github.com/kchristidis/fabric@v1.0.4-0.20171028114726-837acd08cde1/docs/source/whyfabric.rst (about)

     1  Why Hyperledger Fabric?
     2  =======================
     3  
     4  Hyperledger Fabric is delivering a blockchain platform
     5  designed to allow the exchange of an asset or the state of an asset to
     6  be consented upon, maintained, and viewed by all parties in a
     7  permissioned group. A key characteristic of Hyperledger Fabric is that
     8  the asset is defined digitally, with all participants simply agreeing on
     9  its representation/characterization. As such, Hyperledger Fabric can
    10  support a broad range of asset types; ranging from the tangible (real
    11  estate and hardware) to the intangible (contracts and intellectual
    12  property).
    13  
    14  The technology is based on a standard blockchain concept - a shared,
    15  replicated ledger. However, Hyperledger Fabric is based on a
    16  `permissioned network <glossary.md#permissioned-network>`__, meaning all
    17  participants are required to be authenticated in order to participate
    18  and transact on the blockchain. Moreover, these identities can be used
    19  to govern certain levels of access control (e.g. this user can read the
    20  ledger, but cannot exchange or transfer assets). This dependence on
    21  identity is a great advantage in that varying consensus algorithms (e.g.
    22  byzantine or crash fault tolerant) can be implemented in place of the
    23  more compute-intensive Proof-of-Work and Proof-of-Stake varieties. As a
    24  result, permissioned networks tend to provide higher transaction
    25  throughput rates and performance.
    26  
    27  Once an organization is granted access to the `blockchain
    28  network <glossary.md#blockchain-network>`__, it then has the ability to
    29  create and maintain a private `channel <glossary.md#channel>`__ with
    30  other specified members. For example, let's assume there are four
    31  organizations trading jewels. They may decide to use Hyperledger Fabric
    32  because they trust each other, but not to an unconditional extent. They
    33  can all agree on the business logic for trading the jewels, and can all
    34  maintain a global ledger to view the current state of their jewel market
    35  (call this the consortium channel). Additionally, two or more of these
    36  organizations might decide to form an alternate private blockchain for a
    37  certain exchange that they want to keep confidential (e.g. price X for
    38  quantity Y of asset Z). They can perform this trade without affecting
    39  their broader consortium channel, or, if desired, this private channel
    40  can broadcast some level of reference data to their consortium channel.
    41  
    42  This is powerful! This provides for great flexibility and potent
    43  capabilities, along with the interoperability of multiple blockchain
    44  ledgers within one consortium. This is the first of its kind and allows
    45  organizations to curate Hyperledger Fabric to support the myriad use
    46  cases for different businesses and industries. Hyperledger Fabric has
    47  already been successfully implemented in the banking, finance, and
    48  retail industries.
    49  
    50  We welcome you to the Hyperledger Fabric community and are keen to learn
    51  of your architectural and business requirements, and help determine how
    52  Hyperledger Fabric can be leveraged to support your use cases.
    53  
    54  .. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
    55     https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
    56