SONM is a powerful distributed worldwide system for general-purpose computing, implemented as a fog computing structure.
SONM is a viable alternative to cloud solutions and services because of using a fog computing structure. Consumers of computing power in SONM get more cost-efficient solutions than cloud services.
SONM provides computing power in the most generalized case - general computing, this is suitable for a wide range of Consumers.
SONM provides a computing platform for real world applications: worldwide computations organized using SONM can serve to complete numerous tasks from CGI rendering to scientific computations. A number of applications will be launched either without modifications or with minimal improvements.
At the level of business logic, SONM is abstracted from the computing architecture (currently only amd64 support is implemented, it will be expanded in the future), abstracted from the virtualization technology (Docker support is currently implemented, and others will be supported in the future).
SONM resources are not based only on data centers, but on a wider range of sources, including people's computers and datacenters (selling excessive powers). People computers have both strong and weak sides. The weak sides are fewer related services, more difficult to ensure privacy of data and reliability. The strong sides are:
In SONM we join two global markets - the market of mining and the market of calculations using traditional cloud providers, so our clients (computation consumers and resource customers) receive conditions for mutually beneficial cooperation.
The main persons in SONM are Customers and Suppliers. Customers can select any rental time or computer architecture they need for their project and they set the cost. Using SONM they can execute wide range of tasks. Suppliers are the resource owners. They can earn tokens by selling computing power peer-to-peer to Customers to perform their calculations.
The defining feature of SONM is its decentralized open structure, where Customers and Suppliers can interact with no middlemen, while building a market for them, unlike cloud services. Decentralized computational power marketplace of SONM allows the customers to find each other and get the best prices.
Customers and Suppliers are the driving force of SONM. They fill the Market, creating competition and movement in the free resource market.
All work can be automated from the consumer side - APIs are available. You can buy and rent resources if necessary through the API.
We are using a public platform of smart contracts for key operations that require consensus. Using smart contracts allows to make many kinds of contractual clauses partially or fully self-executing, self-enforcing, or both. The aim with smart contracts is to provide security that is superior to traditional contract law and to reduce other transaction costs associated with contracting.
A significant part of the market is implemented on smart contracts. Information about SONM participants (profiles, ratings, history of operations) is stored in registries on the basis of smart contracts. Transactions are carried out on smart contracts.
Virtual currency used for payments in SONM is SNM token. It is a ERC-20 standard token, based on Ethereum. Token has a function of payment equivalent of computing powers. Token is designed as an utility token (not a securities) according to Singapore law (SFA, FAA), juridical practice and MAS definitions.