A shared, steadfast ledger for recording transactions, tracking assets and building trust. Discover why businesses worldwide are adopting it, Definition And Uses Of Blockchain Technology, Essentials Of Blockchain, Advantages Of Blockchain
Blockchain Success
Now in its 3rd edition, IBM’s Blockchain for Dummies has introduced blockchain to more than 68,000 readers which include
- Blockchain fundamentals
- How blockchain works
- Blockchain in action: use cases
- Hyperledger, hosted by the Linux Foundation
- Ten steps to your first blockchain application
Synopsis Of Blockchain
A shared, steadfast ledger that simplifies the process of recording transactions and tracking assets in a business network. An investment can be tangible (a house, car, cash, land) or intangible (intellectual property, patents, copyrights, branding). Anything of value tracked and traded on a blockchain network, reducing risk and cutting costs.
The swift accepted and the more factual it is, the better. Blockchain is excellent for delivering that information because it provides immediate, shared, and fully transparent information stored on a steadfast ledger only accessed by permission network members. A blockchain network can stalk orders, payments, accounts, production, and much more. And because members share a single view of the truth, you can see all details of a transaction end to end, giving you greater certainty, as well as new efficiencies and opportunities.
Essentials Of Blockchain
Distributed ledger technology
All network players have a threshold to the distributed ledger and its steadfast record of transactions. Following shared ledger, transactions are documented only once, stopping the duplication of effort that’s typical of traditional business networks. The swift obtained and the more factual it is, the better. Blockchain is excellent for delivering that information because it provides immediate, shared, and fully transparent information stored on a steadfast ledger only accessed by permission network members. A blockchain network can stalk orders, payments, accounts, production, and much more. And because members share a single view of the truth, you can see all details of a transaction end to end, giving you greater certainty, as well as new efficiencies and opportunities.
Immutable records
No participant changes or tampers a transaction once recorded. Involving error, a new transaction adds up to reverse the error, and both transactions are then visible.
Smart contracts
To speed transactions, a set of rules called a smart contract is stored on the blockchain and executed automatically. A smart contract can define conditions for corporate bond transfers, including terms for travel insurance to be paid and much more.
How Blockchain Functions
As each transaction occurs, recorded as a “block” of data
Those transactions show the movement of an asset that can be tangible (a product) or intangible (intellectual). The data block can record the information of your choice: who, what, when, where, how much, and even the condition — such as the temperature of a food shipment.
Each block connects to the ones before and after it
These blocks form a chain of data as an asset moves from place to place or ownership changes hands. The blocks confirm the exact time and sequence of transactions, and the blocks link securely together to prevent any block from being altered or a block being inserted between two existing blocks.
Transactions are blocked together in an irreversible chain: a blockchain
Each additional block strengthens the verification of the previous block and hence the entire blockchain. This renders the blockchain tamper-evident, delivering the key strength of immutability. This removes the possibility of tampering by a malicious actor and builds a ledger of transactions you and other network members can trust.
No participant changes or tampers a transaction once recorded. Involving error, a new transaction adds up to reverse the error, and both transactions are then visible.
Advantages Of Blockchain
Operations often waste effort on copy record keeping and third-party validations. Record-keeping systems can be vulnerable to fraud and cyberattacks. Limited transparency can slow data verification. And with the arrival of IoT, transaction volumes have exploded. All of this slows business drains the bottom line and means we need a better way. Enter blockchain.
Definition And Uses Of Blockchain Technology
Greater trust
With blockchain, as a member of a members-only network, you can rest assured that you are receiving accurate and timely data and that your confidential blockchain records will be shared only with network members to whom you have specifically granted access.
Greater security
Consensus on data accuracy is required from all network members, and all validated transactions are immutable because they are recorded permanently. No one, not even a system administrator, can delete a transaction.
Greater Efficiencies
With a distributed ledger that is shared among members of a network, time-wasting record reconciliations are eliminated. And to speed transactions, a set of rules called a smart contract can be stored on the blockchain and executed automatically.
Types Of Blockchain Networks
Public blockchain networks
A public blockchain is one that anyone can join and participate in, such as Bitcoin. Drawbacks might include substantial computational power required, little or no privacy for transactions, and weak security. These are important considerations for enterprise use cases of blockchain.
Private blockchain networks
A private blockchain network, similar to a public blockchain network, is a decentralized peer-to-peer network. However, one organization governs the network, controlling who is allowed to participate, executing a consensus protocol, and maintaining the shared ledger. Depending on the use case, this can significantly boost trust and confidence between participants. A private blockchain can be run behind a corporate firewall and even be hosted on-premises.
Consortium blockchains
Multiple organizations can share the responsibilities of maintaining a blockchain. These pre-selected organizations determine who may submit transactions or access the data. A consortium blockchain; very ideal for business when all allowed participants share responsibility for the blockchain.
Blockchain security
Risk management systems for blockchain networks
When building an enterprise blockchain application, it’s important to have a comprehensive security strategy that uses cybersecurity frameworks, assurance services, and best practices to reduce risks against attacks and fraud.
Blockchain For Industries
Industry leaders are using IBM Blockchain to remove friction, build trust and unlock new value. Select your segment to see how.
- Supply chain
- Healthcare
- Government
- Retail
- Media and advertising
- Oil and gas
- Telecommunications
- Manufacturing
- Insurance
- Financial services
- Travel and transportation
Frequently Asked Questions And Answers
What’s the difference between blockchain and Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is an unregulated, digital currency. Bitcoin uses blockchain technology as its transaction ledger.
How are the IBM Blockchain Platform and Hyperledger related?
The IBM Blockchain Platform powered by Hyperledger technology.
This blockchain solution can help turn any developer into a blockchain developer.
Can I deploy on any cloud I want?
IBM Blockchain Platform Software; optimized to deploy on Red Hat’s state-of-the-art enterprise Kubernetes platform.
This means you have more flexibility when choosing where to deploy your blockchain network components, whether on-premises, in public clouds, or in hybrid cloud architectures.
Where Can I Find Detailed Information?
For a more detailed look at how a blockchain network operates and how you can use it, read Introduction to distributed ledgers.
Explore the capabilities of the IBM Blockchain Platform, the only fully integrated enterprise-ready blockchain platform designed to help you accelerate the development, governance, and operation of a multi-institution business network.
Get the details on Hyperledger Fabric and discover what’s unique about it, why it matters to business networks, and how to start using it.
The quick-start guide for developers explains how to build a kick-starter blockchain network and start coding with the IBM Blockchain Platform Starter Plan.
Blockchain Solutions
IBM Blockchain solutions
Technical innovators turn to the IBM Blockchain Platform, the leading Hyperledger Fabric platform, to build, operate, govern and grow blockchain solutions across any computing environment through Red Hat. This means you have more flexibility when choosing where to deploy your blockchain network components, whether on-premises, in public clouds, or in hybrid cloud architectures.
Blockchain consulting
IBM Blockchain provides blockchain Services as a top-ranked provider and has the expertise to help you build powerful solutions, based on the best technology. More than 1,600 blockchain experts use insights from 100+ live networks to help you build and grow.
Definition And Uses Of Blockchain Technology