Shocking How blockchain technology could affect the future of networking & engineering 2020

 Blockchain, also referred to as distributed ledger, is the concept behind the success of Bitcoin  and provides a dynamic digital register of transactions. Think of it as  a database that’s distributed throughout a network. Information is  continually shared and reconciled throughout multiple nodes and each one  has an identical copy of the database. Transactions within this  database are audited and agreed upon by consensus. This decentralized  method of keeping track of changes ensures the ledger can’t be  practically controlled by any one entity, eliminates the possibility of  single-points of failure, and allows for the verification of  transactions without the need for third-party intervention. Since each  interaction is public, blockchain technology offers a reliable,  incorruptible transaction-based infrastructure and the value it provides  isn’t just limited to cryptocurrency.This technology can be  expected to influence multiple industries; even network architects  should take heed and brace for pending disruption. Blockchain’s reliable  peer-to-peer communication model can lend to more effective IoT  ecosystems, software defined networking can be simplified by the  blockchain ledger, and its distributed model of data storage should ring  familiar with those anticipating the impending shift to cloud-based  infrastructures. Whether or not you agree with the ideologies behind  cryptocurrency, blockchain technology could very well change the network  engineering space as we know it.“Pretty much every single industry is going to be affected by blockchain technology,” says Roman Storm, blockchain developer at Blockchain Labs.  “Applications can be developed and hosted within decentralized storage  environments, data bases can be connected using smart contracts, and  multiple blockchains can be connected to one another using Oracle’s cross-chain bridge technology, for example. The role of the network engineer would be ensuring reliable connections between particular blockchains.” The  overwhelming success in the adoption of the TCP/IP protocols which  harkened the age of the Internet as we know it stemmed from their  ability to provide low-cost connectivity. Similarly, as a new layer on  top of the Internet, blockchain could help ease the overhead of managing  and tracking large networks of devices without the need for a  centralized controller. This  wouldn’t be limited to IoT either; think of a software defined network  where the devices themselves would be able to directly communicate with  one another to autonomously perform tasks like managing bugs, updating  software or monitoring performance. Every process, task or interaction  would be stored within a shared database. User management would be  simplified and BYOD environments could accurately and reliably log the  addition of new devices within the network.Additionally, network  management could be further simplified using self-executing smart  contracts. A smart contract is a script stored in the blockchain which  can be programmed to perform an action when certain requirements are  met, allowing for the automation of multi-step processes. This could  also allow for optimization or failover processes to initiate when the  state of a network is experiencing certain conditions like packet loss  or power outage.The value of blockchain comes from its ability to  be used as a mechanism of transferring assets, which makes it a  dead-ringer for the financial industry where most efforts thus far have  been focused, but at a fundamental level, those assets are just series  of ones and zeroes. Whether that data is cryptocurrency or a UDP stream,  anywhere a centralized datalink between two nodes is required could  likely be affected by blockchain. As cloud-based architectures become  standard for business applications, the traditional data center may not  be the ideal facility to accommodate the expedient access of real-time  data. With edge devices playing a greater role in networking and  bandwidth speeds increasing to the double digits and beyond, data center  infrastructure needs to adapt to the impending landscape to guarantee  the rapid and seamless transfer of data.Blockchain technology  makes a distributed and cooperative cloud storage environment over a  peer-to-peer network possible which would offer more resiliency and  higher-speeds at a lower cost. Storage vendors that rent out their  available space would provide the backbone for a storage-based  blockchain. At a lower level, anyone with an internet connection and  extra space on their hard drive can take part. Security isn’t an issue  due to innate cryptographic functions and distribution addresses latency  issues. Best of all, no one owns or controls your data but you. Seems  farfetched, but early adopters like Storj are already offering services in this space. The  technology to achieve all of this might not be there yet, but it’s  definitely picking up steam and everyone’s eager to jump aboard. IBM is offering its own blockchain for financial transactions. The Hyperledger Project from the Linux Foundation aims to apply blockchain technology to enterprise applications and even Microsoft’s Azure is adopting blockchain technology.  No matter where you or what space you’re in, blockchain technology is  the future of the Internet of Things, so prepare for disruption.