Frequently asked questions

Hivenet is a distributed cloud platform that replaces traditional data centers with everyday devices. Instead of relying on energy-hungry infrastructure, we use underutilized laptops, desktops, and servers to power secure storage, computing, and file sharing. It's fast, fair, and radically more sustainable.

You can:

• Store files securely using our distributed network.
• Compute AI and high-performance workloads with GPU power.
• Contribute idle resources and get rewarded.‍
• Send large files privately and without limits (coming soon).

A distributed cloud spreads your data across many devices rather than storing it in one company’s data center. These devices are owned by real people around the world. Each piece of your file is encrypted, scattered, and stored securely. This improves privacy, resilience, and efficiency.

Both—but there’s a difference.

Distributed means your data is spread across many devices, not stored in one place. This boosts speed, efficiency, and resilience.
Decentralized means there’s no single company or entity controlling where your data lives or how it moves.

Hivenet is distributed in how it stores and processes data, and decentralized in how it operates—using a network of independent contributors rather than owned infrastructure. It’s cloud computing without the data centers.

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Not really. Hivenet shares some of the same principles—like decentralization and giving people control—but we’re not building on blockchains, we don’t use tokens, and we don’t rely on crypto.

Our focus is on solving real problems with real infrastructure. We’re building a distributed cloud powered by underutilized devices—not speculation. No wallets, no coins, no gas fees. Just fast, secure, privacy-first cloud services that work.

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The Hivenet community is made up of people who contribute their unused computing resources—like storage, CPUs, GPUs, and bandwidth—to power the network. These contributors are called Hivers. They help keep the system running, secure, and fair.

Our cloud storage is already live. Compute is available in beta. The file sending service is coming soon. We’re rolling out updates monthly—follow us on Discord or check the site for the latest news.

Hivenet supports:

• macOS and iOS
• Windows 10 or 11 and Android
• Linux (only contribution)

You can run it on more than one device with the same account.

Yes. You can install Hivenet on multiple devices and operating systems.

No. Peer-to-peer systems like Hivenet scale well. In fact, more nodes often mean better speed—files are downloaded from multiple sources at once, not a single server.

Performance is often better than centralized clouds. You retrieve pieces of your data from many sources at once, speeding things up. Factors like your bandwidth or device load still matter, but the peer-to-peer design helps performance scale naturally.

Hivenet uses peer-to-peer technology to connect devices directly. It doesn’t rely on centralized servers. This tech has powered platforms like Skype, BitTorrent, and Bitcoin for decades—Hivenet applies the same principles to cloud storage and compute.

Compute is Hivenet’s distributed GPU cloud. It’s ideal for AI workloads, training models, or high-performance tasks. It's cost-efficient, fast, and privacy-first.

Try Compute →

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No. While it’s built to be simple for individuals, we’re actively building features for teams, SMBs, and enterprises—including business-grade support for Compute and advanced access controls.

No, Hivenet does not have a crypto coin.

Hivenet users have two passwords. One for the login, the “account password”, and one for the encryption of the files, which we call the “encryption passphrase”.

The account password is managed by Hivenet, and can be recovered. It is not used for anything else but logging in. This password cannot decrypt or encrypt any files or associated metadata in Hivenet.

The encryption passphrase you create when you set up Hivenet for the first time is only available on your computer, and nowhere else. Hivenet cannot access it, therefore it cannot be recovered if you lose it. If you lose it, you will lose permanent access to all the data stored in Hivenet. Keep it safe, for example in a password manager.

Your files are split into pieces (chunks), compressed, encrypted, and encoded. These pieces are distributed across the network. When you need the file, only a portion of those pieces are required to reconstruct it on your device.

Learn more about storage →

Yes, individual file uploads are currently capped at 50GB. We’ve set this limit to ensure smooth and reliable performance across our distributed network, keeping uploads fast and efficient for everyone.

For desktop users (Mac and Windows), you can safely upload files up to 50GB without issues. If you need to store larger files, splitting them into smaller parts is a simple workaround.

On mobile, uploads work a bit differently. You can safely upload files up to several gigabytes, but the app needs to stay active in the foreground to complete the upload. If your phone goes into sleep mode, it might pause the process.

Files are split into 100 chunks, and Hivenet creates 100 additional redundant pieces. As long as any 100 of those 200 pieces are available, your file is safe. Devices with better uptime store more critical pieces.

We use checksums to detect corrupted data. When pieces go missing, our monitoring nodes automatically rebuild them using the redundancy built into the system. You’ll always have enough to reconstruct your files.

Yes. Your encryption passphrase never leaves your device. Files and metadata are encrypted before they leave your computer. Each chunk is encrypted again using a different key. No one—including us—can access your files without your passphrase.

Hivenet is engineered to minimize how much you need to trust us. We’ve built security and confidentiality into the core of the system. Your encryption passphrase is used to generate your encryption keys and it never leaves your device, and isn’t accessible to anyone, including us. All the data that you store on Hivenet is encrypted, including its metadata, with this encryption key that only you will ever have access to.

Additionally your data is cut into small "chunks", each of which is encrypted again, this time with a different key, before being distributed throughout Hivenet. This means that the possibility of an attacker gaining access to your files and then having the ability to decrypt and assemble each of the chunks to recompose your file is practically impossible.

You create two:

• Account password: used to sign in. Recoverable.
• Encryption passphrase: used to encrypt files. Not recoverable.

We never store your passphrase. If you lose it, your files can’t be recovered. Use a password manager to keep it safe.

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Yes. Hivenet is designed with privacy in mind from the start. Your files are encrypted before they leave your device, and we never have access to your passphrase or unencrypted data.

We follow GDPR principles by:

• Giving you full control over your data
• Not collecting or storing personal data unless strictly necessary
• Allowing you to delete your account and data at any time
• Ensuring transparency about how the network works

Because Hivenet doesn’t use centralized servers, your data isn’t stored in a single region or owned by a single provider. That means more privacy, not less.

Yes. We’re working with security auditors, penetration testers, and researchers. We’re also launching a public bounty program to reward people who help us identify vulnerabilities.

We don’t build new infrastructure—we reuse existing devices. Data centers consume ~2% of global electricity and that number is growing fast. Hivenet reduces that footprint by tapping into idle resources that are already powered on.

Learn more here.

We don’t expect people to keep their computers powered. Hivenet is designed to be resilient to intermittent nodes at the cost of adding data redundancy in the network to compensate for it. Hivers should actually keep using their computers as they normally use to: their power consumption will then be linked to actual real activity.

Devices that are always-on (e.g., servers, etc.) will be classified as such and used in priority to avoid unnecessary data redundancy.

It’s easy. Create an account and start storing or contributing right away.

Create an account →

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Check out our Help Center for step-by-step guides and answers.

Still need help? Reach out via the website or join the community on Discord.