Author: Sergio Demian Lerner 2017-02-12 20:22:33
Published on: 2017-02-12T20:22:33+00:00
RSK platform, a Bitcoin sidechain, has implemented a system to reward full nodes. They allocate 1% of the block reward to automatically reward full nodes. The system uses two methods: Proof of Unique Blockchain Storage (PoUBS) and traditional proof of retrievability, both of which use a special smart contract that creates periodic challenges. Full nodes can submit commitments to the Merkle hash root of a pseudo-random sequence of encoded blocks, and then submit Merkle-proofs that random elements belong to the commitment. To prevent blockchain bloat, RSK designed an Ephemeral Payload transaction payload that gets discarded after N blocks if no smart contract references it, otherwise it's solidified in the blockchain forever. The smart contract only evaluates responses questioned by users, reducing computation and storage requirements. The entire process happens quickly and efficiently due to RSK's short block interval of 10 seconds.Proof of Nodework (PoNW), proposed by John Hardy, is another method to reward full nodes for keeping a copy of and verifying the blockchain. It requires a new separate area of block space called nodeblock, committed to a block like SegWit. A node must register a Bitcoin address by submitting an addNode transaction, along with a security deposit to prevent cheating. Nodes are punished if they broadcast more than one signed transaction per block. PoNW runs in epochs of 2016 blocks, allowing extended windows for PoNW transactions to be added to nodeblocks to limit minor censorship. A recent history of nodeblocks needs to be stored by nodes, although the data eventually becomes obsolete and does not need to be retained forever. If a nodeWorkComplete transaction contains any incorrect information in an attempt to cheat the validation process, a challenge transaction can be created and other nodes vote whether it is upheld or not. The losing node is punished by losing their accrued PoNW for that epoch and a percentage of their security deposit.At the end of an epoch, the reward each node is due can be paid in a regular block. The question of where and how much the reward comes from is still up for debate. It could come from the existing miner reward or a special new tx donation fee for nodes. PoNW is a relatively effective way to create a reward for all nodes participating on a network.
Updated on: 2023-06-11T21:30:38.164707+00:00