Consensus Mechanism
BFA - Federated Byzantine Agreement
Federal Byzantine Fault Tolerance (FBFT)
By adopting the Federal Byzantine Fault Tolerance (FBFT) consensus mechanism, similar to notable projects like Ripple and Stellar Lumen, Cyclone ensures fast, reliable, and scalable transactions.
The FBFT is flexible and scalable, enabling nodes to select their quorum slices for fast consensus without needing validation from every node. This approach resists centralization, balances safety and liveness, and fosters open participation, promoting diversity and growth.
How FBFT Works:
Quorum Slices: Instead of relying on the entire network to reach a consensus (as traditional Byzantine Fault Tolerance mechanisms might), FBFT employs the concept of "quorum slices". A quorum slice is a subset of the network that an individual node trusts to tell it about the state of the network. When enough nodes in a particular node's quorum slice validate a transaction, the node considers the transaction is valid.
Overlapping Quorums: For the network to reach consensus, quorum slices should overlap. Meaning, nodes should have some common members in their quorum slices. This ensures that agreement spreads through the network, even though not every node is checking with every other node.
Decentralized Control: Unlike some other consensus mechanisms, there's no central party or designated group of validators. Instead, nodes choose their quorum slices, leading to an organic structure where trust is decentralized.
Benefits of Federal Byzantine Fault Tolerance:
Scalability: By not requiring validation from every node in the network, FBFT provides a more scalable solution. This is especially crucial for networks aiming to process a large number of transactions quickly.
Flexibility: Nodes can choose their own quorum slices. This flexibility allows the network to reflect the trust relationships that naturally exist between participants, making it adaptable to different use cases and network structures.
Fast Consensus: FBFT often reaches consensus faster than traditional methods because it doesn't always require the entire network's agreement. The reduced number of nodes involved in validation can lead to quicker transaction confirmations.
Resistance to Centralization: Since there's no designated group of validators and nodes choose whom to trust, FBFT resists the centralization of control. This preserves the decentralized ethos of the system.
Safety and Liveness: FBFT strikes a balance between safety (ensuring bad actors can't confirm invalid transactions) and liveness (ensuring the network continues to process transactions even in adverse conditions). This balance ensures the network remains secure without sacrificing uptime or efficiency.
Open Participation: While nodes select trusted partners, there's no overarching gatekeeping mechanism preventing new nodes from joining the network. This openness fosters diversity and growth within the network.
Last updated