Jan Camenisch, the CTO of the DFINITY Foundation, seems genuinely chuffed about a new website. Not a flashy overhaul or a multimillion-pound launch, but a quiet, unassuming tool that has already started smoothing out wrinkles for those venturing into hosting on the Internet Computer (ICP). His post – a quick note of appreciation and a nod to some very helpful instructions – pointed to easyicp.site.
What’s so special about it? For starters, it’s the kind of thing you don’t know you need until you realise you’ve been knee-deep in forums, error logs, and coffee-stained notebook diagrams. Building on ICP can be a curious exercise, especially when you’re used to the plug-and-play offerings of traditional web hosting services. EasyICP, as its name hints, tries to undo the knots – one step at a time – without collecting any user data or demanding downloads.
The Internet Computer, for those not already in its loop, is DFINITY’s answer to a more decentralised internet. Websites live on-chain, running from canisters instead of centralised servers. Sounds thrilling in theory, slightly intimidating in practice. While developers with a background in blockchain tech might be up to the task, even seasoned web builders can hit walls when they bump into the quirks of deploying on ICP. That’s where this new site steps in – not with a fancy pitch, but with practical, itemised instructions.
Everything on the site works from the browser, making it platform-neutral and refreshingly clutter-free. There are no sneaky plugins, no dodgy ads, and nothing tucked away behind pop-ups. It’s clear that whoever built it spent a fair amount of time pulling apart the usual hang-ups people face and flipping them into checkboxes on a to-do list. The result? Fewer headaches, more done.
It starts with a canister – the basic unit of computation on ICP. Users are nudged towards the NNS (Network Nervous System), where they can set up a canister and top it up with cycles, which are basically fuel in the ICP world. Even this small bit – choosing the right amount, copying the ID – is made easy. No second-guessing, no flicking between guides and dashboards. It’s all there in one continuous flow.
Next up is installing DFX, DFINITY’s command-line interface. This part is traditionally where the waters get murky. Terminal commands can throw anyone off if something doesn’t install right, or if environment paths decide to play tricks. The site keeps this lean, offering just the one command: sh -ci “$(curl -fsSL https://internetcomputer.org/install.sh)”
After that, a restart of the terminal does the trick, and the user is ready to confirm the setup. It’s during this point that the Principal ID – the identity marker – is retrieved, setting the stage for the actual deployment.
The real heart of the process lies in the ZIP file. Users are handed a neatly packaged project with all the right bits: an assets folder for website content, config files for canister and domain settings, and a .well-known folder that, while often overlooked, does heavy lifting for domains. It’s this zip that ties the user’s local content to the ICP’s global reach.
Deploying the site is all terminal-driven, but the site makes it less of a guessing game. Every command is spelled out, including the ones for permissions, which tend to be a sticking point for people using different devices or accounts. Users can assign control over their canister with a command that includes the Principal ID of the additional controller. If it works, you get a calm, unassuming () in return. That’s the signal you’re good to go.
One particular highlight is the custom tool provided for permissions. Instead of combing through the DFX documentation or IRC channels for help, users can plug in their canister and Principal IDs and receive the exact command they need. It might seem like a small detail, but this is the sort of thing that turns three hours of troubleshooting into a five-minute job.
There’s also support for setting up a custom domain, which involves working with DNS settings – another common stumbling block. The guide walks users through linking their chosen domain to the canister, handling the quirks of advanced DNS records without falling into jargon traps. You don’t need to be an expert to follow along; you just need to want your site to have its own name.
What’s refreshing is that the tone throughout is never patronising. It feels like you’re being guided by someone who’s made the same mistakes, someone who had to search for a particular DFX flag and decided no one else should have to. It’s not trying to sell anything or redirect you to tutorials that go on for hours. It gets you moving, even if you’ve never touched the ICP ecosystem before.
This sort of grassroots utility – something made with frustration, refined by trial, and shared for free – is exactly the kind of push decentralised platforms need if they want to grow. When someone like Jan Camenisch publicly thanks the creator, it says something. Not just about the site’s value, but about the need for these bridges between aspiration and execution.
For all the talk of what decentralisation could bring, the barriers to entry are still very real. EasyICP doesn’t knock them all down, but it picks a well-trodden path – website hosting – and makes it less of a maze. Developers can now dip their toes in without reading whitepapers or losing hours to RPC errors. Designers and small business owners curious about hosting their site on-chain can do it without hiring a specialist.
It may not look like much at first glance, but that’s part of the charm. EasyICP is quiet, functional, and made with intention. It doesn’t ask for praise, but it’s got it – from Camenisch and, increasingly, from others starting to find it. Whether it becomes the go-to guide or just a handy sidekick, it’s already doing its bit to make the Internet Computer a little more human.
And somewhere out there, the anonymous creator is probably still tweaking lines of code, improving it bit by bit. No grand announcements. Just helpful steps, typed in quietly, making the whole thing easier for the next person.
