Federated Sync Protocol (FedSP)

This page introduces the Federated Sync Protocol (FedSP), an open protocol we are building to enable secure, auditable data synchronization between organizations.

What is FedSP?

FedSP is a protocol designed for secure, decentralized, server-to-server data synchronization across organizational boundaries. Inspired by how Git transformed code collaboration, our goal is for FedSP to become the standard for syncing sensitive data between untrusted parties—especially in regulated industries where data sovereignty, auditability, and strong consistency are essential.

Why FedSP?

Today, organizations rely on a patchwork of insecure or brittle solutions—email attachments, SFTP, custom APIs—to exchange data. These methods are error-prone, lack auditability, and often violate compliance requirements. There is a longstanding gap: no open protocol exists that enables organizations to reliably and verifiably sync sensitive data without centralized control or trust.

FedSP is designed to fill this gap, providing:

• Trustless, auditable collaboration: Every change is cryptographically signed and independently verifiable.
• Data sovereignty: Sensitive data never leaves organizational boundaries unless explicitly authorized.
• Strong performance and consistency guarantees: Built for high-stakes, regulated environments.

Key Components

FedSP will integrate three main components:

1. Federated Sync Version Control (FSVC)
   A version control system purpose-built for secure, cross-organization interoperability. Unlike Git or CRDTs, FSVC uses a deterministic, lock-based commit model on a Merkle DAG, with cryptographic signatures for tamper-evident, auditable history—without complex merges.

2. Federated Sync Transfer Protocol (FSTP)
   A dual-plane transport layer that separates metadata (synced via a central Clearing House) from file contents (transferred peer-to-peer). This ensures metadata coordination and auditability, while keeping sensitive data off the coordinator.

3. Federated Clearing House
   A coordination layer inspired by financial clearing systems (e.g., Visa, SWIFT). It maintains a write-ahead log of commit proofs, verifies signatures, and enforces global commit order—without ever accessing the underlying data.

Who Is It For?

FedSP is designed for organizations that need to exchange sensitive data securely and verifiably—such as those in finance, healthcare, legal, and public sectors. It is broadly applicable wherever strong guarantees for data sovereignty, auditability, and operational efficiency are required.

Get Involved

FedSP is an open project. We welcome contributions from individuals, companies, and organizations interested in shaping the future of secure, federated data synchronization. If you would like to participate, contribute code, or explore partnership opportunities, please reach out or join the discussion.

Stay tuned for technical deep-dives, architecture docs, and progress updates as we build FedSP.