Application Distribution with ArNS + Manifests

Overview: This guide shows how to distribute software permanently using Arweave manifests and ArNS.

You can publish binaries once and serve them from stable, human-readable URLs that keep working as releases change. Files are stored immutably on Arweave, old versions remain available, and links never break.

What you get:

Permanent storage for all releases
Stable URLs via ArNS (for example, releases_yourapp.arweave.net)
Simple versioned paths for latest and pinned releases
Automated CI/CD with GitHub Actions and Turbo
No centralized registries or CDNs

The case study that follows walks through a real implementation for the Harlequin CLI and shows how to apply this pattern to your own software.

Architecture Overview

System Components

Core Technologies

Arweave: Permanent data storage blockchain
ArNS: Decentralized naming service for content routing
Turbo SDK: Efficient data upload and payment handling
GoReleaser: Multi-platform binary compilation
GitHub Actions: Automated CI/CD pipeline

Implementation Deep Dive

1. Binary Build Pipeline

The system uses GoReleaser for creating optimized, multi-platform binaries:

# .goreleaser.yaml
builds:
  - id: harlequin
    main: ./main.go
    binary: harlequin
    goos: [linux, darwin, windows]
    goarch: [amd64, arm64]
    flags: [-trimpath]
    ldflags:
      - -s -w  # Strip debug info for smaller binaries
      - -X main.version={{.Version}}

Platform Matrix:

Linux: AMD64, ARM64
macOS: AMD64 (Intel), ARM64 (Apple Silicon)
Windows: AMD64, ARM64

2. Arweave Storage Strategy

Compression Optimization

All binaries are compressed with gzip before upload, achieving significant storage savings:

// Compress binary before upload
const binaryData = readFileSync(binary);
const compressedData = gzipSync(binaryData);
const compressionRatio = ((1 - compressedData.length / binaryData.length) * 100).toFixed(1);

// Upload with proper content headers
const upload = await turboClient.upload({
  data: compressedData,
  dataItemOpts: {
    tags: [
      {name: "Content-Type", value: "application/gzip"},
      {name: "Content-Encoding", value: "gzip"},
      {name: "Original-Content-Type", value: "application/octet-stream"},
      {name: "Original-Size", value: binaryData.length.toString()},
      {name: "Compressed-Size", value: compressedData.length.toString()}
    ]
  }
});

Storage Efficiency Results:

Average compression ratio: ~70%
10MB binary → ~3MB storage cost
Significant cost savings at scale

Data Item Tagging

Each upload includes comprehensive metadata for discoverability and management:

const dataItemOptions = {
  tags: [
    {name: 'Type', value: 'release'},
    {name: 'App-Name', value: 'Harlequin-CLI'},
    {name: 'App-Version', value: version},
    {name: 'Content-Type', value: 'application/gzip'},
    {name: 'Platform', value: platform},
    {name: 'Architecture', value: arch}
  ]
}

3. Manifest-Based Routing

The system creates an Arweave manifest that provides structured routing for all binaries and metadata:

const manifest: ArweaveManifest = {
  manifest: 'arweave/paths',
  version: '0.1.0',
  index: {
    path: 'install_cli.sh'  // Default route
  },
  paths: {
    // Version-specific binaries
    'releases/1.2.3/linux/amd64': { id: 'arweave_tx_id_1' },
    'releases/1.2.3/darwin/arm64': { id: 'arweave_tx_id_2' },

    // Latest symlinks for convenience
    'releases/latest/linux/amd64': { id: 'arweave_tx_id_1' },
    'releases/latest/darwin/arm64': { id: 'arweave_tx_id_2' },

    // API endpoints
    'releases': { id: 'releases_json_tx_id' },
    'install_cli.sh': { id: 'install_script_tx_id' }
  }
};

4. ArNS URL Structure

Combining ArNS with manifests creates a permanent, human-readable API for your releases. The ArNS undername points to the manifest, and the manifest paths define the URL structure:

// Update ArNS record to point to new manifest
await ant.setRecord({
  undername: 'install_cli',  // Subdomain
  transactionId: manifestId, // New manifest TX ID
  ttlSeconds: 60            // Cache TTL
});

This creates a complete URL API:

https://install_cli_harlequin.arweave.net/
├── install_cli.sh                    # Installation script (default)
├── releases                          # JSON API with version metadata
└── releases/
    ├── 1.2.3/                       # Version-specific binaries
    │   ├── linux/amd64
    │   ├── darwin/arm64
    │   └── windows/amd64
    └── latest/                       # Latest version aliases
        ├── linux/amd64
        └── darwin/arm64

Key Benefits:

install_cli_harlequin.arweave.net provides a permanent, friendly URL
Manifest paths create a logical REST-like API structure
Updating the ArNS record points to new releases while preserving the URL

5. Intelligent Installation Script

The installation script provides a sophisticated user experience with platform detection, version management, and error handling:

Platform Detection

# Detect OS and architecture
OS="$(uname -s)"
ARCH="$(uname -m)"

case $OS in
    Darwin) PLATFORM="darwin" ;;
    Linux) PLATFORM="linux" ;;
    CYGWIN*|MINGW*|MSYS*) PLATFORM="windows" ;;
esac

case $ARCH in
    x86_64) ARCH="amd64" ;;
    aarch64|arm64) ARCH="arm64" ;;
    armv7*) ARCH="armv7" ;;
esac

Version Management

# Interactive version selection
get_available_versions() {
  curl -fsSL "${BASE_URL}/releases" -o /tmp/releases.json
  if has_jq; then
    jq -r '.[].tag_name' /tmp/releases.json | sed 's/^v//'
  else
    parse_version < /tmp/releases.json
  fi
}

# Upgrade detection
if [ -n "$CURRENT_VERSION" ] && version_gt "$LATEST_VERSION" "$CURRENT_VERSION"; then
  prompt "A newer version (v${LATEST_VERSION}) is available. Upgrade? [y/N]"
fi

Robust Download & Decompression

# Download with retry logic and progress tracking
curl --fail --location --show-error \
  --connect-timeout 30 --max-time 300 \
  --retry 3 --retry-delay 2 \
  --progress-bar \
  --output "$TEMP_COMPRESSED" \
  "$BINARY_URL"

# Verify and decompress
if ! gzip -t "$TEMP_COMPRESSED"; then
  error "Downloaded file is not a valid gzip archive"
fi

gzip -dc "$TEMP_COMPRESSED" > "$TEMP_FILE"

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions Workflow

The deployment is fully automated through GitHub Actions:

name: Nx Release
on:
  push:
    branches: [main, develop]
    paths: ['cli/**']

jobs:
  release:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Setup Go & GoReleaser
        uses: goreleaser/goreleaser-action@v6.4.0

      - name: Release (Main - Stable)
        if: github.ref == 'refs/heads/main'
        run: npx nx release patch --yes
        env:
          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
          ARWEAVE_WALLET_JWK: ${{ secrets.ARWEAVE_WALLET_JWK }}

      - name: Test Installation
        run: |
          curl -fsSL https://install_cli_harlequin.daemongate.io | \
            DRYRUN=true VERSION=0.1.0 sh

Nx Integration

The system leverages Nx for orchestrating the complex release pipeline:

{
  "nx-release-publish": {
    "executor": "nx:run-commands",
    "options": {
      "command": "goreleaser release --clean && cd scripts && yarn deploy"
    },
    "configurations": {
      "dry-run": {
        "command": "goreleaser release --skip=publish && yarn deploy:dryrun"
      }
    }
  }
}

Pipeline Stages:

Build: GoReleaser creates multi-platform binaries
Upload: Turbo SDK uploads compressed binaries to Arweave
Manifest: Creates routing manifest with all binary paths
ArNS: Updates domain to point to new manifest
Verification: Tests installation script functionality

Security & Reliability

Decentralization Benefits

No Single Point of Failure: Distributed across the entire ar.io network
Censorship Resistance: No central authority can block access
Geographic Redundancy: Data replicated globally

Access Control

// Wallet-based deployment authorization
const signer = new ArweaveSigner(wallet);
const turboUploader = TurboFactory.authenticated({signer});

// Only authorized wallet can update ArNS records
await ant.setRecord({
  undername: 'install_cli',
  transactionId: manifestId
});

Conclusion

This implementation demonstrates that Arweave manifests combined with ArNS provide a powerful alternative to traditional application distribution:

Automated Release Pipeline: CI/CD integration enables seamless multi-platform builds and deployment
Decentralized and Permanent Storage: Applications are stored immutably across the Arweave network
Zero Reliance on Centralized Registries: No dependency on npm, GitHub Releases, or traditional CDNs
Permanent Friendly Names: ArNS provides human-readable URLs with unbreakable links to your releases