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Data Schema & Protocol

This document defines in detail the Data Schema and communication protocols within HieraChain. The system uses Apache Arrow as the primary storage and transport format to ensure high performance.

Core Data Structures

HieraChain strictly adheres to the following Schema definitions to ensure consistency across the entire network (Main Chain & Sub Chains).

Event

Event is the smallest data unit, representing a specific business action.

Schema Definition (hierachain.core.schemas.EVENT_SCHEMA):

Field Name Type (Arrow) Description
entity_id string Metadata Field. Identifier of the affected entity (e.g., ProductID, OrderID). Note: Not used as Block identifier.
event string Event type (e.g., CREATED, UPDATED, TRANSFERRED).
timestamp float64 Time of event occurrence (Unix timestamp).
details map<string, string> Additional Key-Value information (On-chain data).
details_cid string IPFS CID. Reference to large data stored off-chain.
details_nonce string Encryption Nonce. Decryption key for off-chain data (used for AES-GCM).
data binary Main data payload (internal JSON component, includes both on-chain and off-chain refs).

Event Schema Protocol

Events are wrapped with cryptographic digital signatures (Ed25519) and zero-knowledge proofs before submission:

Event Validation Schema (hierachain.core.schemas.EVENT_SCHEMA):

Field Name Type (Arrow) Description
entity_id string Affected entity identifier (e.g., ProductID, OrderID).
event string Event type name.
signature string Digital signature of the event creator.
timestamp float64 Event creation timestamp.
zk_proof binary (Optional) Zero-Knowledge proof payload.
zk_public_inputs binary (Optional) Public inputs for ZK Proof verification.

Block

Block is a collection of ordered and packaged Events.

Block Header Schema:

Field Name Type (Arrow) Description
index int64 Block sequence number in the chain (Height).
timestamp float64 Block creation time.
previous_hash string SHA-256 hash of the previous block (creates chain link).
nonce int64 Random number used in Proof-of-Work (if applicable) or to ensure uniqueness.
merkle_root string Root hash of the Merkle tree, representing all Events in the Block.
hash string Identifier hash of this Block.

Block Body:

  • Contains a list of Events (stored as pyarrow.Table for optimized access).

Data Flow Protocol

Data processing flow from Client to Chain storage:

  1. Submission:

    • Client creates an Event.
    • SDK wraps the Event into a Transaction, signs it (signature), and optionally generates zk_proof.
    • Sends Transaction to the Ordering Service.

  2. Ordering:

    • Ordering Service receives the Transaction, verifies signature and basic validity.
    • Places the Transaction in a queue to ensure consistent ordering.
    • Groups Transactions into a Batch for Block creation.

  3. Consensus & Commit:

    • Node creates a new Block from the ordered Transaction batch.
    • Computes Merkle Root and Block Hash.
    • Executes consensus algorithm (PoA/PoF/BFT) to confirm the Block.
    • After consensus, the Block is added to MainChain or SubChain.
    • World State is updated.

Serialization Standards

  • Apache Arrow: Used for internal storage and inter-Node transport (Performance).
  • JSON: Used for Client API (REST) for easy integration with Web/Mobile Apps.
  • Protobuf/gRPC: (Optional) Used for high-performance internal communication between microservices.