Skip to main content
Knowledge mapHow does Ethereum change shared state?External projects

You are here. See how this question connects to other ideas.

Select a node to open its page · Expand to read within the map

Knowledge mapFollow a connection. Understand a question.
← Blockchain and shared state

One question

How does Ethereum change shared state?

Separate execution rules from consensus.

Ethereum supports smart-contract programs executed by nodes. Transactions can call those programs and change state; consensus helps establish the accepted history.

In a teaching registry contract, execution checks whether a caller may edit an entry. Consensus concerns the history participants accept. Calling both simply a smart contract obscures the distinction.

Contract here means a program. Deployment alone does not establish legal enforceability outside the chain.

Sources and further reading

Check your understanding

Are program execution and agreement on history the same task?

No. Execution and consensus have different responsibilities.

Continue along a learning path