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Introduction
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============
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- Hyperledger Fabric is a platform for distributed ledger solutions underpinned
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+ Hyperledger Fabric is a platform for distributed ledger solutions underpinned
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by a modular architecture delivering high degrees of confidentiality,
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resiliency, flexibility and scalability. It is designed to support pluggable
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implementations of different components and accommodate the complexity and
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intricacies that exist across the economic ecosystem.
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- Fabric delivers a uniquely elastic and extensible architecture, distinguishing
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+ Hyperledger Fabric delivers a uniquely elastic and extensible architecture, distinguishing
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it from alternative blockchain solutions. Planning for the future of enterprise
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blockchain requires building on top of a fully vetted, open-source architecture;
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Hyperledger Fabric is your starting point.
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- We recommended first-time users begin by going through the rest of the
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- introduction below in order to gain familiarity with how blockchains work
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- and with the specific features and components of Fabric.
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+ We recommended first-time users begin by going through the rest of the
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+ introduction below in order to gain familiarity with how blockchains work
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+ and with the specific features and components of Hyperledger Fabric.
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- Once comfortable -- or if you're already familiar with blockchain and
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- Hyperledger Fabric -- go to :doc: `getting_started ` and from there explore the
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+ Once comfortable -- or if you're already familiar with blockchain and
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+ Hyperledger Fabric -- go to :doc: `getting_started ` and from there explore the
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demos, technical specifications, APIs, etc.
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What is a Blockchain?
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sure information has not been changed after the fact. It’s why blockchains
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are sometimes described as **systems of proof **.
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- **Smart Contracts **
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+ **Smart Contracts**
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To support the consistent update of information – and to enable a whole host of
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ledger functions (transacting, querying, etc) – a blockchain network uses **smart
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What you’re left with is a business network that looks like this:
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-
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.. image :: images/current_network.png
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Modern technology has taken this process from stone tablets and paper folders
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process sharing to build a system of record that spans a business network, even
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though the needs of visibility and trust are clear.
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**The Blockchain Difference **
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What if instead of the rat’s nest of inefficiencies represented by the “modern”
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details that are important, but they all relate to these fundamental ideas of
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the sharing of information and processes.
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What is Hyperledger Fabric?
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---------------------------
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@@ -158,25 +154,19 @@ Fabric also offers several pluggable options. Ledger data can be stored in
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multiple formats, consensus mechanisms can be switched in and out,
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and different membership service providers are supported.
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- Fabric also offers the ability to create **channels **, allowing a group of
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+ Hyperledger Fabric also offers the ability to create **channels **, allowing a group of
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participants to create a separate ledger of transactions. This is an especially
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important option for networks where some participants might be competitors and not
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want every transaction they make - a special price they're offering to some participants
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and not others, for example - known to every participant. If two
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participants form a channel, then those participants – and no others – have copies
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of the ledger for that channel.
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- The following diagram outlines the four building blocks of Hyperledger Fabric:
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- .. image :: images/Requirements.png
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**Shared Ledger **
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Hyperledger Fabric has a ledger subsystem comprising two components: the **world
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state ** and the **transaction log **. Each participant has a copy of the ledger to
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- every Fabric network they belong to.
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- .. image :: images/what.png
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+ every Hyperledger Fabric network they belong to.
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The world state component describes the state of the ledger at a given point
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in time. It’s the database of the ledger. The transaction log component records
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interacts with the database component of the ledger, the world state (querying
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it, for example), and not the transaction log.
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- .. image :: images/sContracts.png
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You can write chaincode in several programming languages. Currently supported
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languages include GOLANG and Java with others coming soon.
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@@ -208,8 +196,6 @@ Depending on the needs of a network, participants in a Business-to-Business
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(B2B) network might be extremely sensitive about how much information they share.
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For other networks, privacy will not be a top concern.
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- .. image :: images/Lock.png
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Hyperledger Fabric supports networks where privacy (using channels) is a key
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operational requirement as well as networks that are comparatively open.
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@@ -221,9 +207,6 @@ network. For this to happen, the order of transactions must be established
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and a method for rejecting bad transactions that have been inserted into the
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ledger in error (or maliciously) must be put into place.
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- .. image :: images/handshake.png
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This is a thoroughly researched area of computer science, and there are many
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ways to achieve it, each with different trade-offs. For example, PBFT (Practical
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Byzantine Fault Tolerance) can provide a mechanism for file replicas to
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currently include SOLO, Kafka, and will soon extend to SBFT (Simplified
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Byzantine Fault Tolerance), in another document.
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Where can I learn more?
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-----------------------
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stakeholders in your company to design a business network that uses Hyperledger
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Fabric.
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- :doc: ` planning_guide `
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+ Best Practices (coming soon)
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Deals with the practical concerns of setting up and managing a production
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Hyperledger Fabric blockchain. You’ll understand the key factors to consider
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