From cc34329b18517bbdd83ac199694e7e5cfdc313aa Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Sandhu-Sahil Date: Mon, 28 Aug 2023 21:41:19 +0530 Subject: [PATCH] LFX-H28E01 --- day28-entry1.md | 39 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 39 insertions(+) create mode 100644 day28-entry1.md diff --git a/day28-entry1.md b/day28-entry1.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..0464a6e --- /dev/null +++ b/day28-entry1.md @@ -0,0 +1,39 @@ +# Byzantine Generals' Problem: Unraveling the Essence of BFT + +In the realm of distributed systems, the Byzantine Generals' Problem stands as a classic and essential challenge to achieve consensus in a network prone to faults and deceit. This blog post delves into the depths of the Byzantine Generals' Problem, explores the concept of Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT), and investigates the intriguing notion of Byzantine failures. We'll also provide links to the original research papers that laid the foundation for this fascinating field. + +## Understanding the Byzantine Generals' Problem + +### The Scenario + +Imagine a group of Byzantine generals commanding their armies to launch a coordinated attack on a common enemy. Communication between the generals is established through messengers, but some of these messengers might be traitors loyal to the enemy. The challenge is to devise a strategy that ensures consensus among the loyal generals regarding the time to attack while considering the potential misinformation from traitorous messengers. + +### The Problem + +The Byzantine Generals' Problem can be generalized as follows: + +- A group of nodes (generals) needs to agree on a common decision or value. +- Some nodes in the network might be malicious and provide false information. +- The system must tolerate these Byzantine (malicious) failures and still reach a consensus. + +## Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) + +### BFT: The Solution + +Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) is the quality of a system to function correctly and reach consensus even when some of its components (nodes) are faulty or act maliciously. BFT algorithms address the Byzantine Generals' Problem by ensuring that nodes can agree on a single value despite misinformation or deceit from a portion of the nodes. + +### Original Research Papers + +Here are links to the seminal research papers that introduced and explored the concept of Byzantine Fault Tolerance: + +1. [Practical Byzantine Fault Tolerance](http://pmg.csail.mit.edu/papers/osdi99.pdf) by Miguel Castro and Barbara Liskov - This paper introduced the PBFT algorithm, a practical approach to BFT consensus. + +2. [The Byzantine Generals Problem](https://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~luca/cs174/byzantine.pdf) by Leslie Lamport, Robert Shostak, and Marshall Pease - This is the original paper that formalized the Byzantine Generals' Problem. + +## Byzantine Failures: A Glimpse into Deceit + +In a Byzantine Fault Tolerant system, Byzantine failures refer to nodes or components that act in arbitrary and malicious ways, potentially providing false information or attempting to disrupt consensus. Dealing with Byzantine failures is a fundamental aspect of BFT algorithms. + +## Conclusion + +The Byzantine Generals' Problem, Byzantine Fault Tolerance, and Byzantine failures represent captivating challenges in the world of distributed systems. Understanding these concepts and their historical context through the original research papers provides a solid foundation for designing robust and secure distributed systems.