Key terms used throughout ChainLaunch documentation.
ChainLaunch Terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| ChainLaunch | Open-source platform for deploying and managing Hyperledger Fabric and Besu blockchain networks |
| ChainLaunch Pro | Enterprise edition with RBAC, SSO, node sharing, audit logging, and automated backups |
| Node | A running blockchain process (peer, orderer, validator, bootnode, or CA) managed by ChainLaunch |
| Network | A collection of nodes forming a blockchain network — a Fabric channel or a Besu chain |
| Organization | An entity that owns nodes and participates in a blockchain network |
| Testnet | A quick-start command that creates a complete network with organizations, nodes, and channels |
Hyperledger Fabric Terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Peer | Node that maintains the ledger, endorses transactions, and hosts chaincode |
| Orderer | Node that orders transactions into blocks and distributes them to peers |
| CA (Certificate Authority) | Issues digital certificates for network identities |
| MSP (Membership Service Provider) | Defines the rules for validating identities within an organization |
| MSP ID | Unique identifier for an organization's MSP (e.g., Org1MSP) |
| Channel | A private communication pathway between a subset of network members |
| Chaincode | Smart contract code deployed on Fabric peers (written in Go, Node.js, or Java) |
| Endorsement | A peer's signed approval of a transaction's execution results |
| Endorsement Policy | Rule defining which organizations must endorse a transaction |
| Ledger | The append-only record of all transactions, stored on each peer |
| World State | Current values of all keys, stored in a database (LevelDB or CouchDB) |
| Block | A batch of ordered transactions committed to the ledger |
| Anchor Peer | A peer that enables cross-organization gossip communication |
| Gossip Protocol | P2P protocol used by peers to disseminate blocks and state data |
| Raft | Crash fault tolerant consensus protocol used by Fabric orderers |
| SmartBFT | Byzantine fault tolerant consensus protocol (Fabric 3.x) |
Hyperledger Besu Terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Validator | Node that participates in consensus and creates blocks |
| Bootnode | Node that helps other nodes discover peers in the network |
| Fullnode | Node that syncs the full blockchain and serves RPC queries |
| QBFT | Quorum Byzantine Fault Tolerant consensus — recommended for production Besu networks |
| IBFT 2.0 | Istanbul Byzantine Fault Tolerant consensus — predecessor to QBFT |
| Clique | Lightweight Proof of Authority consensus for development networks |
| Genesis Block | The first block in a blockchain, defining initial parameters and validator set |
| Chain ID | Unique numeric identifier for a blockchain network (prevents replay attacks) |
| JSON-RPC | API protocol for interacting with Besu nodes (Ethereum-compatible) |
| EVM | Ethereum Virtual Machine — executes smart contracts on Besu |
| Solidity | Programming language for Ethereum/Besu smart contracts |
| Wei | Smallest unit of ETH (1 ETH = 10^18 wei) |
| Gas | Unit measuring computational effort for transactions |
| Gas Limit | Maximum gas allowed per block |
| Epoch | A fixed number of blocks after which the validator set is checkpointed |
| Enode URL | Identifier for a Besu node in the format enode://pubkey@ip:port |
Infrastructure Terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Docker | Container runtime used by ChainLaunch to run blockchain nodes |
| Systemd | Linux service manager used to run ChainLaunch as a background service |
| Prometheus | Metrics collection system used for monitoring node health |
| Grafana | Visualization platform for Prometheus metrics dashboards |
| Terraform | Infrastructure-as-Code tool with a ChainLaunch provider |
| HashiCorp Vault | Enterprise key management system (Pro feature) |
| S3 | Object storage used for backup targets |
Security Terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| RBAC | Role-Based Access Control — restricts actions based on user roles (Admin, Operator, Viewer) |
| OIDC | OpenID Connect — authentication protocol used for SSO integration |
| SSO | Single Sign-On — log in once for access to multiple systems |
| TLS | Transport Layer Security — encrypts communication between nodes |
| mTLS | Mutual TLS — both client and server authenticate each other |
| API Key | Token used for programmatic access to ChainLaunch API |