From Traditional Fault Tolerance To Blockchain

This book covers the most essential techniques for designing and building dependable distributed systems, from traditional fault tolerance to the blockchain technology. Topics include checkpointing and logging, recovery-orientated computing, replication, distributed consensus, Byzantine fault tolerance, as well as blockchain. This book intentionally includes traditional fault tolerance techniques so that readers can appreciate better the huge benefits brought by the blockchain technology and why it has been touted as a disruptive technology, some even regard it at the same level of the Internet. This book also expresses a grave concern on using traditional consensus algorithms in blockchain because with the limited scalability of such algorithms, the primary benefits of using blockchain in the first place, such as decentralization and immutability, could be easily lost under cyberattacks.

Since the introduction of Bitcoin—the first widespread application driven by blockchain—the interest of the public and private sectors in blockchain has skyrocketed. In recent years, blockchain-based fabrics have been used to address challenges in diverse fields such as trade, food production, property rights, identity-management, aid delivery, health care, and fraud prevention. This widespread interest follows from fundamental concepts on which blockchains are built that together embed the notion of trust, upon which blockchains are built. 1. Blockchains provide data transparancy. Data in a blockchain is stored in the form of a ledger, which contains an ordered history of all the transactions. This facilitates oversight and auditing. 2. Blockchains ensure data integrity by using strong cryptographic primitives. This guarantees that transactions accepted by the blockchain are authenticated by its issuer, are immutable, and cannot be repudiated by the issuer. This ensures accountability. 3. Blockchains are decentralized, democratic, and resilient. They use consensus-based replication to decentralize the ledger among many independent participants. Thus, it can operate completely decentralized and does not require trust in a single authority. Additions to the chain are performed by consensus, in which all participants have a democratic voice in maintaining the integrity of the blockchain. Due to the usage of replication and consensus, blockchains are also highly resilient to malicious attacks even when a significant portion of the participants are malicious. It further increases the opportunity for fairness and equity through democratization. These fundamental concepts and the technologies behind them—a generic ledger-based data model, cryptographically ensured data integrity, and consensus-based replication—prove to be a powerful and inspiring combination, a catalyst to promote computational trust. In this book, we present an in-depth study of blockchain, unraveling its revolutionary promise to instill computational trust in society, all carefully tailored to a broad audience including students, researchers, and practitioners. We offer a comprehensive overview of theoretical limitations and practical usability of consensus protocols while examining the diverse landscape of how blockchains are manifested in their permissioned and permissionless forms.

Since the introduction of Bitcoin-the first widespread application driven by blockchain-the interest of the public and private sectors in blockchain has skyrocketed. In recent years, blockchain-based fabrics have been used to address challenges in diverse fields such as trade, food production, property rights, identity-management, aid delivery, health care, and fraud prevention. This widespread interest follows from fundamental concepts on which blockchains are built that together embed the notion of trust, upon which blockchains are built. 1. Blockchains provide data transparancy. Data in a blockchain is stored in the form of a ledger, which contains an ordered history of all the transactions. This facilitates oversight and auditing. 2. Blockchains ensure data integrity by using strong cryptographic primitives. This guarantees that transactions accepted by the blockchain are authenticated by its issuer, are immutable, and cannot be repudiated by the issuer. This ensures accountability. 3. Blockchains are decentralized, democratic, and resilient. They use consensus-based replication to decentralize the ledger among many independent participants. Thus, it can operate completely decentralized and does not require trust in a single authority. Additions to the chain are performed by consensus, in which all participants have a democratic voice in maintaining the integrity of the blockchain. Due to the usage of replication and consensus, blockchains are also highly resilient to malicious attacks even when a significant portion of the participants are malicious. It further increases the opportunity for fairness and equity through democratization. These fundamental concepts and the technologies behind them-a generic ledger-based data model, cryptographically ensured data integrity, and consensus-based replication-prove to be a powerful and inspiring combination, a catalyst to promote computational trust. In this book, we present an in-depth study of blockchain, unraveling its revolutionary promise to instill computational trust in society, all carefully tailored to a broad audience including students, researchers, and practitioners. We offer a comprehensive overview of theoretical limitations and practical usability of consensus protocols while examining the diverse landscape of how blockchains are manifested in their permissioned and permissionless forms.

Develop a deeper understanding of what's under the hood of blockchain with this technical reference guide on one of the most disruptive modern technologies Key Features Updated with four new chapters on consensus algorithms, Ethereum 2.0, tokenization, and enterprise blockchains Learn about key elements of blockchain theory such as decentralization, cryptography, and consensus protocols Get to grips with Solidity, Web3, cryptocurrencies, smart contract development and solve scalability, security and privacy issues Discover the architecture of different distributed ledger platforms including Ethereum, Bitcoin, Hyperledger Fabric, Hyperledger Sawtooth, Corda and Quorum Book Description Blockchain is the backbone of cryptocurrencies, with applications in finance, government, media, and other industries. With a legacy of providing technologists with executable insights, this new edition of Mastering Blockchain is thoroughly revised and updated to the latest blockchain research with four new chapters on consensus algorithms, Serenity (the update that will introduce Ethereum 2.0), tokenization, and enterprise blockchains. This book covers the basics, including blockchain's technical underpinnings, cryptography and consensus protocols. It also provides you with expert knowledge on decentralization, decentralized application development on Ethereum, Bitcoin, alternative coins, smart contracts, alternative blockchains, and Hyperledger. Further, you will explore blockchain solutions beyond cryptocurrencies such as the Internet of Things with blockchain, enterprise blockchains, tokenization using blockchain, and consider the future scope of this fascinating and disruptive technology. By the end of this book, you will have gained a thorough comprehension of the various facets of blockchain and understand their potential in diverse real-world scenarios. What you will learn Grasp the mechanisms behind Bitcoin, Ethereum, and alternative cryptocurrencies Understand cryptography and its usage in blockchain Understand the theoretical foundations of smart contracts Develop decentralized applications using Solidity, Remix, Truffle, Ganache and Drizzle Identify and examine applications of blockchain beyond cryptocurrencies Understand the architecture and development of Ethereum 2.0 Explore research topics and the future scope of blockchain Who this book is for If you are a technologist, business executive, a student or an enthusiast who wishes to explore the fascinating world of blockchain technology, smart contracts, decentralized applications and distributed systems then this book is for you. Basic familiarity with a beginner-level command of a programming language would be a plus.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the First International Conference on Smart Blockchain, SmartBlock 2018, held in Tokyo, Japan, in December 2018. The 17 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 102 submissions. They focus on a broad range of topics in the area of blockchain, from privacy-preserving solutions to designing advanced blockchain mechanism, from empirical studies to practical manuals.

Set off on an in-depth exploration of the dynamic technology, Hedera Hashgraph, through the book "Hedera Hashgraph: Disrupting Blockchain". With a broad and widely accessible approach, the authors dive into hedera hashgraph's striking potentials, shedding light on how it compares to the popular technology, blockchain. The book opens up with an introduction to hedera hashgraph, revealing the origin story and its defining philosophy.By way of easily understood explanations, you'll be guided through the complex nature of cryptography, understanding the Hashgraph concept and its Asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerance. The authors of this book also engage readers with a deep dive into the construct surrounded by "Gossip about Gossip" that plays a critical role in the Consensus Algorithm.Get to grips with the overall framework of Hedera Hashgraph, and unravel the basics of the cryptocurrency HBAR, from how to buy it to building tokenized assets. Vividly explained are the functions, features, and uses of the Hedera Consensus service, which has introduced pioneering changes to security measures, taking both network and cryptocurrency security to new heights.Discover the possibilities of smart contracts, the degree of performance, and scalability Hedera Hashgraph can achieve, as well as its applications in a wide range of industries including finance, banking, healthcare and supply chain management. Understand the importance of decentralized finance (DeFi) and how you can leverage Hedera to create ground-breaking DeFi Projects. The book concludes by discussing the governance structure of Hedera, its legal and regulatory aspects, and what the future may hold for Hedera Hashgraph."Hedera Hashgraph: Disrupting Blockchain" is an authoritative guide for anyone seeking to thoroughly comprehend this futuristic technology—whether you're an innovation enthusiast, a tech entrepreneur, a cryptocurrency investor, or a student of cutting-edge technology.

This book constitutes the proceedings of the 17th International Workshop on Security and Trust Management, STM 2021, co-located with the 26th European Symposium on Research in Computer Security, ESORICS 2021. The conference was planned to take place in Darmstadt, Germany. It was held online on October 8, 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 10 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 26 submissions. They were organized in topical sections on applied cryptography; privacy; formal methods for security and trust; and systems security.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 2nd EAI International Conference on Security and Privacy in New Computing Environments, SPNCE 2019, held in Tianjin, China, in April 2019. The 62 full papers were selected from 112 submissions and are grouped into topics on privacy and security analysis, Internet of Things and cloud computing, system building, scheme, model and application for data, mechanism and method in new computing.