What is Storj?
Have you ever heard of Storj? It's like a virtual attic where you can store all of your digital clutter without worrying about it taking up space in your house. And let's be honest, who hasn't needed a virtual attic at some point?
But here's the best part – unlike a real attic, you don't have to worry about the Storj storage collapsing on you, spiders crawling out of your files, or somebody finding your old naughty magazines. It's a win-win situation.
So, instead of having an FBI agent looking up your private data collection, why not store your files on a decentralized cloud storage network like Storj? Storj takes a unique approach to cloud storage by using blockchain technology and encryption to ensure that your files remain private and secure.
In a centralized cloud storage system, all of your files are stored in a single location controlled by a third-party provider. This creates a single point of failure that can be exploited by hackers or government agencies. In contrast, Storj stores your files on a distributed network of nodes, each with its own encryption key. This means that your files are broken up into smaller pieces, encrypted, and stored in multiple locations across the network. Even if one node is compromised, the attacker would only be able to access a small piece of the data, which is meaningless without the encryption key.
Moreover, Storj's use of blockchain technology ensures that there is no single point of control or failure in the network. Transactions and data transfers are validated by a network of independent nodes, making it virtually impossible for a single entity to manipulate the system.
Storj's business model is built on the principles of creating value for both its customers and its network of node operators. Unlike centralized cloud storage providers that charge a fixed price for storage, Storj uses a dynamic pricing model that adjusts based on the supply and demand of network resources. This means that as the network grows and more users join, the price of storage will decrease, making it more affordable for customers.
The protocol incentivizes node operators to participate in the network and provide storage space. Node operators are rewarded with Storj's native token, STORJ, for providing storage and bandwidth to the network. This ensures that there is always sufficient storage capacity available, even as demand increases.
To ensure the sustainability of the network, Storj also implements KYC protocol to prevent fraudulent activities and ensure that all node operators are legitimate. This helps maintain the integrity of the network and ensures that customers' data is being stored in a safe and secure environment. On the other hand, you, the user, don't have to pass KYC. Rest assured, your secrets will be safe with Storj – node operators can't see what is stored because of Storj uses client-side encryption to protect your privacy.
With so much personal data at stake, what guarantees do users have that Storj is safe? After all, there are companies worth billions providing the same service.
In addition to the client-side encryption, Storj employs a decentralized architecture, which means that customer data is distributed across multiple nodes on the network, making it more difficult for any single node to be compromised. To this day, Storj has never been hacked.
That being said, no system is completely foolproof and there is always a risk of a security breach. If that day ever comes, Storj has a disaster recovery plan in place to minimize the impact on its customers and restore service as quickly as possible.
How does Storj work?
Storj works by renting idle computing power from devices all over the world to create a fully decentralized cloud computing storage service. Instead of letting that storage space go to waste, Storj incentivizes users to become node operators and rent that space to the Storj network.
Storj Node Operators
Node operators are earning STORJ tokens by providing storage space to customers on the network. When a customer uploads a file to the Storj network, that file is broken up into smaller pieces and encrypted. Those pieces are then distributed across multiple nodes on the network.
Node operators store a small piece of each file on your computer. They are not be able to see or access the contents of those files, as they are encrypted and only the customer has the encryption key. Users pay in STORJ for the renting space.
The Storj network uses a smart contract system on the Ethereum network to facilitate payments between customers and node operators. These payments are made in STORJ tokens, which can be exchanged for other cryptos or fiat currency.
The job of node operators is to have their node uptime as close to 100%. For this reason, Storj has come up with a mechanism to ensure only the best quality node operators participate. In order to ensure that nodes on the Storj network are reliable and available, they must go through a process called vetting.
Vetting is a series of tests that a node must pass in order to be considered reliable and trustworthy by the Storj network. These tests include uploading and downloading test files, checking for consistency and data integrity, and verifying that the node is online and available.
During the vetting process, a node's uptime is also measured. If a node goes offline or becomes unavailable during the vetting process, it may fail the tests and be rejected by the network. Once a node has passed the vetting process and is accepted onto the network, it enters a "vetting state."
During the vetting state, the node's reliability and uptime are monitored by the network. If the node experiences too much downtime or fails to meet certain performance metrics, it may be temporarily suspended or even permanently removed from the network.
Storj Satellites
Storj satellites play a crucial role in facilitating the transfer of data between customers and node operators on the network. You can think of them as the librarians of the network, their job is to retrieve the pieces of files that have been broken up across nodes.
When the customer wants to retrieve the file, the satellite provides a list of all the nodes that are storing the file pieces, and the customer's computer downloads those pieces and reassembles them into the original file. Because the file pieces are distributed across multiple nodes and are encrypted, the Storj network is able to provide a high level of security and privacy for customer data.
In addition to facilitating data transfer, satellites also play a role in managing payments between customers and node operators. When a customer requests data storage on the network, they must first deposit a certain amount of STORJ tokens into an escrow account managed by the satellite. Once the data is successfully stored on the network, the node operator is compensated with STORJ tokens from the escrow account.
How to make money on Storj?
Storj is a great way to make money from your unused disk space. Besides the setup and configuration, there is nothing more that you need to do, except make sure your server is running and online. This process is quite technical, which is why we recommend checking out the documentation on Storj.
It is important to note that Storj is just another stream of income – it won't make you a millionaire overnight, but in can turn profitable the longer you rent your unused disk space.
Price Prediction for Storj — Can it hit $1000?
Buying and hodling STORJ — the native token of the Storj— is one way of potentially making money on Storj.
By looking at its current price, it’s natural to think about the chance of STORJ hitting $1000 per token. This can happen sooner, or way in the future, and is determined by a couple of ever changing factors.
Let’s examine the potential growth of the STORJ token by analyzing its tokenomics. STORJ’s current market cap sits comfortably at ${MARKET_CAP}. With {CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} STORJ tokens being in circulation today, that means a price of {PRICE} per STORJ.
How did we come to that calculation? It’s quite easy, the price of a STORJ token is equal to its current market cap divided by the number of tokens in circulation. Dividing ${MARKET_CAP} by {CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} gives us a result of {PRICE} for each STORJ coin.
By changing the order in the simple formula above we can use it to calculate other things as well. This helps us a lot because we can deduce the market cap of STORJ at different token prices. Then, we can use the result to compare it to the current state of the network and see what would be required for STORJ to hit that price.
At a price of $1000 per token, that means the current market cap of STORJ would equal ${{CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} * 1000}. Remember that we arrived at this number by multiplying the amount of circulating tokens by $1000.
Now let’s shift our attention to the fully diluted market cap.
Some blockchains may have their tokenomics built in a way that only a small percentage of tokens are circulating at the beginning. This can be misleading because we don’t have the full picture and only take into account the current number of coins released in the market.
The fully diluted market cap represents the total value of a coin if all tokens were in circulation. STORJ’s whole supply of tokens is {MAX_SUPPLY - TOTAL_SUPPLY + CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} STORJ which means that no more coins above that number will ever be created.
These tokens are not created at the discretion of a specific entity. They are created automatically by the network to reward different actors that keep it secure.
How does this impact the price of STORJ? Taking into account the current price of a STORJ token, that would result in a fully diluted market cap of ${MAX_SUPPLY - TOTAL_SUPPLY + CIRCULATING_SUPPLY * PRICE}. STORJ coins that have been burned are not taken into consideration because they have been permanently removed from circulation.
Whether it seems gigantic or not, the number we came to above only takes into account the current price of a STORJ token. Doing the same calculation but with a price of $1000 gives us a result of ${{MAX_SUPPLY - TOTAL_SUPPLY + CIRCULATING_SUPPLY} * 1000} for the STORJ protocol fully diluted market cap.
These are all crucial details to know when calculating if STORJ can reach the price of $1000 per token. If the diluted market capitalization is way too high, the token has little room left to grow. Blockchains in general have no cap on the value they can reach, whether that number seems possible it’s totally up to you.
The future of STORJ depends solely on its growth as a network used by tens and hundreds of millions of users.
If you’re looking to add some STORJ to your portfolio, the most trusted places to get some are Binance and Coinbase.