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A Discussion on Blockchain Software Quality Attribute Design and Tradeoffs

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Book cover Emerging Technologies in Computing (iCETiC 2019)

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Abstract

The blockchain design pattern has many variations and is a concept that will continue to lead many implementations in the years to come. New design and implementation patterns are frequently being announced and the choices available continue to expand. The design patterns imply tradeoffs which are reviewed.

We begin by describing the components of a blockchain; network nodes, blocks and consensus in a concept. We further elaborate on the key characteristics of the various design areas that are available adding emphasis to those used in private blockchains.

The individual components can be designed in different ways and imply tradeoffs between such quality attributes as performance and security or availability. We conclude with an initial tradeoff matrix that identifies the quality attributes that one should look for in designing these software systems.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Darwin Deason Cyber Security Institute, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX, 75275, USA

    John M. Medellin & Mitchell A. Thornton

Authors
  1. John M. Medellin
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  2. Mitchell A. Thornton
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to John M. Medellin .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. CFRED, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

    Mahdi H. Miraz

  2. Glyndwr University, Wrexham, UK

    Peter S. Excell

  3. Faculty of Computing, Engineering and Science, University of South Wales, Pontypridd, Mid Glamorgan, UK

    Andrew Ware

  4. AMA International University, Salmabad, Bahrain

    Safeeullah Soomro

  5. University of Essex, Colcheser, UK

    Maaruf Ali

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© 2019 ICST Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering

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Medellin, J.M., Thornton, M.A. (2019). A Discussion on Blockchain Software Quality Attribute Design and Tradeoffs. In: Miraz, M., Excell, P., Ware, A., Soomro, S., Ali, M. (eds) Emerging Technologies in Computing. iCETiC 2019. Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering, vol 285. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23943-5_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23943-5_2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-23942-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-23943-5

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

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