Difference between revisions of "The Internet Computer for Computer Scientists"

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To a first approximation, the IC (Internet Computer) is a network of interacting
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To a first approximation, the IC (Internet Computer) is a network of
 
[[wikipedia:state machine replication|replicated state machines]].
 
[[wikipedia:state machine replication|replicated state machines]].
  
And now, some math <math>x=y+z</math>.
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Each replicated state machine comprises a <b>subnet</b> of <b>replicas</b>.
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Subnets may communicate with one another,
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but otherwise they operate (for the most part) independently of each other.
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As in any replicated state machine, a series of <b>transactions</b> is processed.
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A transaction may come from either an external client
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or from another state machine in the IC.
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The replicas in a subnet must run a [[wikipedia:Consensus_(computer_science)|consensus protocol]] to order the
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incoming transactions, so that each replica processes the transactions in the same order.

Revision as of 13:52, 5 October 2021

To a first approximation, the IC (Internet Computer) is a network of replicated state machines.

Each replicated state machine comprises a subnet of replicas. Subnets may communicate with one another, but otherwise they operate (for the most part) independently of each other.

As in any replicated state machine, a series of transactions is processed. A transaction may come from either an external client or from another state machine in the IC. The replicas in a subnet must run a consensus protocol to order the incoming transactions, so that each replica processes the transactions in the same order.