Logical Components in blockchain

This article points out and gives an outline of the various logical components in the blockchain.

When one takes a first look in Blockchain space it looks very confusing and complicated and there is no doubt about it, as the low-level programming and mathematics involved to create and implement blockchain ecosystem come with difficulty.

In this article, I will explain the purpose of the individual logical component that makes up any blockchain ecosystems.

To understand how blockchain technology works irrespective of its flavor or application, it is necessary to understand the logical component of blockchain ecosystem and their role.

The Blockchain Ecosystem can be logically segregated in these 4 logical components.

• node application
• shared ledger
• consensus algorithm
• virtual machine

1. Node Application
   Any Machine who want to be part of the blockchain ecosystem, need to run a node of the specific Blockchain. Using bitcion as an example , the machine must be running Bitcion wallet Application.

2. Shared Ledger
   Consider it as a data structure, which is inside the node application. If you are running the Ethereum client, you can see the Ethereum ecosystem ledger and interact according to the rules of that ecosystem (smart contracts, payments, etc.). If you are running the Bitcoin client, you can participate in the Bitcoin ecosystem, according to the rules set out in the program code of the Bitcoin node application.
   You may run as many node application of any blockchain ecosystem, but there will be only one shared ledger of the particular blockchain ecosystem.

3. Consensus Algorithm
   This logical component provides the "rules and regulation" on how the single view of the shared ledger will be reached in blockchain ecosystem.Different ecosystems have different methods for attaining consensus depending on the desired features the ecosystem needs. The various famous consensus algorithms are - Proof of Work, Proof of Authority, Proof of Stake, Proof of Elapsed Time.

4. Virtual Machine
   This is the final logical component of the blockchain ecosystem. It acts a bucket or container where all the logical components rest, act and interact.

A virtual machine is a representation of a machine (real or imaginary) created by a computer program and operated with instructions embodied in a language.It is an abstraction of a machine inside a machine.

This post was first originally posted here - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/logical-components-blockchain-ajay-singh/