How blockchain technology could affect the future of network engineering

Network architects, brace for the disruption blockchain technology will bring.

Blockchain, also referred to as distributed ledger, is the concept behind the success of Bitcoin and provides a dynamic digital register of transactions. Think of it as a database that’s distributed throughout a network. Information is continually shared and reconciled throughout multiple nodes and each one has an identical copy of the database. Transactions within this database are audited and agreed upon by consensus. This decentralized method of keeping track of changes ensures the ledger can’t be practically controlled by any one entity, eliminates the possibility of single-points of failure, and allows for the verification of transactions without the need for third-party intervention. Since each interaction is public, blockchain technology offers a reliable, incorruptible transaction-based infrastructure and the value it provides isn’t just limited to cryptocurrency.

This technology can be expected to influence multiple industries; even network architects should take heed and brace for pending disruption. Blockchain’s reliable peer-to-peer communication model can lend to more effective IoT ecosystems, software defined networking can be simplified by the blockchain ledger, and its distributed model of data storage should ring familiar with those anticipating the impending shift to cloud-based infrastructures. Whether or not you agree with the ideologies behind cryptocurrency, blockchain technology could very well change the network engineering space as we know it.