Bullshark: The Partially Synchronous Version

TL;DR

This paper presents a clear and simple description of the deterministic partially synchronous version of the Bullshark protocol, focusing on DAG ordering logic, aimed at making the concept accessible beyond the academic community.

Contribution

It provides a simplified, standalone explanation of the partially synchronous Bullshark protocol, distinct from the asynchronous version, targeting a broader audience.

Findings

Clearer understanding of the partially synchronous Bullshark protocol

Focus on DAG ordering logic for improved clarity

Published in CCS 2022

Abstract

The purpose of this manuscript is to describe the deterministic partially synchronous version of Bullshark in a simple and clean way. This result is published in CCS 2022, however, the description there is less clear because it uses the terminology of the full asynchronous Bullshark. The CCS version ties the description of the asynchronous and partially synchronous versions of Bullshark since it targets an academic audience. Due to the recent interest in DAG-based BFT protocols, we provide a separate and simple description of the partially synchronous version that targets a more general audience. We focus here on the DAG ordering logic. For more details about the asynchronous version, garbage collection, fairness, proofs, related work, evaluation, and efficient DAG implementation please refer to the fullpaper. An intuitive extended summary can be found in the "DAG meets BFT" blogpost.