Exploring Blockchain Website Deployment: New Possibilities for Decentralized Domains

A recent event has led people to rethink traditional domain access services. We have always believed that very stable domain resolution services could also have issues. This inevitably makes one wonder if decentralized solutions might be a worthy alternative to explore.

Deploying pages on the blockchain may have the following advantages:

1. Decentralization: All modifications require consensus to proceed, and no single entity can act unilaterally.

2. No Certificate Required: The blockchain itself uses encryption technology and does not require additional configuration of certificates.

I had previously seen a domain name solution on a certain blockchain platform, and at the time, I thought it seemed more like a novelty with low practicality, as traditional access methods are already quite stable and widespread. But now that I think about it, there might indeed be its applicable scenarios that are worth further research.

create a website on the blockchain

This article will attempt to deploy a website on a certain blockchain platform and allow users to access it through their browsers. The process is divided into three steps: 1. Purchase a domain name; 2. Prepare the front-end page; 3. Bind the page to the domain name.

The concept of domain names in blockchain is similar to that in the Web2 world; both serve as aliases for complex addresses, representing user addresses in blockchain and service IP addresses in Web2.

Purchase domain name

Taking a certain blockchain platform as an example, domain names can be purchased on the official designated website, priced in platform tokens. Similar to Web2, the shorter the character length of the domain name, the higher the price, with a wide price range.

If the domain is not occupied, you can bid at a low price, and then enter the countdown auction phase. After winning the domain, it will be stored in the user's wallet in the form of an NFT. The domain NFT can be traded and is valid for 1 year, after which it will be reclaimed.

In short, purchasing a domain name can be obtained through official website auctions or traded from other users.

Prepare front-end page

This step requires preparing a front-end page for display. To simplify the process, this article only prepares an html file and uses nginx to expose the page. Of course, a cloud server is also needed to run the front-end page. This step is the same as deploying a traditional front-end application.

Bind the page to the blockchain domain name

After obtaining a blockchain domain name, you can bind your ANDL address on the official DNS website. You can also use the binding tool provided by the platform to bind it according to the official guide.

After binding is complete, you need to start a listening port on the server to listen for http requests and forward them as udp. You can use the tools provided by the official to input the corresponding commands to start.

Access Blockchain Domain Names

Directly entering a blockchain domain name in the browser cannot access the website because the browser does not know how to resolve it. Some extra steps are needed.

Requesting a blockchain domain name process

When requesting a blockchain domain name, the corresponding ANDL address will first be queried on the chain, which can be compared to the IP address in Web2. The query process is similar to a DNS query.

Requests will be forwarded to the corresponding machine based on the ANDL address, and then the specified page will be returned. The overall process is similar to Web2, with the main difference being the different query method for address and domain name mapping.

Access the page via proxy

It is recommended to use the officially provided proxy tool. After downloading, installing, and starting it, a proxy port will be opened, allowing access to blockchain domain names.

Usage Summary

Currently facing the following issues:

1. There are requirements for the website operating environment. The system must support a specific version of glibc, and the machine must be checked for compliance before deployment.

2. The documentation is not clear enough. This may be due to the lack of demand, resulting in incomplete documentation, which requires self-exploration. The Chinese version is also not updated in a timely manner.

3. The access speed is relatively slow. Compared to traditional websites, the access speed is slightly slower, but there is great potential for improvement in the future.

4. Lack of wallet support. The official provides a simple embedded browser page that can be accessed directly without installing a proxy. However, most mainstream wallets currently recognize it as a phishing site.

Overall, the current experience is average, and there are many areas that can be improved. However, this direction is very innovative and worth trying.