Protocol Buffers in Seigr Ecosystem

Protocol Buffers (commonly referred to as protobuf) is a language-neutral, platform-neutral, extensible data serialization protocol developed by Google. Within the Seigr ecosystem, Protocol Buffers are integral to defining and managing the structured communication and data serialization needs of the platform. This page delves into the advanced technical details of how Protocol Buffers are implemented in the Seigr ecosystem, emphasizing their role in security, scalability, and modular design.

Overview

Protocol Buffers enable Seigr to efficiently serialize hierarchical data structures, ensuring low-latency communication and robust schema evolution. This approach aligns with Seigr’s modular architecture, facilitating seamless interaction between independent modules such as .seigr files, Seigr Cells, and various protocol layers.

Key Features:

1. Compact Serialization: Binary format reduces storage and transmission overhead.

2. Schema Evolution: Supports adding, modifying, and deprecating fields without breaking backward compatibility.

3. Cross-Platform Support: Provides language-agnostic APIs for interoperability.

4. Versioned Metadata: Ensures compatibility across different system versions.

Detailed Technical Components

The following sections provide an in-depth look at the key Protocol Buffers structures used within Seigr.

Core Enums

Enums are central to defining reusable and scalable representations for roles, permissions, and actions:

`RoleType`:

 - Defines roles in the system, such as ADMIN, VIEWER, SYSTEM.
 - Example:

    enum RoleType {
        ROLE_TYPE_UNDEFINED = 0;
        ROLE_TYPE_ADMIN = 1;
        ROLE_TYPE_VIEWER = 2;
        ROLE_TYPE_SYSTEM = 8;
    }

`PermissionType`:

 - Describes granular access levels such as READ, WRITE, DELETE.
 - Example:

    enum PermissionType {
        PERMISSION_TYPE_READ = 1;
        PERMISSION_TYPE_WRITE = 2;
        PERMISSION_TYPE_DELETE = 4;
    }

`PolicyStatus`:

 - Tracks the lifecycle of policies with statuses like ACTIVE, REVOKED.

Core Messages

Messages define structured data schemas for serialization and transmission. The following are key messages in Seigr Protocol Buffers:

`FileMetadata`:

Manages global attributes of a Seigr capsule.

message FileMetadata {
    string version = 1;               // Schema version.
    string creator_id = 2;            // Capsule creator.
    string original_filename = 3;    // Filename for reference.
    string file_hash = 4;            // Integrity hash.
    int32 total_segments = 5;        // Total segments.
    AccessContext access_context = 6; // Access metadata.
}

`SegmentMetadata`:

Represents individual components within a capsule.

message SegmentMetadata {
    int32 segment_index = 1;
    string segment_hash = 2;
    google.protobuf.Timestamp timestamp = 3; // Timestamp of creation.
    string primary_link = 4;                  // Primary data link.
    repeated string secondary_links = 5;      // Alternative paths.
    CoordinateIndex coordinate_index = 6;     // Spatial indexing.
}

`AccessContext`:

Defines granular access controls.

message AccessContext {
    repeated Role roles = 1;                  // Roles allowed access.
    repeated PermissionType permissions = 2; // Permissions granted.
    repeated string audit_log = 3;           // Logs for compliance.
}

Schema Evolution

Protocol Buffers are designed for incremental evolution, ensuring backward compatibility. Seigr adopts several practices to maintain compatibility:

1. Reserved Fields: Prevents reusing old field numbers to avoid conflicts. 2. Deprecation Annotations: Marks fields as deprecated without breaking existing schemas. 3. Field Additions: New fields are optional by default, ensuring older clients ignore unrecognized fields.

Security Enhancements

Seigr integrates Protocol Buffers with HyphaCrypt to ensure secure serialization and deserialization:

Hash Validation:

 - File and segment hashes stored in `FileMetadata` and `SegmentMetadata` enable integrity checks.

Access Auditing:

 - Access logs serialized in `AccessContext` provide tamper-proof auditing.

Lineage Tracking:

 - Lineage metadata ensures ethical and transparent data handling.

Integration with Seigr Modules

Each core Seigr module integrates Protocol Buffers to streamline its functionality:

`/dot_seigr`: Leverages `FileMetadata` and `SegmentMetadata` for capsule management.
`/crypto`: Uses hashes and audit logs for compliance verification.
`/ipfs`: Handles serialization for distributed file storage.

Compilation and Usage

Protocol Buffers are compiled into language-specific libraries for integration into Seigr modules. Example compilation command:

protoc --proto_path=src/seigr_protocol \
       --python_out=src/seigr_protocol/compiled \
       src/seigr_protocol/*.proto

Conclusion

Protocol Buffers are a cornerstone of the Seigr architecture, enabling efficient, secure, and scalable data serialization. This page has detailed the technical structures and practices underpinning their implementation in the ecosystem.

For further technical details, see: