FAQ#

#Data Sovereignty

These answers cover storage ownership: who controls the canister and what stays under your control outside the Rabbithole interface.

#Who controls my storage canister?

In the completed flow, you do. Rabbithole is a temporary controller during setup or an approved update so it can install or retry the deployment, then removes itself during handoff. See Data Sovereignty for details.

#Can I use my own frontend?

Yes. Your canister serves its own frontend, which you can replace. The canister API is public — you can interact with it through Candid.

#What happens to my data if I stop paying?

With On-chain Storage, your data remains in your canister while it has cycles. With Blob Storage, your canister keeps the file record and verification data, but blob availability depends on Blob Storage funding and retention. You can top up cycles directly without going through Rabbithole.

If Pro expires, storage falls back to the storage license issued during storage creation. The owner keeps personal encrypted storage within the license limits, but automatic cycle top-ups and shared access require active Pro.

#General

These are short answers about the product model and everyday limits.

#What is Rabbithole?

A decentralized file storage app built on the Internet Computer, designed around end-to-end encryption and personal canister ownership.

#How much does it cost?

You pay a fixed setup price to create your storage. This covers canister creation, the initial cycles balance, deployment operations, storage license, and the infrastructure needed to complete the handoff. The storage license defines included encrypted storage and the maximum file size for the base scenario.

Pro adds capabilities on top of the license: encrypted uploads without base limits, shared access, and automatic cycle top-ups. See What Pro gives you for details.

#What file types are supported?

All file types. Rabbithole stores binary file data, so the file format does not matter.

#Is there a file size limit?

For encrypted uploads, the limit depends on storage license or active Pro. The license defines included encrypted storage and the maximum file size. Active Pro, among other things, removes those base license limits.

Rabbithole does not add a separate technical file-size limit. Upload and encryption work in fragments, so the browser does not need to keep the whole file in memory when working with large files. Practical limits are still possible: with On-chain Storage, the file is written into the canister, and large uploads can run into limits of the subnet where the user's canister is deployed, as well as the cycle balance.

#Why does upload sometimes show Waiting for cycles?

This is an On-chain Storage upload waiting for a safe cycle buffer. If the owner has active Pro, Rabbithole can top up the canister and continue the same upload session. Without Pro, the owner needs to top up the canister manually.

#Security

These answers summarize the confidentiality and recovery model.

#Can the Rabbithole team read my files?

No. Rabbithole's code and product interface do not include a mechanism that gives the team separate access to user files.

Your browser encrypts the file before upload, so Rabbithole does not receive plaintext data. The canister keeps access rules and trusted records, while file bytes follow the selected storage mode already encrypted.

#What happens if I lose my device?

You can recover access through Internet Identity's device recovery mechanism. Your encryption keys are derived from your identity, not stored on any specific device.

#Has Rabbithole been audited?

The code is open source and available for community review. Formal audits are planned.

#What encryption does Rabbithole use?

AES-GCM with per-fragment encryption. Keys are derived through ICP's vetKeys threshold cryptography. See Encryption for details.

#Technical

These answers cover development, self-deployment, and direct canister access.

#Where can I learn the basic Internet Computer terms?

The Core concepts page explains the Internet Computer, canisters, principals, Internet Identity, controllers, and cycles in the Rabbithole context.

#Can I self-host Rabbithole?

Yes. The code is open source. You can deploy your own canisters and frontend.

#Can I build my own client?

Yes. The canister API is public. You can build any client that communicates with the canisters via Candid.