[Bucardo-general] Automated Trust: Database Meets Blockchain

[John Olsen]

Hi everyone,

I initially sent emails elsewhere until I found this list. I am copying
them here. The comments are in relation to an IBM Article from IBM India in
2019 to be found at

https://arxiv.org/pdf/1903.01919.pdf


"
Yes, Ben, I am searching for multi-master replication solutions, but with a
difference .. the idea is to allow automated Trust to be developed on a
database system by doing away with your standard single superuser system on
bucardo and replacing it with multiple bucardo masters on top of multiple
substrate masters..
My idea is to copy IBM's research and to build-in a consensus-seeking
solution for the proposed multi-master bucardo system. The consensus being
sought is intended to order transactions appropriately before final
committing..Please refer to the previously attached IBM research paper"

"
Sorry to carry on before receiving any response, but I have been thinking
about how to implement these Automated Trust ideas.

If there were as many bucardo servers as there were base-level database
servers, and each bucardo server were configured to only replicate from
changes on its own (base) database server, then the problem would reduce to
obtaining consensus (per transaction "block") from all bucardo servers as
to the order in which the executed transactions are to be committed. The
Consensus Algorithm outlined in the IBM paper, is given in sufficient
detail to reproduce on bucardo (I claim!)

I am now thinking I should look at your github site.

>From our point of view as Enterprise Application developers and operators
we are looking toward customers such as those companies involved in Supply
Chain operations which require smart contracts you can implement on
postgres databases, if bulk data is involved. Also we intend to provide
distributed applications in non-internetworked areas eg Real Estate
Agencies, NGO Housing Providers, Conveyancing etc. We organise our
customers by "Member Class" meaning they would share IT "Mission" and a lot
of activities daily (as far as what was actually done during the day) and
fit into the same business network (if internetworked at all). One member
Class per database server. Operated by a consortium-employed operator - a
consortium of Members (Companies) in the Class. Our only involvement as a
player, is to have the numbers of users etc etc reported monthly for
Billing purposes. The idea that nobody has to trust anyone else during
daily operations is attractive. Member Class Operators are being kept
honest by the nature of the system, as are we. That is why I am hoping we
can somehow organise an adaptation to bucardo for these purposes.

It is worth noting that we are looking towards the Elastos Blockchain with
its "Carrier" security system for web communication as the provider of
"Distributed" Id's to allow signing of every transaction securely The only
thing in the IBM agenda of shortcomings of databases (from the point of
view of a Blockchain) is how can we make a PLpgSQL function as
"deterministic" as a transaction on a blockchain? We could also possibly
utilise the insurance of Elastos to check the database for integrity (as,
if more than 50% of bucardo servers were somehow caused to act fraudulently
in concert, Trust would be destroyed).
"
We think this is a very attractive idea of IBM's and feel that bucardo
could play a role in its development. bucardo would act both as replicating
agent as well as ordering agent.

John Olsen
IT/OT Chain & Cloud Australia
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