What is a Blockchain Node?
A node is a computer that operates the software of a blockchain.
The main function of a node is to store and validate blockchain transaction data in order to maintain a record of the blockchain's history and/or to earn newly issued cryptocurrency from the network, also known as mining or block rewards.
Nodes are operated by miners or validators, these are individuals or entities that earn rewards in the form of cryptocurrencies for helping validate transactions. To validate a transaction simply means to confirm that the amounts sent and the final account values of each counterparty are correct.
Other responsibilities of miners and validators include storing a history of the blockchain and maintaining their nodes to ensure 100% uptime.
All blockchains are powered by a network of nodes that each store their own copy of the ledger. We can think of a node as a copy of a book that is managed by members of a network sitting at a round table. Each member is responsible for updating their book with the latest record of transactions.
Each node stores a copy of the ledger and updates it in sync with everyone else’s node once the latest transactions have been verified.
Why Do We Need Nodes in Blockchain?
Nodes are the fundamental backbone of a blockchain network. They enable blockchains to maintain a secure, transparent and tamper proof record of transactions dating back to the beginning of the blockchain’s history,
The more nodes there are that store the blockchain's history and validate transactions, the more secure the network. This is because a larger set of nodes, particularly when distributed across different locations around the world, are ultimately less prone to censorship because there is no single point of failure.
Today, the Bitcoin network has over 11,000 nodes that each hold a copy of the network's latest transactions and transaction history. The Ethereum network currently has over 10,000 nodes.
What are the Different Types of Nodes?
There are 4 types of nodes on the Bitcoin network: Full nodes, light nodes, archive nodes and mining nodes
Full Nodes
Full nodes store the complete history of transactions on the network so that they can easily be retrieved by anyone who wants to verify the blockchain.
Full nodes do not earn mining staking rewards for storing blockchain data.
Light Nodes
- Light nodes are similar to full nodes, except they do not hold a complete history of a blockchain. Instead, they store and provide just the necessary data to accommodate daily activities or faster transactions.
Archive nodes
Archival nodes are full nodes that preserve the entire history of transactions as well as the various historical states of the blockchain. They can best be used for historical data analysis or reporting.
Archive nodes are different from full nodes in that they typically require more storage space to run as they are not only recording the full history of transactions but also previous states of the network.
Miner/Validator Nodes
Miner nodes are responsible for creating new blocks by solving the computational problems required to validate transactions and win the block rewards.
It is called a miner node on a proof of work blockchain, and a validator node on a proof of stake or other consensus blockchain.
Miner nodes must run a full node, meaning they must hold a copy of the entire blockchain ledger in order to mine blocks and earn rewards.
Where do Nodes Fit in the Blockchain Technology Stack?
The typical blockchain technology stack consists of 5 layers:
- The Hardware/Infrastructure Layer
- Also known as the Protocol Layer
- The Data Layer
- Also part of the Protocol Layer
- The Network Layer
- The Consensus Layer
- The Application Layer
The Protocol Layer encapsulates both the hardware and data layers of the blockchain.
The Hardware/Infrastructure layer is where data from the blockchain network is stored on nodes.
Nodes download a copy of the blockchain ledger and participate in verifying data signatures and validating new block transactions through the process of mining or staking.
While the nodes are decentralized in principle, each individual node is just a computer that relies on physical or cloud service providers such as Amazon Web services, Azure, or BlockDaemon to operate.
- These service providers can be considered an additional component to the Hardware/Infrastructure layer.
How do Nodes Work on Ethereum?
Ethereum nodes, or clients, record and transmit copies of transaction data, including smart contract data, on the Ethereum blockchain, which is then read by the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to update the ledger.
- EVM is a Turing complete software, meaning that the software is agile enough to run any code defined by the developer.
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The virtual machine enables smart contract code to be executed by a global P2P network of computers.
- Contracts written in a smart contract–specific programming language like solidity are compiled into ‘bytecode’ to be read by the EVM. All nodes then execute this contract using their EVMs, which in turn updates the ledger.
The performance of the EVM is only limited by the amount of gas that is provided by the client to process each transaction.
- Gas refers to the fee, priced in Eth or Gwei, or pricing value required to successfully conduct a transaction or execute a contract on the Ethereum blockchain platform.
How do Nodes Work on Bitcoin?
When a new bitcoin transaction is signed by the sender, it must be broadcast throughout the Bitcoin network so that all nodes including, full, light and mining nodes, can verify it.
The first node to receive the signed transaction will verify the transaction information, input/output, timestamp, etc, and also verify the transaction signature against the public key of the sender to confirm that they possess the private keys that allows them to authorize this transaction.
Once verified, the transaction will be shared to other nodes that the first node is connected to. These nodes will perform the same process of verifying the signed transaction.
Each node will share the signed transaction to other nodes until all nodes on the network have received and verified the signed transaction.
On the Bitcoin network, all nodes must independently verify each signed transaction before the transaction goes on to be validated by a mining node and added to the next block. This process allows the network to be resistant to denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
Once the signed transaction has been propagated throughout the network and verified by all nodes, the mining node that has correctly guessed the nonce value for the block header will be granted the right to validate the transaction and add it to the next block of transactions in the chain.
- For performing this act, the Bitcoin mining node would be rewarded with 6.25 BTC, the current block reward.
The transaction must be recorded in at least 6 blocks in order for it to be confirmed as final and for the receiver to be allowed to spend their newly acquired BTC.
How to Run an Ethereum Node?
Running a node on Ethereum allows you to store the blockchain's transaction history and participate more directly in network's consensus and security.
An Ethereum node can be run using any personal computer by downloading the software that contains a copy of the Ethereum blockchain and verifies transactions.
To ensure 100% uptime and stronger performance, most users choose to run nodes using dedicated computer hardware.
One of the first considerations to make when deciding to run a node is whether to choose a hardware or cloud based solution to host the blockchain data.
As we mentioned earlier, many nodes rely on physical or cloud service providers such as AWS, Azure, or BlockDaemon to operate. You can alternatively choose to store the data on your own custom hardware device, however that could be more costly to manage over time. The benefits of using your own custom hardware device is greater sovereignty and no reliance on 3rd party providers.
Ethereum’s client software supports major operating systems such as Linux, MacOS or Windows. According to Ethereum.org. These are the minimum and recommended specifications for a computer to run Ethereum’s client software:
Minimum Requirements
- CPU with 2+ cores
- 8 GB RAM
- 700GB free disk space
- 10+ MBit/s bandwidth
Recommended specifications
- Fast CPU with 4+ cores
- 16 GB+ RAM
- Fast SSD with 1+TB
- 25+ MBit/s bandwidth
These are the recommended disk space requirements for running different Ethereum clients. A client is an implementation of Ethereum that verifies data against the protocol's rules and secures the network.
| Client | Disk Size Snap Sync | Disk Size Full Archive |
|---|---|---|
| Geth | 500BG+ | 12TB+ |
| Nethermind | 500GB+ | 12TB+ |
| Besu | 800GB+ | 12TB+ |
| Erigon | N/A | 2.5TB+ |
Etherum.org recommends using any of the following providers to help setup your client:
Although your node does not need to be online all of the time, it is recommended that you try to keep it online as much as possible in order to stay in sync with the network . In the event that your node goes offline, you will need to resync with the network when it restarts, which can take some time depending on how long it was offline.
How to Run a Bitcoin Node?
Bitcoin Core is the most popular client for running a Bitcoin full node. To begin running a node, you must download the Bitcoin Core software, which comes with the following requirements:
System
- Desktop
- Laptop
- Some ARM chipsets > 1 GHz
Operating System
- Windows 7/8.x/10
- Mac OS X
- Linux
Disk Space
- 350 GB
Download
- 500 MB/Day
- 15 GB/Month
Upload
- 5 GB/Day
- 1450 GB/Month
Memory (RAM)
- 1GB
Additionally, a one-time 340 GB download the first time you start Bitcoin Core
To set up a node, you must first synchronize your node to the network using the Initial Block Download or IBD. Similar to Ethereum, downloading the Bitcoin Core software uses a lot of storage space. You can find some tips for reducing storage space on Bitcoin's website.
If you don’t wish to run a node with your own dedicated hardware, you can choose a cloud service provider to store the data. After downloading the full history of the Bitcoin blockchain, you will be able to see new blocks of transactions being added every 10 minutes.