Dispelling the myth of Algorand Nodes: There are two different types, Relay and Participation, come learn about what makes them different, and why Algorand’s approach is genius for preserving decentralization, security, and inclusion while maximizing speed and through put.
What nodes comprise the Algorand network?
The Algorand network is comprised of two distinct types of nodes, relay nodes, and non-relay nodes.
Relay nodes are primarily used for communication routing to a set of connected non-relay nodes. Relay nodes communicate with other relay nodes and route blocks to all connected non-relay nodes.
Non-relay nodes(participation) only connect to relay nodes and can also participate in consensus. Non-relay nodes may connect to several relay nodes but never connect to another non-relay node.
In addition to the two node types, nodes can be configured to be archival and indexed. Archival nodes store the entire ledger and if the indexer is turned on, the search range via the API REST endpoint is increased.
Both node types use the same install procedure. To setup a node for a specific type, requires a few configuration parameter changes. The default install will set the node up as a non-relay node in non-archival and non-indexed mode.
How can I participate in the Algorand consensus protocol?
Participation nodes are the true backbone of the network and anyone can run one on a $50 raspberry pi. When the network upgrades to 10k TPS/ 2.5s finality that might increase to a cheap laptop($100 to $300).
Instructions for setting up participation nodes on Algorand and participating in the consensus protocol can be found off of the Algorand developer site.
See in particular https://developer.algorand.org/docs/run-a-node/setup/types/#start-node and https://developer.algorand.org/docs/run-a-node/participate/.
How many participation nodes are there?
As of writing this: 1,460
How many relay nodes are there?
As of Q2 2022, there are just under 120 relay nodes on the Algorand network.
Who is running relay nodes on the Algorand network?
While in principle anyone can run a relay node(it just will not show up on the default white list, but anyone can specify participation nodes to connect to their relay node), the default behavior of an Algorand node is to only connect to relay nodes from a list that the Algorand Foundation maintains. (Note, Bitcoin functions in the same way with a default white list of nodes).
The relay nodes on that list are operated by Algorand Inc., Algorand Foundation, and participants in a few relay-node-running programs of the Foundation:
- Until 2021, the Algorand Foundation issued token grants to Early Backers for running relay nodes. That program is now over, but some of the participants are still running relay nodes (with no support from the Foundation).
- The Algorand Foundation also issued token grants to ten universities who are running relay nodes. This program is scheduled to run through Q2 2024.
- These are run at the best universities in the world(MIT, UC Berkeley, Carnegie Mellon, etc.)
- In Q4 2021, the Foundation launched a Pilot Relay Node Program where it selected about 20 companies and individuals and provided support for them to run relay nodes in different configurations.
- In Q2 2022, the Foundation launched a Community Relay Node Program where participants had to stake Algos in addition to running relay nodes. Eight companies were selected to this program, running additional 19 relay nodes.
- Relay nodes are both geographically and institutionally decentralized all over the world on every continent and time zone.
Who manages the list of relay nodes? What about decentralization?
Currently, the Algorand Foundation manages the official list of relay nodes, to bootstrap a scalable and reliable initial infrastructure backbone.
It is important to stress, however, that anybody with an Algorand account can run a non-relay node and participate in the Algorand consensus protocol (i.e., be a validator).
Moreover, the integrity of the blockchain does not depend on the relay nodes: as long as sufficiently many participation nodes (in terms of stake) behave honestly, the blockchain cannot fork.
Important point: Even if all the relays misbehave, the worst that can happen is that the blockchain will slow down or stall.
The Algorand Foundation is researching options for making the decisions on relay nodes in a more decentralized way.
Algorand is designed to become more decentralized over time.
For more information, see: https://developer.algorand.org/docs/run-a-node/setup/install/
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