Frequently Asked Questions

Product Scope

What is Pinner?

Pinner is a content pinning service and aggregator for decentralized storage networks. We help you ensure your content remains available on decentralized networks by managing pinning operations across multiple networks.

Currently, Pinner supports IPFS (InterPlanetary File System) with plans to expand to additional storage networks.

What Pinner IS

✅ Pinning Service - We store and serve your content identifiers (CIDs) on our infrastructure
✅ Privacy-Focused - Your data stays yours; we don't mine or analyze your content for commercial purposes. We scan content we can access (like public IPFS) for abuse and legal compliance. Zero-knowledge services (coming soon) won't be scannable by design.
✅ Competitive Pricing - We offer straightforward, fair pricing without hidden subsidies
✅ Developer-Friendly - SDKs for JavaScript/TypeScript, CLI tools, and REST APIs

What Pinner IS NOT

❌ IPFS Gateway - We don't provide public HTTP gateways for content retrieval
❌ Content Delivery Network (CDN) - We don't optimize for low-latency content delivery
❌ File Hosting - We don't serve files directly to end users over HTTP (we do serve via the IPFS swarm)

What does "pinning" mean?

Pinning tells IPFS to keep a copy of content on a specific node. Without pinning, IPFS may garbage collect content that's not frequently accessed. Pinner ensures your important content is always available.

What is the difference between pinning and gateways?

Aspect	Pinning	Gateways
Purpose	Keep content available on IPFS	Serve content via HTTP
User experience	Developer-focused (CIDs)	End-user friendly (URLs)
Pinner offering	✅ Core service	❌ Not by default

Does Pinner provide a gateway?

Gateway Services

Pinner focuses on pinning; we don't bundle public gateways with our service. This keeps pricing transparent and our operations sustainable.

Why No Gateways?

We made a deliberate choice:

Fair Pricing - Gateways are expensive infrastructure. Bundling them forces all users to subsidize a service they may not need or want.
Sustainability - Serving open web content through gateways carries significant liability. Making them profitable requires pricing high enough to offset that risk. By focusing on pinning, we build a service that's sustainable long-term.
Clear Purpose - Pinning and gateways serve different needs. We excel at one: keeping your content available on decentralized networks.

Accessing Your Content

Since Pinner doesn't provide a gateway, you have options:

Public Gateways - The IPFS Public Gateway Checker maintains a list of available public gateways. The IPFS Foundation operates these "public good gateways": ipfs.io, dweb.link, and trustless-gateway.link. Additional options include:
- eth.limo - ENS-powered gateway supporting multiple decentralized storage protocols
- ipfs.io - IPFS Foundation gateway
- dweb.link - IPFS Foundation trustless gateway
Local IPFS - Use IPFS Desktop, IPFS Companion, or ipfs-cli
Build Your Own - Run a private gateway for your needs
Paid Gateway - Contact us for custom gateway solutions with dedicated infrastructure and support

Pricing & Value

How is Pinner's pricing different?

Many IPFS services bundle gateways with pinning and hide the true cost through cross-subsidization. With Pinner, you pay for pinning—nothing more, nothing less.

What is a CID?

A CID (Content Identifier) is a unique address for content on IPFS. It's generated from the content itself, making it tamper-proof. Learn more.

What happens if Pinner goes away?

Your content remains on the decentralized network as long as at least one node has it pinned. You can export your pin list and migrate to another service if needed.

Account & Billing

How do I create an account?

Visit account.pinner.xyz to sign up.

What are the usage limits?

See our Quotas & Limits page for details.

How do I contact support?

Email support@pinner.xyz