A performance evaluation of C4M consensus algorithm
Abstract
Blockchain designed for Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs) and mesh networks is an emerging research topic that has to cope with the network partition problem. However, existing consensus algorithms used in blockchain have been designed to work in a fully connected network with reliable communication. As this assumption does not hold anymore in mobile wireless networks, we describe in this paper the problem of network partitions and their impact on blockchain. Then, we propose a new consensus algorithm called Consensus for Mesh (C4M) which is inspired by RAFT as a solution to this problem. The C4M consensus algorithm is integrated with Blockgraph, a blockchain solution for MANET and mesh networks. We implemented our solution in NS-3 to analyze its performances through simulations. The simulation results gave the first characterization of our algorithm, its performance, and its limits, especially in case of topology changes.