Towards high-throughput, low-latency, and highly scalable distributed Consensus: Supra’s competitive edge
Hello, my name is Nina, and in today’s blog, we’ll explore the cutting-edge optimizations that make Supra a leader in blockchain technology, particularly in terms of high throughput, low latency, and scalability. These advancements are crucial for next-gen blockchain applications, and Supra’s innovations in this area set it apart from other solutions in the Web3 ecosystem.
Introduction: what makes Supra special?
Blockchain networks are often measured by their throughput (transactions per second, or TPS) and latency (how quickly transactions are confirmed). In a world where decentralized applications (dApps) are becoming increasingly important, the need for networks that can handle high TPS with minimal delays is critical. Supra’s unique architecture addresses these needs, providing a robust solution capable of handling demanding applications in finance, gaming, and more.
In this blog, I’ll dive into how Supra achieves these impressive benchmarks, focusing on key architectural features like the Tribe and Clans model, efficient signature schemes, and the Moonshot consensus protocol. By comparing Supra to other blockchain systems, you’ll see why it stands out as a more scalable and efficient solution for dApp development.
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Supra’s key architecture: Tribe and Clans for scalable Node grouping
Supra divides its network into “Tribes” and “Clans.” A Tribe is a group of all nodes, where no more than one-third are faulty. Clans are smaller sub-committees, each of which can operate efficiently while maintaining an honest majority. This design allows Supra to scale without compromising security or performance.
In contrast, many blockchain platforms struggle with scaling because they attempt to process all transactions through a single global consensus mechanism, leading to bottlenecks. Supra’s approach of splitting tasks into smaller, manageable groups (Clans) avoids this issue and ensures efficient processing, even as the network grows.
Signature schemes: why BLS multi-signatures are superior
Supra uses BLS multi-signatures, which allow multiple signatures to be aggregated into a single one. This contrasts with blockchain systems that use EdDSA or ECDSA signatures, which are faster but not aggregate-able. Non-aggregated signatures require more bandwidth, especially as the network size increases. BLS multi-signatures, on the other hand, drastically reduce bandwidth usage by combining all signatures into one compact signature.
This reduces both network congestion and latency, allowing Supra to maintain high throughput without performance trade-offs. For instance, the aggregation and verification processes in Supra take milliseconds, making it one of the most efficient blockchain networks in the industry.
Supra’s Moonshot Consensus Protocol: achieving low latency
- Minimal message delays: Achieves consensus in just 3 message delays (md).
- Efficient block proposal: Block proposals occur every network hop, reducing queuing time.
- Optimistic verification: Only aggregated signatures are verified, speeding up consensus.
The core of Supra’s performance is its Moonshot consensus protocol, which ensures that the time to agree on a transaction (commit latency) is minimal. While other blockchain protocols may require multiple rounds of communication between nodes, Moonshot can achieve consensus with just three message delays, resulting in an overall latency of 5.5 message delays (end-to-end).
In comparison, other popular blockchains like Ethereum and Solana often face longer latency periods due to their reliance on global consensus mechanisms, which increase communication overhead as the number of nodes grows. Supra’s localized Clans and Moonshot protocol allow it to achieve low latency and high throughput without sacrificing decentralization.
Performance evaluation: how Supra stacks up
- High throughput: Supra reaches 500,000 TPS, outperforming blockchains like Ethereum and Solana.
- Low latency: End-to-end latency is under one second, even with globally distributed nodes.
- Scalability: Consistent performance across 300 nodes in five regions, with no degradation.
Experimental tests on Google Cloud Platform (GCP) with up to 300 nodes distributed across five global regions have shown Supra achieving up to 500,000 TPS with a latency of less than one second. By comparison, Ethereum currently manages around 30 TPS, while Solana achieves up to 65,000 TPS but with higher levels of centralization.
Supra’s architecture not only matches the performance of the fastest blockchains but does so while maintaining decentralization and security. The use of Non-Interactive Distributed Key Generation (NI-DKG) also ensures that Supra’s nodes can independently generate cryptographic keys without the need for constant communication, further speeding up the process.
Advantages of Supra over other Blockchain Platforms:
- High Throughput: Supra’s 500,000 TPS significantly outpaces Ethereum and Solana, making it ideal for high-demand applications like DeFi and gaming.
- Low Latency: Supra’s 5.5 message delay protocol ensures transactions are confirmed quickly, outperforming many existing solutions.
- Scalability: The Tribe and Clans model allows for horizontal scaling, meaning Supra can grow without losing performance, unlike networks that rely on global consensus.
- Optimized Bandwidth Usage: BLS multi-signatures reduce bandwidth usage, which helps maintain performance even in large, geo-distributed networks.
- Decentralization: Unlike some other high-TPS blockchains that sacrifice decentralization for speed, Supra achieves both by maintaining security and fault tolerance through its NI-DKG system and Clan-based consensus.
Conclusion. Supra’s innovative architecture marks a new era for blockchain scalability and performance. With its combination of high throughput, low latency, and efficient use of resources, it is positioned to be a key player in the future of decentralized applications. Whether you’re a developer looking for a platform to build on or an enthusiast following the evolution of blockchain technology, Supra’s breakthroughs provide a compelling glimpse into the future of high-performance blockchains.
Explore more about Supra’s design and performance optimizations in the whitepaper.
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Prepared by niniao