Gramoli V. Blockchain Scalability and its Foundations...2022

Textbook in PDF format

This practical new book offers the distributed-computing fundamental knowledge for individuals to connect with one another in a more secure and efficient way than with traditional blockchains. These new forms of secure, scalable blockchains promise to replace centralized institutions to connect individuals without the risks of user manipulations or data extortions. The techniques taught herein consist of enhancing blockchain security and making blockchain scalable by relying on the observation that no blockchain can exist without solving the consensus problem. First, the state-of-the-art of consensus protocols are analyzed, hence motivating the need for a new family of consensus protocols offering strong (deterministic) guarantees. Second, a didactic series of classic blockchain vulnerabilities is presented to illustrate the importance of novel designs better suited for the adversarial environment of open networks. These cutting-edge solutions are illustrated through the Redbelly blockchain design, which solves a different problem from the classic Byzantine consensus problem of 1982 and which delivers—in the modern blockchain context—high performance at large scale