Research Article
PoQ: A Consensus Protocol for Private Blockchains Using Intel SGX
@INPROCEEDINGS{10.1007/978-3-030-63095-9_8, author={Golam Dastoger Bashar and Alejandro Anzola Avila and Gaby G. Dagher}, title={PoQ: A Consensus Protocol for Private Blockchains Using Intel SGX}, proceedings={Security and Privacy in Communication Networks. 16th EAI International Conference, SecureComm 2020, Washington, DC, USA, October 21-23, 2020, Proceedings, Part II}, proceedings_a={SECURECOMM PART 2}, year={2020}, month={12}, keywords={Blockchain Consensus Permissioned SGX Fairness}, doi={10.1007/978-3-030-63095-9_8} }- Golam Dastoger Bashar
Alejandro Anzola Avila
Gaby G. Dagher
Year: 2020
PoQ: A Consensus Protocol for Private Blockchains Using Intel SGX
SECURECOMM PART 2
Springer
DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-63095-9_8
Abstract
In blockchain technology, consensus protocols serve as mechanisms to reach agreements among a distributed network of nodes. Using a centralized party or consortium, private blockchains achieve high transaction throughput and scalability, Hyperledger Sawtooth is a prominent example of private blockchains that uses Proof of Elapsed Time (PoET) (SGX-based) to achieve consensus. In this paper, we propose a novel protocol, called Proof of Queue (PoQ), for private (permissioned) blockchains, that combines the lottery strategy of PoET with a specialized round-robin algorithm where each node has an equal chance to become a leader (who propose valid data blocks to the chain) with equal access.PoQis relatively scalable without any collision. Similar to PoET, our protocol uses Intel SGX, a Trusted Execution Environment, to generate a secure random waiting time to choose a leader, and fairly distribute the leadership role to everyone on the network.PoQscales fairness linearly with SGX machines: the more the SGX in the network, the higher the number of chances to be selected as a leader per unit time. Our analysis and experiments show thatPoQprovides significant performance improvements over PoET.
