Walrus protocol: A new storage paradigm created by the Sui team

Key Summary

• After Mysten Labs launched the Sui network and DeepBook protocol, it is preparing to launch a new project, the Walrus protocol.

• The two major advantages of Walrus that have attracted attention are: (1) higher cost-effectiveness and security; (2) data storage can be programmed through the Sui network.

• As one of the advanced decentralized storage protocols, the future practicality and value of Walrus are worth paying attention to.

Background of Walrus Launch

After successfully launching the Sui network and DeepBook protocol, Mysten Labs is venturing into the new area of the Walrus protocol. Although expectations in the market are high, there are also some concerns: there are already many decentralized storage solutions on the market, with varying levels of performance; Mysten Labs may divert resources by continuing to develop the Sui network, which could affect the progress of the new project.

Next, we will explore the structure of the Walrus protocol, analyze its differences from existing solutions, study the relationship between Walrus and the Sui network, and focus on how Walrus integrates with the Sui architecture to enhance the overall ecological value.

The difference between Walrus and existing storage solutions

Walrus has three main differences from the existing storage models (, especially Filecoin and Arweave ):

Storage Cost Efficiency

Walrus adopts Red-Stuff encoding, which is more cost-effective than Arweave and Filecoin, with efficiency up to 100 times. Walrus only requires 4-5 times replication, while Arweave needs full network storage, resulting in a maximum replication cost of 500 times. At the same time, Walrus significantly reduces the probability of data loss.

Walrus combines the advantages of Arweave and Filecoin, minimizing the risk of data loss while maintaining low replication costs. As the number of nodes increases, the storage cost advantages of Walrus become even more apparent.

Programmability

The most notable feature of Walrus is its "programmability". Traditional storage is merely a simple data repository, while Walrus achieves programmable decentralized storage through the Sui network, giving more functionalities to stored data.

For example, when minting an NFT, the image file can be stored in Walrus, its blob data object can be created on the Sui network and linked to the NFT object, solving the traditional NFT "incomplete" problem.

The blob data of Walrus can be stored as Sui objects and controlled through Move smart contracts, enabling data ownership transfer or automatic changes. This makes the data in Walrus programmable, significantly better than Arweave and Filecoin.

Data Access and Deletion

Unlike existing storage protocols, Walrus allows users to discard or modify data as needed. This feature greatly enhances the application potential of Walrus in traditional enterprises and Web2 businesses, increasing market expectations for its diversity.

Collaboration between Walrus and the Sui network

Walrus does not divert attention from Sui, but rather enhances applications on Sui as a storage stack. Walrus not only complements the Sui network from a storage perspective, but also actively influences the governance token SUI of the Sui network, making the two inseparable.

The Symbiotic Relationship Between Sui and Walrus

Mysten Labs has focused on storage issues since the early design of Sui, proposing a unique storage fund concept. The Sui storage fund divides user transaction fees into computation-related Gas fees and data storage fees, pre-collecting storage fees and continuously allocating them to validating nodes.

This system has two effects:

1. Users can receive a refund for storage fees by deleting on-chain data, creating economic incentives to reduce the capacity of distributed ledgers.
2. Solved the sustainability issues related to storage.

Walrus enables programmability of data by storing large-scale blob data and managing it in an object-oriented way on Sui, without directly storing it on Sui. Sui and Walrus have established a symbiotic relationship, complementing each other to create unique advantages.

Walrus makes SUI a deflationary asset

When creating blob data objects in Walrus, SUI will lock in the storage fund based on the object size. A portion of the fees can be refunded by deleting data, but a part will have a destruction effect. Walrus uses an increase that leads to a reduction in the circulation of SUI, forming a virtuous cycle.

Walrus will become the most critical protocol of Sui

Not only build the blockchain

Mysten Labs aims to build a complete Web3 decentralized infrastructure. They are leading innovations in areas such as execution, storage, consensus, and communication while creating a user-friendly UI.

The Sui network handles execution and consensus, storage is managed by Walrus, communication is handled by SCION, and the UI familiar to Web2 users is managed by zkLogin and others. Walrus may be the most important protocol among them.

Walrus is not limited to the Sui ecosystem

Walrus can be used by any third party and may become an alternative to existing storage protocols or other DA layers. This will extend the demand for SUI beyond the Sui network, potentially making SUI a more attractive asset.

Can Walrus surpass Filecoin?

The outlook for Walrus is optimistic for the following reasons:

1. The operational mechanism is more efficient than existing storage protocols.
2. Can perform tasks that existing storage protocols are unable to complete
3. Have a solid network and user base through the Sui protocol.

If Walrus becomes a representative storage protocol for Web3, it has the potential to become a leader in the storage field.