Supporting protocols
Various supporting protocols are available to assist with the complete decentralized ecosystem. In addition to the contracts layer, which is the core blockchain layer, there are additional layers that need to be decentralized to achieve a completely decentralized ecosystem. This includes decentralized messaging and decentralized storage. These are addressed by the Whisper and Swarm protocols, respectively.
Whisper
Whisper provides decentralized peer-to-peer messaging capabilities to the Ethereum network. In essence, Whisper is a communication protocol that DApps use to communicate with each other. The data and routing of messages are encrypted within Whisper communications. Whisper makes use of the DEVP2P wire protocol for exchanging messages between nodes on the network. Moreover, it is designed to be used for smaller data transfers and in scenarios where real-time communication is not required.
Whisper is also designed to provide a communication...