Blockchain Proposer Control Using Temporal Validator Sampling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional blockchain technologies face challenges in managing concurrent block proposals, leading to increased load on validators and latency due to the lack of effective congestion control mechanisms, particularly in decentralized networks using consensus protocols like Avalanche.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a soft proposer mechanism that progressively allows more validators to become block proposers over time, combined with a wrapper blockchain that enforces execution and verification rules through block headers, to manage and limit conflicting proposals.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If all validators are allowed to propose blocks concurrently, then network decentralization is maintained, but the quantity of conflicting block proposals increases and validator load increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the set of allowed proposers based on temporal parameters. Initially, only a sampled subset of validators can propose blocks, but as time progresses and the temporal parameter increases, more validators are progressively allowed to become proposers. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction by adapting the proposer set size over time rather than fixing it statically.
Solution Approach 2:
The wrapper blockchain is created in advance with pre-defined execution and verification rules embedded in its block headers. These rules preliminarily establish the congestion control mechanism before actual block proposals occur, enabling the system to manage conflicting proposals from the outset rather than reacting to congestion after it occurs.
2Adaptability or versatility
If more validators are allowed to propose blocks, then network decentralization is improved, but latency increases due to increased validator load
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically controls the number of active proposers based on the temporal parameter to optimize the balance between decentralization and latency. By progressively increasing the proposer set rather than allowing all validators to propose simultaneously, the system manages validator load over time, preventing latency spikes while still achieving decentralization in the long term.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If congestion control mechanisms are implemented to limit conflicting proposals, then validator load is reduced, but the complexity of the consensus protocol increases
Solution Approach 1:
The wrapper blockchain acts as an intermediary layer that enforces congestion control rules. Rather than embedding complex congestion control logic directly in the core consensus protocol, the wrapper blockchain with its predefined execution and verification rules serves as a mediator that manages proposer selection and limits conflicting proposals, thereby reducing validator load while isolating the complexity in a separate, manageable layer.
Data Source
AI summary
Various aspects of the subject technology relate to systems, methods, and machine -readable media for proposing blocks to be added to a blockchain. Various aspects may include performing adding block headers to a first blockchain, wherein the block headers reference a set of validators. Aspects may also include adding a temporal parameter to each block header. Aspects may also include determining, based on a block signature from a block header and from the set of validators, a proposer of candidate blocks for addition to the blockchain. Aspects may also include sampling, based on a temporal parameter, a subset of validators of the set of validators. Aspects may include increasing the proposer to a plurality of proposers from the subset of validators by an incremental quantity based on a comparison of the temporal parameter to a threshold.