Guides
syft-flwr supports multiple communication backends for federated learning. Choose the guide that matches your setup:
Communication Backends
| Backend | Architecture | Best For | Setup Complexity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Drive | P2P (newer) | Production, privacy-focused, no infrastructure | Low - just Google account |
| SyftBox | Centralized (older) | Production, RDS Dashboard users | Medium - requires SyftBox client |
SyftBox
SyftBox is a production-ready solution that uses a centralized file sync server maintained by OpenMined. It requires installing the SyftBox client locally and provides features like:
- RDS Dashboard for managing datasites
- Persistent datasite configuration
- Full programmatic control via
syft-rdsAPI
Google Drive (syft-client)
The Google Drive backend uses peer-to-peer file-based communication, making it ideal for:
- Production deployments with privacy guarantees (emails not exposed publicly)
- Zero infrastructure required - just Google accounts
- Transport-agnostic - also works with Dropbox, Microsoft 365, etc.
Read the blog post: Zero-Setup Federated Learning with Google Colab
Which should I choose?
- Recommended for most users: Google Drive / syft-client - P2P, privacy-focused, production-ready
- Need RDS Dashboard? Use SyftBox for a web UI to manage datasites