Sharding Definition
Sharding is a type of database partitioning that separates very large databases into smaller, faster, more easily managed parts called data shards. Applied in blockchain technology, it means breaking up the blockchain into multiple smaller sections (shards), with each shard containing its own independent piece of state and transaction history.
Sharding Key Points
- Sharding is a process that splits a large blockchain into smaller parts, or shards, to achieve greater efficiency.
- Each shard handles separate transactions and smart contracts.
- Sharding techniques increase the scalability of the blockchain system by allowing more transactions to be processed in parallel.
- It solves the problem of network congestion and slow transaction times in the blockchain network.
What is Sharding?
When applied in blockchain, sharding divides a blockchain into several smaller components, each known as a shard. Each shard operates independently preserving its own transactions and smart contract history. The core idea behind sharding is to increase the scalability and efficiency of blockchains, particularly when it comes to transaction speed.
Where is Sharding used?
The blockchain technology revolution has seen a huge growth in its implementation across different industries. One of the main issues in these blockchains is scalability. Sharding is a technology solution that is used to solve this problem and is being employed by a number of blockchain networks such as Ethereum 2.0.
Why is Sharding significant?
Sharding is significant because it helps overcome one of the biggest hurdles for blockchains: scalability. The idea is that as the number of transactions grows, so does the size of the blockchain which impacts its speed and efficiency. Sharding allows for transactional load to be spread across multiple shards instead of being confined to one large database, thus boosting the transaction processing speed and overall efficiency.
When is Sharding used?
Sharding is used whenever there is a need for increased transaction speed and improved scalability in a blockchain network. These are characteristic challenges in larger and more complex blockchain systems where the volume of transactions is very high. Thus, implementing sharding is a logical solution when scalability becomes a pressing problem.
How does Sharding work?
In a sharded blockchain, certain nodes are assigned to specific shards, and are responsible for validating and recording transactions occurring within those shards. This effectively means that not every node in the network has to validate every single transaction, but only a subset of them. Resultantly, the overall transactional capacity of the blockchain is increased because transactions are processed in parallel.
