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How it works

How blockchain works

Information, not advice.

  1. 1 · BLKA blockchain in one pageA shared record that many computers keep copies of, where each new page of records is locked to the one before.
  2. 2 · HSHHashes: a fingerprint for any dataA short fingerprint of a sentence, a photo or a file. Try it: change one letter and the fingerprint changes completely.
  3. 3 · KEYKeys and signaturesHow a network knows a message came from the holder of a key, and why a lost key cannot be reset.
  4. 4 · AGRHow the computers agreeProof of work and proof of stake: how a network with no one in charge decides who adds the next block, what each costs, and who takes part.
  5. 5 · NETPublic and private blockchainsOpen networks anyone can join, and networks run by a known group of organisations. Who you have to trust in each.
  6. 6 · SMCSmart contractsCode stored on the network that runs the same way for everyone, and why that cuts both ways: a mistake cannot easily be undone.
  7. 7 · LIMThe limitsSpeed and cost, energy use for some designs, records that cannot be corrected, and the oracle problem: the network cannot check what is put on it.
  8. 8 · NEDDoes it need a blockchain?A plain set of questions to ask of any blockchain project, from the published decision guides.
  9. 9 · CHNPublic networksWhat Bitcoin, Ethereum and other public networks are, what their own documents say they are used for, and how each one agrees. Chosen by a written rule.
  10. A–Z · GLOGlossary74 terms, one or two sentences each. A dotted underline on any page links to one.

Sources

Every source these pages cite, with the date it was read. Where a line does not give its own day, it was read on 21 Oct 2026.