Detailed Explanation of the CESS Mechanism (1): Multi-layer Network Architecture Design

With the development of blockchain, many current public chain projects adopt a multi-layer modular design. For example, Ethereum is currently developing a PoS consensus layer and will eventually become a network with both a consensus layer and an execution layer; another example is the Polkadot network, which consists of a relay chain and parachain network. There are many similar examples, and the main reason public chain networks are moving in this direction is that people have discovered the inherent limitations of blockchain in terms of speed: if all information is put on-chain, it will significantly reduce the network's efficiency; only putting key information on-chain while processing the rest off-chain will greatly improve the efficiency of the blockchain in handling transactions.

For storage public chains, a multi-layer network architecture is especially important because the network itself includes storage functions, which require higher data processing efficiency compared to general smart contract public chains. These requirements include confirmations regarding storage, redundancy, encryption, and so on; the amount and complexity of data involved in smart contracts and various proofs are much more complex than ordinary contract interactions.

So essentially, while the advantages of a multi-layer network architecture are numerous, it is not an easy task to accomplish within a decentralized network architecture. So how does CESS design its multi-layer network architecture? Let's break it down:

CESS's multi-layer network architecture includes blockchain service layer, distributed storage resource layer, distributed content distribution layer, and application layer.

• The blockchain service layer is naturally the blockchain network that handles all transactions and contracts.

In CESS, this layer includes functions such as consensus algorithms, storage proofs, payments, and incentives. The reason CESS has a separate architecture for the public chain system is that in addition to transactions and storage proofs, the blocks in CESS also include records of the entire network's storage space and storage content metadata. Nodes completing the CESS block packaging tasks, in addition to basic tasks, also need to reasonably allocate the entire network's storage resources based on factors such as supply and demand. In other words, nodes need to implement allocation based on the on-chain storage resource situation. Unlike the current Arweave data on-chain, CESS has pioneered a new model for on-chain storage resources, achieving centralized cloud management efficiency through decentralized nodes, with details to be elaborated later.

CESS's blockchain consensus mechanism adopts a random selection rotating consensus node mechanism (R²S), which allows anyone to apply to become a candidate consensus node and supervises the work of nodes through a credit rating mechanism. Nodes with higher ratings have the opportunity to become formal consensus nodes and participate in block production. Within a fixed time window, 11 nodes will serve as formal consensus nodes to participate in block production, while candidate nodes will engage in data preprocessing and resource allocation tasks. After a single time window ends, the network will randomly select the next 11 formal consensus nodes from the eligible candidate nodes.

Through R²S, CESS not only achieves open, equal, and transparent participation thresholds for nodes across the entire network but also ensures high efficiency in network consensus and block production.

• The distributed storage resource layer and distributed content distribution layer are the backbone of CESS.

The storage layer, as the name suggests, is a network used for storing files, data, and other information uploaded by users. Storage miners can provide effective storage space by submitting storage proofs and receive rewards. It is worth mentioning that CESS uses "pooling" technology to operate all storage space resources as a whole, allocating resources based on the quality of storage resources provided by miners and actual user demand. This submission of resource utilization also allows miners who can provide high-quality long-term storage capabilities to receive more rewards, while simultaneously avoiding resource monopolization by large miners. In CESS's storage resource pool, larger data storage content will also be split into equally sized fragments and randomly selected for suitable storage locations, ensuring equal opportunities for both large and small miners, while masking the differences in underlying hardware facilities.

The content distribution layer consists of retrieval miners and caching miners. This layer functions like a CDN, improving the efficiency of content retrieval and the distribution of popular information within the network, which is one of the reasons CESS can support large commercial applications. Decentralizing the CDN functionality is also an important component of the overall network's decentralization.

The three layers of the network mentioned above are jointly composed and maintained by consensus miners, storage miners, retrieval miners, and caching miners. Through the division of roles among miners, CESS addresses the "miner dilemma," ensures fast data retrieval and delivery, and provides fair incentives, aiming to achieve the highest execution efficiency on a highly decentralized storage network.

• Finally, there is the application layer, which will host various applications built on CESS in the future, including those in the Web2 and Web3 domains.

It is worth noting that CESS's development utilizes the Substrate open-source framework, which, as the underlying layer of Polkadot, has inherent advantages in decentralization and cross-chain capabilities, allowing CESS to have a natural advantage in interacting with and being compatible with Web3 projects. As a result, CESS will have both the foundation to support large commercial applications and better compatibility with Web3 applications.

In the future, CESS will not only support WASM but also be compatible with EVM. This way, it provides convenience for project migration or development for both the emerging Polkadot ecosystem and the currently most popular EVM ecosystem in public chains, allowing developers and development teams to create native applications on CESS in a more familiar manner, thus achieving rapid growth in the early stages of CESS's ecosystem expansion.

Additionally, CESS's mechanism design can also support Web2 large commercial applications with high-frequency data interaction needs. As a comprehensive solution, users will not experience significant chain awareness when using applications supported by CESS, truly achieving the functionality and efficiency of "cloud" under the premise of decentralization.