Understanding the expectations and limitations of PKARR is crucial for effective use. This note outlines what PKARR is not and what users should expect.
Not a Storage Platform
PKARR is not a storage platform. Records are ephemeral and need to be refreshed regularly to remain on the DHT.
Not a Real-time Communication Medium
PKARR is not designed for real-time communication. It is optimized for infrequent updates and heavy caching to reduce traffic.
Rate Limiting and Proof of Work
Expectations include enforcing harsh rate-limiting and possibly demanding proof of work for updates.
Caching and Propagation Time
Records are heavily cached, and updates might take some time to propagate. In case of a cache miss, querying the DHT might take a few seconds.
Next Steps
For a deeper understanding of why PKARR was created and its motivation, refer to the why PKARR? note.