Decentralization on Flow
This analysis focuses on the decentralization of the Flow blockchain. The Flow team has consistently pursued a path of progressive decentralization. Recent upgrades have allowed network participants to stake Flow, run nodes and validators, and contribute to the chain's decentralization.
To assess the progress made, we will examine the network's number of nodes and validators and compare that to other chains such as Near, Osmosis, Axelar, and Terra.
We will also investigate how much FLOW is currently being staked and the number of users involved in staking.
The Flow protocol maintains a roster of node operators, which includes essential details about each node, such as their public keys, node address, and the type of node they are operating (Collection, Consensus, Execution, Verification, or Access).
To register a node, a node operator submits a transaction that includes their node information and the amount of FLOW they wish to stake. If they meet the necessary criteria for running a node, they will be accepted into the network.
Once a node is successfully staking and functioning, it will receive regular reward payments, as long as it remains online and actively engaged in the protocol without committing any slashable offenses that could harm the network. Nodes that have registered are obliged to operate for a specified period, also known as an Epoch.
Flipside has a Staking table that contains six essential actions. These actions include:
'TokensCommitted' and 'DelegatorTokensCommitted' for staking
'DelegatorUnstakedTokensWithdrawn' and 'UnstakedTokensWithdrawn' for unstaking
'RewardTokensWithdrawn' and 'DelegatorRewardTokensWithdrawn' for claiming rewards.
In addition, I compared the number of nodes and validators on the Flow network with similar and popular chains such as Near, Osmosis, Axelar, and Terra.
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