Peer-to-peer data trading to preserve information

Data archiving systems rely on replication to preserve information. This paper discusses how a network of autonomous archiving sites can trade data to achieve the most reliable replication. A series of binary trades among sites produces a peer-to-peer archiving network. Two trading algorithms are examined, one based on trading collections (even if they are different sizes) and another based on trading equal sized blocks of space (which can then store collections). The concept of deeds is introduced; deeds track the blocks of space owned by one site at another. Policies for tuning these algorithms to provide the highest reliability, for example by changing the order in which sites are contacted and offered trades, are discussed. Finally, simulation results are presented that reveal which policies are best. The experiments indicate that a digital archive can achieve the best reliability by trading blocks of space (deeds), and that following certain policies will allow that site to maximize its reliability.