datacenter-code-de...](https://blog.twitter.com/2010/murder-fast-datacenter-
code-deploys-using-bittorrent)

