Basic concepts

PeerFlow is an innovative type of hybrid CDN/P2P service, that allows access to a maximum number of end client devices, removing the limitations of the currently used platforms. Any device with an Internet browser can use the platform (computers, smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, etc.)

PeerFlow is designed to work entirely on the Internet by using a combination of P2P (Peer-To-Peer), Cloud architecture and HTML5 technologies, ie. Over The Top (OTT) service of the latest generation.

The mesh network is fully encrypted and allows secure transport of your live stream to any location of the world without requiring an additional CDN provider.

The Streamer is a basic unit in P2P PeerFlow architecture. The Streamer is a Docker Container managing the lifecycle of one or more injectors and superpeers. It can be deployed and started on-premise or on the PeerFlow cloud infrastructure or with any other cloud provider. It can also run on Linux,Windows, MacOS or any server.

The Injector is a unit taking care of reading the source, encode it in a proper way and inject the media livestream over Internet or corporate network to other parties (SuperPeers, Peers).

The Injector supports various protocols and codecs - MPEG-TS over UDP, MPEG-TS over HTTP, HLS, MPEG-DASH, RTMP, RTSP/RTP, H264, AAC, OPUS, OGG, MP3 and more. The Injector creates end-to-end encrypted network between any participants in PeerFlow Network.

In some cases the connection between peers, as well as the connection between peers and Injectors is not good enough to maintain a smooth high quality livestreams. In that case a "SuperPeer" needs to be added to the system.

The SuperPeer is a HA peer that has very good Internet connectivity and speed, and boosts (helps) the bandwidth in the private eCDN or the Internet. It ensures quick start and smooth operation with no delay or re-buffering, especially when the livestream auditory is located far away from the Injector. The SuperPeer can be deployed on-premise, on public cloud or on PeerFlow cloud.

Peerflow cloud provides you with our preset Super peers in major locations around the world, assuring flowless work of your livestreams.

Our Overlay network uses a specially designed livestream protocol. It is made to solve most problems associated with live streaming content on the Internet, for instance - quick start, peak saturation protection, unlimited viewers, very high quality livestream at low cost, congestion control, fault tolerance - no single point of failure.

The mesh network is also end-to-end encrypted. The protocol is designed to work on WebRTC technology, which allows us to reach the maximum types of end devices (smartphones, tablets, pc, laptops, smart tv, game consoles and more). The protocol works on both the Internet and Private Enterprise Content Delivery Networks by choice.

Peerflow Player is an HTML5 player that plays the role of Peer, which accesses the content from the Peerflow Network and displays it to the End-User’s browser. The player integration is easy and effortless, as it supports all modern browsers. With just several lines of code, you can integrate the player within your web page or your native application.

Customizing the player and adding additional functionalities are also possible.

An easy-to-use centralized management panel (Web UI) that allows you to fully manage and monitor the status of all PeerFlow components (Injectors and SuperPeers), whether located on your infrastructure or in our Cloud.

You can also view and analyze the activity of your end users through the detailed statistics provided by our system.