What Is Hashgraph Technology and How Does It Work?
In today's environment, blockchain is getting increasingly popular. It is regarded as one of the most significant technological revolutions in history, and it has exploded in popularity as a result of countless successful and profitable applications. This can be explained by the fact that people appear to be coming up with novel strategies to solve real-world issues.
Proof of work (PoW) and proof of stake (PoS) are two algorithms that can be used with blockchain technology, but both have their own set of issues. Voting appears to be the best technique because all information is visible to each participant in the block, ensuring that the network is completely secure.
Technology advances at a breakneck pace. Companies compete to outdo one other in order to gain people' attention, and the IT industry never stops coming up with new and intriguing advances.
It's time to say hello to Hashgraph, a groundbreaking new technology.
What Is Hashgraph Technology and How Does It Work?
Hashgraph technology is a newcomer to the field of distributed ledger systems, but it appears to be a powerful tool, since it comprises a novel platform for distributed consensus and an algorithm.
Leemon Baird, co-founder of Swirlds, a software platform for the creation of networked applications, designed Hashgraph in 2016.
Hashgraph technology employs two methods to achieve quick, fair, and safe consensus:
Gossip centred on Gossip
The well-known concept of "gossip about gossip" is a real-life technique that is successfully applied in networking and business.
Everyone understands the concept: Sarah informs Robin that she found a gorgeous outfit on sale in one store and that there are a lot of clothing for a reasonable price. Later, Eva receives a call from Robin inviting her to go shopping with her. Kate tells Molly about Eva's encouragement, and so on. This shop will have at least four possible purchasers the next day.
The function is the same in Hashgraph. A fragment of information is supplied to the hashes the last two participants talked to as a piece of "gossip." Each node has the capacity to exchange transactions, events, or any other type of signed data with other nodes at random.
The message is then converted into a new one and sent to additional random nodes, who repeat the process until all of them have received the information. All nodes receive and are aware of the continually updated information in this way.
Voting using the internet
If the votes are divided into rounds, it is simple to calculate the total number of votes. Because virtual voting is done in rounds, this is exactly what it ensures. Because all nodes immediately know who the initiator is when fresh information is released, determining which node will vote is relatively simple. This information can be fed into the voting mechanism to determine whether transactions have attained consensus.
It is possible to define which transactions are valid and which are not via virtual voting. A transaction is genuine if two-thirds of the nodes in the network witness it. They must validate that these nodes are connected to them.
Also, keep in mind that Hashgraph was designed to be Byzantine Fault Tolerant, allowing the system to function even if a third of the nodes become Byzantine.
Asynchronous Byzantine Fault ToleranceAsynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerance (ABFT)
BFT can be partially or completely asynchronous Byzantine (aBFT), and both are assumed at the outset. They are all theoretically guaranteed, but they differ in their extent of personal environmental assumptions. Because botnets do exist in the real world, saying there are no botnets in the world indicates we're dealing with partially asynchronous BFT. On the other hand, attempting to show the lack of botnets in the world mathematically indicates that you are living in a dream world.
Hashgraph is a Byzantine that is completely asynchronous. aBFT assumes that there are wicked actors in every community. It ensures that a consensus is reached and is secure as long as less than one-third of the participants are malicious.
Asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerance provides security in Hashgraph technology (ABFT). CEO Mance Harmon claims to have achieved the gold standard of security using this system. Let's look at how Hashgraph implements this consensus mechanism.
Consider that the Byzantine army is divided into four divisions, each with its own commander. They must devise a strategy, but they can only communicate with one another by messenger.
Scenarios that could occur include:
Someone may attempt to bribe a courier.
A general may bribe a messenger to carry out his orders.
It's possible that a messenger will be slain.
To decide which technique to use and when to attack the city, the generals must devise a reasonable algorithm. To avoid loss, they must act in concert: simultaneously, in a coordinated manner, with consensus, and without misunderstanding.
If two generals order their army to attack while the other two command retreat, they will fail.
Consensus is a critical component of distributed ledger technology. Proof of work is a consensus protocol used by blockchain. This type, on the other hand, takes a long time to complete. A transaction takes several times longer to complete, and transaction costs are a source of anxiety for many investors.
Hashgraph, on the other hand, provides Byzantine Fault Tolerance (ABFT), a consensus algorithm with the highest level of security. With ABFT, a consensus can be obtained with a probability of 1 if less than 13 of the nodes are controlled by attackers, and messages from an honest node can be expected to be sent, but the speed at which the messages are carried is unknown.
In a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism, an attacker must control less than 13% of the stake, or fewer than 13% of the nodes if this concept is not used. The hacker has the ability to remove messages and manage their transmission. In any instance, if one honest node tries to transmit messages to another honest node so that one can get through, there is a limit.
ABFT can withstand hacker attacks, DDoS attacks, botnets, and communication network and network node firewalls, if any exist.
Hashgraph Technology's Benefits and Drawbacks
Hashgraph technology has a large following of supporters around the world who believe it can solve all of the blockchain's current issues. Many ardent blockchain proponents, on the other hand, argue that comparing the blockchain to Hashgraph is like to comparing tomatoes to cucumbers, as each has its own distinct flavour.
Let's compare them to see how they differ.
Hashgraph places severe limits on first-generation technology in terms of speed, fairness, cost, and security. Performance is an important metric for this technology, as it reveals the quantity and number of developed apps, as well as whether they can function on a database that can handle 5 transactions per second.
Hashgraph and BlockchainHere are three main advantages of Hashgraph technology that can help solve the scalability problem that blockchain-based projects are now experiencing:
Speed
The gossip protocol optimises message delivery to all nodes, lowering communication overhead. It's quick because it's based on permissions. Hashgraph can operate on private networks that require permission, which has a significant impact on the consensus solution's performance.
Consensus technologies can be divided into three groups, which you can read more about in this article.
1. Networks open to the public (for example, Bitcoin and Ethereum)
Every node in a public network has the option of participating in the network or opting out at any time. Every participant on a public platform has the power to read and make records. Users can work on the platform, acquire access to the records, and gain authority to update the records.
However, such networks are costly, and the proof-of-work mechanism imposes some limits. As a result, the number of applications in which such technologies can be used is reduced.
Furthermore, such consensuses can aid in the detection of fraud situations, such as Sybil assaults, in which a user generates many entities that disrupt the consensus process and overall throughput.
2.Personal (leader-based consensus algorithms)
Because private networks are restricted in their usage, all participants are known ahead of time. The only person who has the authority to update the records is the owner. It is up to the organisation to decide whether reading permission should be open or limited.
This protects against Sybil assaults to a high degree, and consensus may be obtained quickly. As a result, throughput is significantly higher than that of public blockchains.
This also explains why private networks are less expensive than public networks. Performance has improved dramatically, allowing for more than 1,000 transactions per second.
This network is ideal for financial institutions and major corporations since it allows them to develop massive systems while lowering costs and increasing efficiency.
Because Hashgraph is a private distributed ledger, it has a higher throughput than blockchain, which is an open distributed ledger with a transaction rate of 10 transactions per second. Hashgraph is 50,000 times faster, with a transaction rate of 250,000 or more per second.
Networks that combine the best of both worlds (the so-called blockchain consortium)
A hybrid network combines the best of both public and private networks' characteristics and benefits. A community or a group of determined persons or nodes, for example, has the right to read and edit records. Permission to the database is thus restricted in this manner. This means that each participant considers his or her options and supports the community's intellectual property rights.
.
Reliability
Hashgraph employs consensus timestamping, which considers a transaction to be the first when it reaches 2/3 of the network. On the one side, it is extremely fair, as it eliminates the potential of big node cheating. In the gossip protocol, on the other hand, nodes can be Byzantine or malignant if they choose neighbours at random. Nodes can be prevented from receiving messages by successors.
By the way, if two-thirds of the network fails to access the transaction, the node-initiator may receive an incorrect result. Because this scenario will be difficult to accomplish with the introduction of a public distributed ledger, it is one of the key obstacles that Hashgraph users may encounter.
Security
Hashgraph is built on ABFT consensus, which means it is a non-deterministic asynchronous protocol that allows the neighbour node to be chosen at random. The consensus protocol will come to an end at some point, but it is hard to predict when this will happen. Even after multiple rounds of conversation about gossip protocol, all information received by nodes is continually reconciled/updated so that they all have the same value and become unanimous.
Sybil Attack on Hashgraph
However, if Byzantine nodes begin to manage and govern all of the network's events, a significant problem occurs.
Because Hashgraph is a private ledger, the founders decide who is allowed to use it. For MESH networks, this is particularly useful.
Hashgraph's patent is still being questioned by the public. Furthermore, some experts say it ignores the entire concept of a decentralised system. Because it employs the gossip protocol and is open-source, they believe it will become centralised in the future.
No one can change the order of transactions in Hashgraph. Blockchain miners, on the other hand, can adjust the sequence of transactions based on the value of transaction fees.
Hashgraph funding is primarily provided by commercial enterprise businesses, therefore it can be used for centralised applications.
Hashgraph design does not necessitate nodes with adequate computational power to build a virtual machine, preventing the introduction of Turing-complete smart contracts and the logic of balances without jeopardising security and scalability.
This article has a more comprehensive summary of the issues that Hashgraph is dealing with.
Read the Hashgraph ICO review for a thorough knowledge of Hashgraph technology.
Aside from Swirlds, Baird, and Harmon, the Hedera Hashgraph Platform was created to develop a distributed public ledger using the Hashgraph algorithm to deliver reliable and transparent sets of codes at a higher level. The Hedera platform integrates three services (for example, cryptocurrency) to enable microtransactions, micro-storage on the distributed ledger, and smart contracts with a novel type of consensus mechanism. It has the ability to run a wide range of DApps.
The platform also has a rich API, allowing developers to create applications with ease.
Summary
Hashgraph is an unquestionably fast, dependable, and secure solution that tackles the scaling problem while also working inside the permission-setting mechanism. However, as it transitions from private to public, it will suffer many of the same issues as other public distributed ledgers. Furthermore, it is still debatable whether it would be able to function in the same way if things went differently.
Each network, public or private, has its own set of benefits and drawbacks, but keep in mind that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to all uncomfortable issues.
Let's have a look at some of the latest inventions that the modern world has to offer. Hashgraph is unquestionably worth your time.
In any event, we should keep in mind that Hashgraph is still in its early stages, and no one knows how it will function or what issues it may encounter in the future.