Swarm Foundation promotes the development and maintenance of the Swarm network.

In April 2025, the Bee Track focused on deeper network insight and faster node onboarding ahead of the 2.6 release. Swarmscan is now richer with new metrics that track upload/download performance, retrieval efficiency, and node responsiveness—giving a clearer picture of how the network behaves in real time.

Swarm introduces an innovative solution called DREAM (Deletion by Revoking Encryption Access for Mutable resources), which tackles deletion not by physically erasing data, but by ensuring data becomes completely inaccessible once deleted.

March data shows a notable change in network metrics, with total-network rewards increasing significantly compared to February, marking the first such increase in the last several months. This shift occurs alongside a continued decrease in active staking nodes. The combination of increased total rewards and fewer active nodes has resulted in significantly higher per-node rewards this month compared to recent months.

In March 2025, the Bee Track focused on improving upload and download efficiency with Release 2.5, including optimisations to the pusher, pushsync protocol, and peer routing.

With February now complete, network trends indicate continued stabilization. While total rewards declined slightly, the rate of decrease remained moderate, suggesting incentive dynamics are nearing equilibrium. Corresponding to the drop in active nodes, the average earnings per node saw a slight increase.

In February, the Bee Track invested significant effort into improving the performance and efficiency of Bee, with teams working on version 2.5.

We're excited to announce that Bee v2.5.0 will be released in less than two weeks on March 11th! This update focuses on improving Bee node performance, reducing operational costs, and enhancing network stability.

January data reflects a trend towards greater stability, with many metrics remaining roughly in line with those of the previous month. While rewards did continue to decrease, the rate of decrease has slowed significantly, and network participation from nodes remains relatively stable, reflecting continued dedication to the network.

As 2024 came to an end, the network demonstrated a range of trends reflecting seasonal and structural shifts. December data shows notable declines across key metrics compared to November and earlier months, with some metrics stabilizing after sharper fluctuations earlier in the year. These insights provide a deeper understanding of network performance, participation, and reward distribution dynamics.

This month, the focus was on improving upload and download speeds in Swarm, with teams working closely together to test bug fixes and benchmark results.Bee 2.4.0 was released in honour of ldeffenb.

December was an exciting month for the Swarm Network. The Bee 2.3 update doubled the reserve size and the odds of winning the redistribution game.

The Swarm network is preparing for an important upgrade. SWIP-21 is already on the public testnet and once implemented, it will increase nodes’ reserve size.

In this report, we analyze the Swarm network’s performance for November 2024. By examining key metrics such as total rewards, win values, average node earnings, and geographic distribution, we gain insights into the network's trends and dynamics.

We're thrilled to announce that Bee Version 2.3.0 is scheduled for release on December 4th, 2024! The newest version of the Bee client includes exciting new features and improvements to existing features. Among these changes are the new reserve doubling feature, the new GSOC feature, and enhancements to the price oracle.

In this report, we analyze the Swarm network’s performance for October 2024, providing insights into various key metrics including total rewards, win values, node earnings, and geographic distribution.

The Swarm network is preparing for an important upgrade. SWIP-21 is already on the public testnet and once implemented, it will increase nodes’ reserve size.

September was an important month for Swarm. SWIP-21 has been finalised and now it's time for the Bee and Research Track to go into development and find a suitable technical solution for its implementation.

A detailed analysis of the Swarm network's performance metrics for September 2024, including total rewards, node activity, and geographic distribution of staking nodes.

This report provides an overview of the Swarm network's key metrics for August 2024, highlighting changes in network rewards, win values, node activity, and geographic distribution. By comparing these metrics to previous months, we can better understand the ongoing development of the network.

In August, the Bee Track deployed the Bee 2.2 release on the public testnet. Expect a final release soon. It includes Access Control Trie (ACT) for managing the confidentiality of content, neighbourhood hopping with transferable stakes and the option to withdraw stakes.

Bee version 2.2.0 launches in one week on Thursday, September 12th, introducing significant new features and improvements for both DAPP developers and node operators. These features unlock exciting new potential use cases for Swarm developers and come with important enhancements to the user experience and economics for node operators.

This node operator's guide contains step by step instructions for the requirements to upgrade your node to 2.2.0 as well as instructions for other new features such as neighborhood hopping and partial withdrawals. To learn more about all the new features included in the 2.2.0 release, check out the one week announcement article.

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the Swarm network metrics for July 2024, building upon the trends observed in the previous months. The focus remains on redistribution-related data such as total rewards, win values, earnings, and node activity. Geographic distribution is also examined, offering insights into the network's growth and performance across different regions.

In July, the Bee Track has been diligently preparing for the Bee 2.2 release, with Access Control (ACT) development completed and neighbourhood hopping with transferrable stake in final testing.

This report provides a detailed analysis of various Swarm network metrics for June 2024, focusing on redistribution-related data. These metrics offer insights into total rewards, win values, earnings, node activity, and geographic distribution, helping to understand trends and performance variations over time.

The Research Track began writing specifications and discovery on Swarm multichain support options and will be moving to development ASAP.

The May state of the network report continues to depict the evolving dynamics within the Swarm network, reflecting adjustments and shifts in various metrics.

Bee 2.1 is out and live. Key changes include improved stability, performance and limits to the number of freezes per round.

The Bee 2.1 release is right around the corner, and is scheduled to go live in just two weeks. This release brings with it several changes aimed at improving node performance as well as changes aimed at making the Bee client more streamlined and easy to work with.

The April state of the network report offers insights into the continuing evolution of the Swarm network, showcasing adjustments across various metrics. Despite fluctuations in rewards, April saw sustained engagement from node operators, reflecting participant resilience.

April was packed with activity on all fronts in the Swarm ecosystem. The Bee Track released the latest version of libp2p that included the localstore changes package and the merge of the /bee and /debug APIs.

March was a big month for Swarm. Bee 2.0 is out and 2.1 is already being drafted. Version 2.0 brought with it erasure codes, a new testing environment on Sepolia and a host of localstore fixes.

In the March edition of our 'State of the Network series, we provide an in-depth look at the Swarm network's metrics and the notable changes they have undergone. This month's report captures a dynamic period for the network, characterized by significant variations in rewards, participation, and geographical distribution of nodes. Through this analysis, stakeholders can gain insights into the evolving landscape of the Swarm network, marked by shifts in monthly rewards, win values, average earnings per node, and the global distribution of active nodes.

With just a week left until the launch of Bee 2.0 on March 26th, now is a time of great anticipation for the Swarm community and decentralised storage enthusiasts around the globe. This release is not just an update; it signifies a major leap forward in our journey towards creating a more fair, censorship-resistant, and user-driven internet.

A Bee 2.0 transition guide for staking node operators, uploaders, & Swarm testnet users.

In the latest instalment of our ongoing series detailing the metrics of the Swarm network, we delve into data from February. This comprehensive overview provides the Swarm community with a clear picture of the network's performance, including key statistics such as total monthly rewards, median and average win values, monthly earnings for active staking nodes, and the geographical distribution of these nodes. February's data reveals the continuation of existing trends and subtle shifts in network activity, rewards distribution, and global participation. By examining these metrics, we aim to offer a thorough understanding of the Swarm network's current state and continuing evolution.

In February, the Bee Track team focused on preparing for the imminent Swarm 2.0 release, which promises substantial enhancements, including best-in-class redundancy via erasure codes.

In our latest monthly report, we examine the performance of the Swarm network for January, continuing our ongoing analysis of the network's dynamics. This month, we again report on key metrics such as total network rewards, win values, active staking nodes, and geographic distribution of nodes to understand the network's current state and emerging trends.

The Research Track is preparing for the imminent release of Swarm 2.0, featuring erasure codes that will deliver groundbreaking data availability.

In this month's analysis, we turn our attention to the Swarm network's performance in December, comparing it with previous months to draw insights into evolving trends and developments. Our report delves into key metrics such as total monthly rewards, median and average win values, and the average earnings per active staking node. Notably, we'll discuss the network's adaptation to an increasingly competitive staking landscape, highlighting the resilience and efficiency of Swarm's economic model and pricing mechanism.

The Research Track successfully concluded Phases 3 and 4 of the storage incentives roadmap, enhancing system security and network decentralisation. Erasure codes are currently in the testnet phase, with plans for a mainnet release.

In this comprehensive report, we delve into the key metrics and trends that have shaped the Swarm network throughout November. This month's analysis brings a focus on various critical aspects of the network, including the total active staking nodes, connectable nodes, winning nodes, and the geographic distribution of active nodes. Additionally, we explore the network's total monthly rewards, average and median win values, and the average earnings per active staking node.

November was the month that set the final stage for the upcoming Price Oracle, bringing with it massive security and pricing benefits.

The Swarm research and development teams are thrilled to reveal that they are currently working on adding erasure coding (also referred to as erasure code or erasure encoding) to Swarm to increase the resilience of data stored on the Swarm network.

Over the last six months, the Swarm network has shown substantial growth and increased activity. This is evident from the rising total monthly rewards, average and median win values, and the average earnings per active staking node. The number of active nodes, both staking and non-staking, has significantly increased, with a notable rise in active staking nodes, especially from countries like China, Germany, and Finland.

October has seen some important shifts in the wider Swarm ecosystem. The Bee Track successfully released Bee 1.17.5 featuring smaller but impactful improvements.

Let's take a dive into the Swarm network's performance metrics for September. The details below offer a window into individual node earnings, win value statistics, and the geographical node distribution. By juxtaposing September's metrics with August's data, we can explore the network's growth patterns.

September saw a fresh stream of new releases, announcements and publications that reflect Swarm’s evolving vitality. A new Bee 1.17.4 is out and it comes with a sizable changelog, a **breaking change** (make sure to update your node) and **improved user experience for node operators**.

Swarm’s storage incentives rollout has been moving forward at a healthy pace over the last few months. After rollout of the staking system in phase 2, phase 3 will be focused on the storage rent oracle. The oracle lays the technical foundation for the final two phases of the storage incentives rollout, and is vital to the overall functioning of the system.

The Bee client is a powerful piece of software which has been developed to realise the vision of unstoppable decentralised Web3 storage described in the Swarm Whitepaper and The Book of Swarm. Alongside the development of the Bee client is an ecosystem of tools and apps which are being developed to make it easier for developers and content creators to work with Bee.

The 1.17.4 update will be going live later this week. As this release will introduce breaking changes at the protocol level, it is important to update your nodes as soon as possible, so please be on the lookout for the release announcement and ready to update your nodes later this week.

This report provides an in-depth overview of the state of storage incentives on the Ethswarm network for the month of August. Detailed below are insights into monthly rewards in BZZ tokens, single node monthly earnings, median win values, average win values, monthly unique staking nodes, and the geographic distribution of nodes.

In the past month, the Swarm ecosystem has seen some significant developments. The Bee Track team released the much anticipated localstore rewrite and has already ironed out some of the notable issues in version 1.17.3. Meanwhile, anticipation builds for the release of Phase 4 items and the price oracle, both set to further enhance the storage incentive system.

In July, a major step was taken for the Swarm network with the unveiling of the new Localstore, which will be included in the latest Bee 1.17.0. Phase 4 of the storage incentives roadmap will also be released in the next few days, as will the latest updates to the price oracle, which is currently being tested extensively.

Bee 1.17 is here! This update represents a significant step forward in terms of increased ease of code maintainability and reduced time for new feature development. With the storage incentives rollout nearing completion, the team has in recent months focused on the completion of the 1.17 update. The update will go live by the end of this week, and since it is a breaking update at the protocol level, all node operators should make sure to update their nodes.

June marked an important point in the Swarm network development. The new localstore was released on private and public testnet and the new revised and updated edition of the Book of Swarm is now available. The Research Track has also made it much easier to find nodes that couldn’t enter the storage incentives game and understand the circumstances.

The last few months have been a transformative time for Swarm. Development is progressing on multiple fronts, and the hard work of the research and development teams is reflected by network growth and performance improvements. In this article we discuss the state of the network on multiple fronts.

The Swarm network was abuzz with activity in May and there’s a lot of ground to cover, so let’s dive right in. The Bee Track has released versions 1.15.0 and 1.16.0, introducing new features and several improvements. In version 1.15.0, a new pushsync feature has been introduced to improve chunk syncing and replication during uploading. Other enhancements include improved blocklist display, storage radius adjustment, chainstate total amount, and peer mode added to the status protocol, and reduced workload during initial historical syncing.

In April, the Bee Track laid out the blueprint for the upcoming releases of the Bee client to fix the issues uncovered in their investigation. The localstore rewrite project is in its final phase before testing, which is expected to begin in the coming weeks. The Bee Track team are also working on the requirements that nodes must meet in order to participate in the storage incentives game.

Bee client is now version 1.13.0 and is bringing breaking changes. This includes the upgrade of the go-libp2p, which uses a new format for the p2p keys. The update will exclude nodes from storage incentives unless they have enough balance to cover at least five storage-incentives-related transactions.

February was a big month for the Swarm network. The price of postage stamps has been recalibrated with the release of Bee 1.12.0, which marks a major milestone for Swarm's self-sustaining network. The Research Track has also completed the documentation for Phase 4, which details the work of this phase of the Storage incentives roadmap.

This upgrade is a significant milestone in the development of the Swarm network, as it enables Swarm node operators to earn rewards in exchange for contributing their storage resources to the network.

In January, the Bee Track released a new version of the Bee client (1.11) that brings an important update to uploads with mutable batches. This update causes newer chunks in a batch to replace older ones on the network. The Research Track, on the other hand, is nearing completion of Phase 3 of the storage incentives and is making great progress in producing documentation for Phases 4 and 5.

December was a big month for releases. Bee 1.10 was released on the mainnet and with it Storage Incentives Phase 2. The latter allows node operators to participate in the redistribution of storage fees. Over the next few weeks, the research team will be watching closely to see how the new mechanism performs as it brings Phase 3 closer to release.

The Swarm Foundation announced exciting updates at its recent semi-annual solstice event. Phase 2 of its ambitious network upgrade is now live on mainnet, allowing Swarm’s storage node operators to be compensated for their contributions.

The Bee Track team have been busy throughout November, continuously improving the deployment and testing process to improve its efficiency. They have recently cleaned out and fixed issues on their testnet and are now working on having new testnets — beta, public, and internal.

An economically self-sustaining mechanism to gather storage operators.

The upgrade of the Swarm network storage incentives, which began on 13 September, is now in full swing. Both, Phase 2 and 3 of the upgrade, are currently undergoing extensive testing: Phase 2 on the public testnet and Phase 3 on a closed testnet.

The development of the Swarm network and its associated ecosystem continues to move forward as planned. Bee client 1.9.0 is out and the team behind Bee is fully focused on meeting the timelines for bringing storage incentives to mainnet (they are already available for preview on testnet). There’s also a new Bee-js in the pipeline, which brings an array of breaking changes.

September has seen a lot of action across all tracks. The Bee track released a breaking version of the Bee client (1.8.0) and two additional releases with a patch and an update. Because of the new Bee client version, the JS Track also had to update Swarm Desktop to make it compatible with the changes.

On 13 September 2022, the Swarm Foundation began the most substantial upgrade to the Swarm network since its mainnet release. The upgrade will unfold in several phases and enable node operators to receive rewards for their services to the network.

his release will activate the first phase of the upgraded storage incentives. It is the first step that will later open the doors to rewarding node operators for providing storage to the network.

In August, the spotlight was on the upcoming storage incentives rollout. The Bee and JS Track have been working closely with the Research Track to get everything ready for the rollout. This includes updating the Bee client and the Swarm Desktop (Beta) dApp.

The Swarm Foundation’s JS Track released Swarm Desktop (Beta), its biggest software release since the mainnet launch. Swarm Desktop enables one-click setup of a Swarm network node, simple interaction with the network without crypto onboarding and introduces two additional modes of operation — ultra light and light mode. It’s available for download here for Windows, MacOS and Linux.

May has been a truly exciting month for different tracks that keep the Swarm network going. The BeeJS Track released a new Bee Dashboard version, along with several Bee-js releases.

This latest release is an accumulation of a lot of work done in the last couple of months by the team. We’ve improved and refactored substantial amount of components and areas of the codebase as well as fixed a few critical bugs

April was the month of spring cleaning for different tracks around Swarm. The Bee client saw a patch release to fix some critical issues, while the BeeJS team also cleared up some minor bugs with the new Bee-js release. On the ecosystem side, the Swarm community near and far got treated to a Monthly Ecosystem Call.

The Bee team is happy to announce the latest release v1.5 This release comes with significant changes to how the Bee nodes store data locally.

March was marked by the WAM hackathon, organised by Fair Data Society in partnership with Swarm. Three weeks of talks, demos and presentations connected artists, gamers, developers and activists in an effort to build a better Web. Important partnerships were forged, like the one between Kiwix and Swarm that will see the whole of Wikipedia uploaded to Swarm’s decentralised storage.

There’s no rest for the wicked and February has kept the Swarm team busy as always. A new Bee client release saw the light of day, as have three new releases from the BeeJS team. But the main focus of the entire Swarm team is to realise Milestone 2 of the technical roadmap, announced last December, in sync with the specified timeline.

Swarm is about to take a giant step closer to the mainnet release by deploying a new release of Swarm. The upcoming release (estimated Tuesday, 9 February, 09:00 CET) includes, among others, an integration with Bzzaar (on Goerli).

With 2021 behind us, the Swarm team entered the new year at the usual pace, working hard to make Swarm features complete by the end of the year.

The idea of the world computer was born out of Ethereum’s founding fathers’ vision for a new and better Web. In it, Vitalik Buterin, Gavin Wood and Jeffery Wilcke envisioned a serverless Web, free of large corporations and one which could be economically self-sustaining through blockchain technology.

Swarm works the way it does because it is formed of many independent nodes that collaborate to store and deliver your data. But why do these nodes collaborate and can’t the system be abused? Understanding Swarm’s bandwidth incentives is key to answering these questions.

Swarm Foundation is proud to share the internal agenda of its tech team’s for the upcoming 12 months. The aim is to create predictability in the development tracks and the wider organisation as well as help coordinate between the Foundation’s efforts and the efforts deployed to the broader Swarm community.

The Swarm Bee Team is proud to announce the release of Bee v1.4.0. It includes a major change to the protocol behaviour that will improve network resilience significantly. You must update your nodes to this latest version or they will no longer be part of the network.

A lot has happened since the last update. The Bee team implemented important changes to the network: check out the Bee 1.3.0 release.

A lot has happened since the last update. The Bee team implemented important changes to the network: check out the Bee 1.3.0 release.

The Bee team has been working hard on measuring and identifying key problems in the swarm DHT these last few months.

Two weeks after the 1.2.0 release, Swarm Foundation is releasing a new version of Bee. The most important thing to know is that Bee will now block peers that don’t agree on the same block hash of a certain block height.

A comprehensive description of the insights of the single faucet of BZZ Token, explained in detail.

Today, Swarm Foundation is releasing a new version of Bee, the Swarm network client. It is being tested by the growing testergroup that can be found on Discord. Among the updates, the recommendations of the Cure53 audit were implemented.

By Elad, Swarm Foundation Dev Team Lead It’s been an exciting couple of months for the Bee team since the much anticipated 1.0 release.

In August, a new mainnet release happened, fixing bugs from the initial Swarm 1.0 release, and improving the performance and stability of the network. Some new features were added too. Make sure to update your nodes and check the release notes.

On 21 June 2021, Swarm released its first mainnet client. Today, Swarm is releasing a new version 1.1.0, fixing bugs and adding four new features.

July was paved with learning for the Swarm team. The Swarm 1.0 release was deployed to the mainnet for the first time and close observation on performance, bugs, and stability issues was needed to make sure everything is working as it should.

Last month was an amazing one for the Swarm team and the Swarm Foundation. Two very important milestones were achieved, and it’s fair to say they marked the beginning of a new era of Swarm.

Last month, Swarm released Bee 1.0, and finalised its token sale. During this incredibly busy week, other projects and tools were released. In this article, you will find an overview of the tools and projects the Bee-JS team has published.

The Swarm Foundation unveiled the beta version of the Swarm Desktop App (Beta). Its goal is to take the best from Web2 and replace the complex experience of Web3 with a familiar one. The app is intended for the tech enthusiasts who want to try something different and for those who are just entering the crypto space.

It’s official! The Swarm team is proud to announce that the Swarm mainnet has launched. Bee 1.0 has been released and is running on mainnet. This means everybody can now join in creating the Swarm mainnet network. This is a historical moment in the history of Swarm.

Today, the Swarm team is releasing Bee v1.0-rc4. Node operators who have been running testnet nodes can now update to this new version. Take this opportunity to participate in the final days of the airdrop campaign.

The last month has been very busy for the Swarm dev team. The Swarm v0.6 release has had exciting new features added. Some crucial changes have been made and Bee node operators need to update their nodes.

The long-awaited Bee v0.6 release is here. With it, some really important changes have been made. Bee node operators must update their nodes if they want to stay part of the network and be able to continue to participate in the airdrop.

April was a heads-down / work-hard month for the Swarm team. A lot of things have been going on in the background. We’re proud to share our progress.

The Bee Dashboard is a web app that can help you set up your Bee node. It connects to your locally running node, checks the status of different API endpoints, and offers troubleshooting.

Bee v0.5.3 has been spinning for a while now, but our dev team have not been idling. In the background, we have been working on the v0.6.0 release, which is almost ready for a test drive.

March was as busy as always. The team was focusing on bug fixes and performance enhancements. A new version of the bee-js was released and a new Swarm release is around the corner, too.

Over the past few weeks, in an effort to improve the user experience and resource usage of Bee, we’ve been looking into various issues that have been reported by the community.

February has been a remarkable month for the Swarm and the Fair Data Society team. Apart from the regular work on the Swarm code, which produced a new release of Swarm (v0.5.1), the two teams joined forces and managed to pull off a really interesting hackathon event.

The beginning of 2021 was busy as always. After a short New Years’ Eve break, the team dived right back into work and we are happy to share two new releases — the new release of Swarm Bee and the Alpha release of the bee-js libraries.

As you probably know, the JavaScript team is one of the latest additions to the Ethereum Swarm organization. The team has been working relentlessly and here are the first fruits of their work.

December is the closing month of the year and most of the teams took time to reflect on the work that was done throughout the year. We are happy to conclude that the year was fruitful for Swarm. Many important milestones were met and a lot of progress was made.

As you probably know, we released the “Swarm Live” version of Swarm on 24 November 2020. This version has a lot more stability and improved performance, and it also has all the high-level features of the Swarm 1.0 release.

November has been an important month for Swarm. Another milestone was met — the Swarm Live release. Improved performance, more stability, and polished features are just a few of the things this new release has to offer

By 25 January 2021, the cluster of nodes running the old Swarm network maintained by the Swarm team will be brought offline. As of this date, the proof of concept network is considered deprecated and the old Swarm codebase will no longer be maintained by the Swarm team. Those running services on the old testnet are encouraged to arrange for immediate migration to the new Bee client.

October was a very busy month for the Swarm team. While the developers worked hard on the Swarm Live release, which is to be announced on 24 November 2020, the comms team spent their time restructuring the way they work. The HR team was busy too and onboarded a few brilliant and experienced developers who will be a nice addition to the existing dev team.