background
When we see a blockchain project, whether it is a newly emerged public chain, a consortium chain for compliance projects, or many blockchains that are named public chains but are actually private management rights. Or when we see a dApp, whether it is DeFi, GameFi, wallet, NFT trading platform and some hybrid applications.
You will see a lot of fancy descriptions or beautiful designs, which can easily make users feel good about them quickly, and even lead to a certain perception of authenticity.
But if you want to identify a technically logical high-quality project, you must put aside the appearance and look at the essence. You need to clearly understand how it is composed? How to build? Who is in control? , because projects in the industry will use appearances to create a blueprint to support secondary prices and market values. Without the ability to identify technologies, the chance of falling into a bubble will increase.
If you want to find the answer to this question, you need to use standard technical thinking to dismantle blockchain and dApps. Just like understanding pathology to find the lesions, you need to have the ability to understand the project. This article will provide the basic logic (non-commercial logic) for dismantling chains and dApps. Based on this logic, other factors can be superimposed to assist judgment.
definition
First, we need to understand the relationship between computing resources, blockchain, and applications.
We often hear such descriptions, for example, blockchain is decentralized, Ethereum is the world computer, and applications built on Ethereum are called dApps. These descriptions represent: the blockchain is the bottom layer and the application is the upper layer.
From a technical logic perspective, applications require computing and storage when building them. Blockchain can provide an environment for applications with computing and storage capabilities.
When we map the micro-level technology layering logic to the entire Internet, we can infer from this perspective:
The bottom layer of the Internet is Internet infrastructure, that is, the layer that provides computing resources. The upper layer is the various applications that are common in our lives, such as Internet platforms.
Since the large-scale development of Internet infrastructure, cloud services have become mainstream and can almost replace the entire Internet infrastructure.
Therefore, this means that the structure of the Internet can be understood as:Cloud + applications.
From this, by comprehensively comparing the above two structural inferences, it can be concluded that:
The blockchain network has the same capabilities as cloud services and provides an environment for application deployment.
inclusion relationship
Building a blockchain network requires underlying computing resources. Currently, blockchains in the industry do not entirely use self-built resources to form networks. Most of them use the cloud, which means that cloud services are also the lower resource layer of the blockchain network. Infrastructure, the blockchain network has become a new component rooted in the Internet.
To sum up, we can define it as follows:
Blockchain network = new cloud service (distributed)
Applications on the blockchain dApp = new applications in the new “cloud environment”
Based on the fact that blockchain is still rooted in the Internet infrastructure, we once again enumerate some key evidence, including:
Computing resources (even physical machines) need to be connected to the Internet communication network
Many blockchain networks open virtual machines and deploy nodes in cloud servers.
After deploying nodes, cloud resources need to be managed.
Node software still needs to be deployed on the hardware or cloud service’s operating system
Need to rely on cloud services to develop Web or M stations as front-end
When accessing the chain, the remote calling method of Internet development applications is still used.
All of the above factors make blockchain and blockchain networks inevitably become a small part of todays Internet, rather than a replacement, because this is not a revolution like hardware upgrades, but a new technical model that is formed with the Internet. New parts with distributed characteristics will attract new applications and business forms to take root and grow on the technical structure.
Detailed disassembly and comparison
Based on the above basic theory, let’s deconstruct the blockchain and dApp.
First, classify blockchains:
Public chain
Alliance chain
Open alliance chain
Coinless public chain
Then we will classify these types of chains again into:
permission chain
permissionless chain
This means that if the chain has licensing requirements, there must be a process to obtain the license, and the applicants information will be provided in the corresponding license application process. The licensing process represents KYC (know you customer), and there may be more complex designs under certain official (such as financial institutions, legal real-name identity) requirements.
The licensing process must be designed on the product. Therefore, in terms of product model design, the use of licensed chains and non-permitted chains will be divided into two forms:
First: Obtain permission and then perform relevant technical operations.
Second: There is no need to obtain a license, and technical operations can be performed directly through corresponding open tools.
These are the two forms that are currently added to all blockchains. Let’s experience these two forms in detail. Take two common behaviors of developing dApp and building node access network as examples:
When our goal is to develop a dApp
Developing a dApp is ultimately for users to use, so the basic development steps of the application software remain unchanged. The front end is still operated by the user, and the back end controls the data. The dApp on the blockchain actually turns the back end into a chain. The application development team builds a front-end. Whenever the back-end needs to be called, the corresponding contract and data on the chain deployed on the chain are directly accessed through the remote call port.
In this process, permissioned chains and non-permissioned chains will be distinguished based on the link part.
On a permissioned chain, the first step is to obtain the access permission to the blockchain.
Take the category of open alliance chain as an example. First of all, you generally need to register in the official portal. After the registration is completed, you need to get a chain address of the corresponding blockchain in the portal, then purchase chain gas through legal currency, and recharge gas into the used chain address.
After completion, you can use the corresponding chain address account to connect to the network with the help of wallet tools, use the corresponding tools to deploy the contract, use the SDK to develop the calling part on the chain, and associate it with the front-end development. If you change from an open consortium chain to a consortium chain or a private chain, the only part that may need to be changed may be how to use the chain account.
The above completes the development of dApp in the permission chain.
What to do if on a non-permissioned chain?
In Ethereum, we will directly use the chains wallet to generate a new address, then purchase ETH on the platform, transfer the ETH to the address, and other public chains can choose to purchase other gas tokens.
Next, on Ethereum, you can use Remix or other IDEs to write code first, then compile the code, and then deploy the contract to the chain. IDEs like Remix have corresponding networks, languages, and wallets supported. Visit The corresponding network is simple and convenient. The dApp also needs to develop a user-side page, and most front-ends will access the chain by invoking the wallet to perform related operations.
What we can find during this use process is that whether it is development tools, chain RPC, wallets or IDEs, open source tools and open platforms are used, and there is almost no need for certification and permission. This also represents a non-permission chain. The biggest feature: public and open.
This is the process of developing dApps on a permissionless chain.
When we practice, we will also clearly find that in addition to the licensing part, in the later part of the chain, because of the open source tools and open features, the development and chain-related processes will have a certain degree of versatility.
When our goal is to join the blockchain
Developing applications is a common form of joining the blockchain, and the purpose of this form is to develop applications. The higher-level method is to connect to the blockchain, become part of the chain, and provide resources for external needs. Also on different chains, there are big differences in obtaining permissions.
In a non-permissioned chain, when becoming a node, there are generally distinctions and requirements for nodes with different functions, such as required hardware computing power, storage space, etc. The different requirements are to perform different tasks.
When Ethereum was still in the 1.0 stage, participating in mining meant joining as a node. What it accomplished was to use the computing power of the hardware to participate in PoW calculations to verify and store the total network status. At this time, GPU capabilities are required. After Ethereum enters 2.0, the hardware requirements decrease, but execution clients and verification clients will be selected. Different clients execute different network requirements.
Joining the network as a node represents an improvement in the decision-making ability of the chain, and general development applications will not choose to build nodes due to cost issues.
On a fully anonymous public chain with native tokens like Ethereum, as long as the hardware requirements are met, no network identity permission is required, and the entire process of use can still be anonymous.
Compared with the node joining process of Ethereum, the node joining of the permission chain will only have one more process to verify the node permission, but this may be because self-built nodes are more beneficial to the user experience. At present, some permissioned chains will realize the redistribution of infrastructure business in this way.
Judgment elements
In the cryptocurrency industry, most practitioners may confuse blockchain and cryptocurrency. However, if cryptocurrency is only regarded as a part of the blockchain industry and compared with all blockchains in the world, we It is possible to judge the degree of openness of blockchains with various subdivided characteristics. The degree of openness can be distinguished based on the following two factors:
The elements are:
Data openness
Permission
The stages of the two evaluation elements are further divided into details:
Data openness:
Data is fully open
Selective disclosure of data
Data is not public
Permissions open:
completely open
Anonymous open business node
Real-name open verification node
Real-name open business node
Verification node access is only open to licensed members
Open business access only to licensed members
After such detailed distinction, it will be found that even in the cryptocurrency industry that advocates full decentralization, there may be many chains and applications whose permissions are not open. Especially nowadays, in order to screen airdrop users, most chains and applications try their best to classify users on the chain, almost violating the principle of no permission.
How open a chain or platform is to the outside world. Driven by market development rules, more openness means greater scale expectations. From a technical point of view, the more open it is, the more universal it will be. In terms of underlying rules, It is necessary to cooperate with wider compatibility and adaptability.
This will also directly relate to the principles of business and external performance of a blockchain and dApp. For example, when a chain has no restrictions on the joining of verification nodes, it means that after joining, rules must be used to achieve long-term and continuous service to the network. This is why public chains will promote mining and token incentives. To ensure openness, we must also solve the problems of evil and stability within the rules.
The above is the most basic logic for dismantling and judging blockchains and dApps. It does not involve the differences between applications and chains due to business scenarios. Crypto has bulls and bears, but blockchain technology does not.
