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Update companion-node-types.md #1631

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Jul 14, 2023
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42 changes: 1 addition & 41 deletions docs/how-to/companion-node-types.md
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Expand Up @@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ IPFS Companion's preferences screen allows you to choose from different node typ
**If you're already running a local IPFS node, choose _External_.** If not, do one of the following:

- [Install](../install/README.md) and run IPFS as an [external node](#external) (recommended).
- Use a [native node](#native) built into your browser (Brave v1.19 or later only) or the [embedded node](#embedded) built into Companion.
- Use a [native node](#native) built into your browser (Brave v1.19 or later only).

## External

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -64,43 +64,3 @@ This node type offers the same benefits as an [external](#external) node, with a
Status page for Brave's built-in Kubo node

:::

## Embedded

::: warning DEPRECATED

js-ipfs has been deprecated in favor of [Helia](https://github.com/ipfs/helia) and will be removed in a future release of IPFS Companion. Improvements to Helia are ongoing, and we hope to have it ready for use in IPFS Companion once critical features like [webRTC Streams](https://github.com/w3c/webextensions/issues/72) are available in Chrome Manifest V3.

:::

An _embedded_ node is a js-ipfs instance running in the browser in-memory, without the need for any external software.

::: warning

This node type is only for development and experimentation. Most users should use [external](#external) or [native](#native) node types instead.

:::

::: warning Deprecation Notice for Chrome Manifest V3

Chrome Manifest V3 is the new version of the Chrome extension platform that IPFS Companion will support in the near future. Currently, the embedded node type is unavailable in Chrome MV3 and will be removed from the extension in a future release. For further information, see the [tracking issue in GitHub](https://github.com/ipfs/ipfs-companion/issues/1152).

If you're using the embedded node type in Chrome, please switch to the external node type instead.

:::

Power users can provide [custom config](https://github.com/ipfs/js-ipfs#faq) (e.g. to enable experimental pubsub) via the IPFS Companion [Preferences](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/157609/38084660-0b97c0cc-334e-11e8-9368-823345ced67f.png)

Please note that there are some limitations when running an embedded js-ipfs instance in the browser context using Companion:

- Embedded js-ipfs cannot act as an HTTP gateway; the extension uses a public one as a fallback.
- Running an embedded js-ipfs instance is known to be CPU-hungry over time, which may drain your battery. See GitHub issues ([#450](https://github.com/ipfs-shipyard/ipfs-companion/issues/450) and [ipfs/js-ipfs#1190](https://github.com/ipfs/js-ipfs/issues/1190)) for further details
- Missing DHT (see [js-ipfs/#856](https://github.com/ipfs/js-ipfs/pull/856)).
- Default transports limited to websockets ([js-ipfs/#1088](https://github.com/ipfs/js-ipfs/issues/1088)):
- Lack of connection closing ([ipfs/js-ipfs#962](https://github.com/ipfs/js-ipfs/issues/962))
- Missing relay discovery ([js-ipfs/v0.29.x/examples/circuit-relaying](https://github.com/ipfs/js-ipfs/tree/v0.29.3/examples/circuit-relaying))
- An embedded node _does not run_ when an external node is selected; every time you switch back to the embedded node, a new instance is created on demand, and it can take a few seconds for a newly running node to find peers.

## Public

A _public_ node is used as a fallback for gateway functionality when an external node is offline or an embedded node is used. It does not expose the API port. This type of node is not included as an option in Companion's preferences.