🇮🇹 Trovate la versione italiana a questo link.
One of the main flaws of the blockchain world is that networks hardly communicate with each other. To send a Bitcoin on Ethereum network we will need external tools like expensive bridges to wrap the BTC and, at the cost of high transaction fees, send it on the destination network. The situation is complicated from any aspect you want to look at it, even passing through a centralized multichain exchange, in fact, you risk losing a lot of time and money between the various swaps and transaction fees. This situation is certainly discouraging for users who enter the blockchain world with the hope of finding an ecosystem of value exchange evolved and easy to use.
To address these and many other issues, Cosmos was born, a network of independent and parallel blockchains, each powered by a BFT (Byzantine Fault-Tolerance) consensus algorithm such as Tendermint, considered among the best BFT consensus apparatuses for blockchain. Put another way, Cosmos is an ecosystem made up of different networks that can communicate and interact with each other in a simple and extremely cost-effective way.
THE TRINITY OF COSMOS
In addition to making life simple for users, Cosmos provides tools for developers to create their own network in a simple way. These networks, while maintaining their sovereignty and independence, can communicate with each other and process transactions quickly and cost-effectively. To realize the project of a Blockchain 3.0, the system uses three open-source tools: Tendermint, Cosmos SDK, and the IBC.
- Tendermint BFT: This is a solution created by Jae Kwon in 2014 that encapsulates within it the three network layers necessary for a blockchain (Network, Consensus, and Application). This technology allows developers to focus solely on app development, saving them a huge amount of work. Tendermint is connected to apps via a protocol called Application Blockchain Interface (ABCI), through which developers can choose the programming language that best suits their needs. Tendermint allows the development of both public and private networks: in the first case, the blockchain will be characterized by a Proof-of-Stake consensus, as validators will be elected based on the amount of tokens put into stake; in the second, only pre-authorized entities can be elected as validators. Finally, this consensus algorithm has instant finality property, i.e., no fork can be created as long as more than one-third of the validators behave honestly. In case of a fork, Tendermint allows determining the responsibilities of the split;
- Cosmos SDK: is a generic working environment that allows you to easily create secure applications on Tendermint BFT. This framework is modular, which means that developers can use off-the-shelf modules for their network and anyone can create new ones. As the network expands, the SDK modules will also expand making it easier and easier to create blockchain applications. Cosmos SDK also includes some development tools for creating interfaces and libraries that can be used by everyone.
With these two tools, developers can develop an entire blockchain in a simple, secure, and flexible way. The networks implemented in this way will be compatible with each other while maintaining their sovereignty. The aspect that interests us, common users, the most, the IBC, deserves a separate paragraph.
INTER-BLOCKCHAIN COMMUNICATION PROTOCOL
Here’s the star of our narrative, the IBC protocol. This technology uses properties of instant finality that we’ve talked about to allow different networks (with different applications and sets of validators) to transfer data or tokens from one chain to another, making them interoperable with each other, even in the case of communication between public and private blockchains.
Operation
To send a token from Cosmos network to Osmosis network, for example, the first step is to start the transaction. Osmosis receives the Cosmos headers and vice versa, so each chain can track the other’s set of validators. Once the transfer has started, the tokens on Cosmos are locked and proof of this lock is sent to the Osmosis network. This proof is checked against the Cosmos network header and, if confirmed, tokens equivalent to those sent by Cosmos are created on Osmosis. These tokens are just a representation of the tokens present on Cosmos, the “real” tokens exist only on the source network and represent evidence that the tokens are frozen on it. To return to the source network and be unlocked, the tokens follow a similar mechanism to the outbound one.
Internet of Blockchain
Now that the networks are talking to each other, to create a real network we need an architecture that keeps down the number of connections (that would grow exponentially as the number of networks grows). Cosmos solves this step by creating a system of Hubs and Zones. Zones are heterogeneous networks and Hubs are blockchains created specifically to connect Zones. With this structure, a Zone only needs to connect to a limited number of Hubs to be automatically connected to every other Zone. Hubs also prevent the problem of double-spending that can occur between Zones. The first Hub to be created was Cosmos Hub, a public PoS network whose native token is ATOM, released in March 2019. It is also possible to connect to Cosmos Hub chains that do not adopt the Tendermint consensus, such as Ethereum, through Peg-Zones. For a more in-depth look at these connections, you can check out the links in the sources.
The IBC is the last piece needed to create the “Internet of Blockchain” and the economic system for the value exchange of the future.
The IBC protocol is capable of making heterogeneous networks communicate with each other, creating the Internet of Blockchain between networks implemented with Cosmos SDK technology and the Tendermint consensus algorithm. With the expansion of the Cosmoverse and all the past and future airdrops directed at ATOM stakers and beyond, I can say that, at least from my point of view, IBC is truly the future of blockchain technology.
Sources:
https://docs.cosmos.network/master/ibc/overview.html
https://forkast.news/what-is-cosmos-the-internet-of-blockchains/
https://medium.com/coinmonks/cosmos-the-blockchain-connector-eef4dfd947e0
I originally posted this article here.
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