decentralized, secure, p2p mesh networking

goals:

• transport agnostic (radio transceiver, internet, etc.)
• pathfinding through the network to facilitate point -> point communication
• direct connections encouraged but not required, helps to navigate around firewalls
• peer to peer routing allows for devices to work together to route over airgaps (radio)
• allow for secure communication through the network using key exchange protocols

uses:

• swarms of UAVs communicating via radio and internet multiplex
• decentralized app networks, internet of things

protocol

the airnet protocol defines a transport agnostic way of communicating. no direct connection is assumed. devices may communicate through reliable transports (TCP/IP), or through wireless transceivers.

a target is identified by the sha256 hash of its public key. a connection can be opened to the target routing packets through the network via a SOCKS5 proxy, where the target hostname is specified as "hash.air"

hashes of public keys are also used to build IPV4 and IPV6 addresses for devices, such that devices can be treated as traditional TCP or UDP endpoints.

messages are queued and sent as a route is available to the target.

zeromq is used as the message queue backing the system, and for all connections.

protobuf is used for all non-handshake communications.