Streaming Hash
Streaming hashing processes arbitrary-length input streams with constant memory, updating the state block by block, without buffering the full input.
Purpose
Computes hashes in memory-constrained or unknown-length scenarios (pipes, network streams).
Mechanism
Maintains a fixed-size state; on each block read, the compression function updates the state, whose size is independent of input length. All standard hashes (SHA-2/3, BLAKE) support streaming.
Use cases
- Pipe data verification
- Large-file hashing
- Network stream authentication