Quicknode

December 7, 2022 — 5 min read

December 7th, 2022 — Quicknode, the leading Web3 cloud platform for building blockchain-powered applications, announces the expansion of its blockchain infrastructure ecosystem with the launch of NEAR Protocol support on its platform. Quicknode's mission is to support and service the developer community by giving them the best tools and the most reliable blockchain development platform. By adding NEAR, Quicknode will support NEAR's vision of Web3 accessibility and easy onboarding for the next generation of the internet.

"We put usability first in our mission to change the world with Web3" - NEAR Website.

It's clear now that the next iteration of the internet, termed Web3, will be a decentralized internet that gives users back control of their data and identity. Blockchain technology provides this decentralization to these new-generation applications. NEAR's community, called NEAR collective, operates NEAR with a vision to create an easy-to-use blockchain network for not only builders/developers but also for users.

NEAR is a layer-one blockchain operating on a proof of stake (PoS) consensus mechanism. NEAR is highly scalable with its own sharding mechanism called Nightshade. This sharding mechanism makes NEAR unique to many other layer-one blockchains, which use sidechains to process blocks faster.

NEAR's Nightshade Sharding Mechanism

Traditionally a blockchain requires every participating node to store the entire blockchain's data to secure the network. This system works in terms of securing the network, but the massive load on the nodes for them to keep up with the latest blockchain state also slows down the network.

One of the solutions to this is sharding; it allows blockchains to be fast and scalable without compromising security. With sharding, the database is divided into smaller parts called shards, and then these shards are stored on different machines. Nodes are divided into smaller groups where each group is responsible for a part of the chain data, and these groups can process transactions at the same time individually. This means that the more shards, the faster the chain processes data.

Now let's talk about NEAR's sharding mechanism, Nightshade. With Nightshade, each shard produces a batch of data called a chunk. When the chunks are created, a validator leader accumulates and adds these chunks to produce a block. This leadership role is rotated amongst validators to distribute responsibility.

Each shard in Nightshade has 100 seats, and the cost to be a validator rises as more people join the shard. NEAR can process about 100,00 transactions per second, but if the network gets congested, the network incentivizes new validators to form a shard. This means that, theoretically, there is no limit to the number of transactions NEAR can process per second. Also, based on the demand, only the required infrastructure is utilized at any given time.

NEAR Puts Usability First

NEAR is very much decentralized as it allows delegated staking, which means users with fewer tokens and low-spec computers can also become validators.

NEAR Protocol has human-readable addresses in-built, unlike Ethereum, where you have to pay for services like ENS to convert and map your alphanumeric Ethereum address to a human-readable address. NEAR has this functionality built-in, allowing users to register a human-readable address for free on NEAR Wallet. In addition, applications like Rainbow Bridge will enable you to easily bridge your assets from Ethereum to NEAR.

“NEAR is excited to be joining forces with Quicknode. As the leading Web3 cloud platform for building dApps, Quicknodes will enable us to reach a wider community of developers and help break down barriers to entry for creators that are looking to help shape the future of our sector. This is a mutually beneficial partnership that will level the playing field for Web3 and usher in a new era of opportunity for those wishing to create utility driven applications that will serve society and enhance the world around us.”

— Marieke Flament, CEO – The NEAR Foundation

"NEAR is growing at an extraordinary pace. With nearly 1000 projects built on the protocol today, processing over 500,000 transactions daily, adding Quicknode to the equation will only accelerate the mission to enhance & enable Web3. We are excited to support the builders and businesses leveraging this super-fast, secure, and highly scalable protocol!"

— Dmitry Shklovsky, Co-Founder – Quicknode

Ready to get started building with NEAR?

Sign up for a free NEAR endpoint on Quicknode.com

Why Quicknode?

We make running Blockchain nodes easy so developers can focus on the dApps they’re building instead of worrying about DevOps/NodeOps, uptime, scaling, security, etc.

We save you valuable time getting to-market while taking away the headache of node maintenance and synchronization. Quicknode is a valuable tool in every dApp developer’s arsenal that was created by developers for developers. Visit our guides section for more information.

Today, our network processes 100s of Billions requests per month, from over 10 regions worldwide!

Check out the following links to get more information on NEAR:

• NEAR developer resources

• NEAR Docs

• NEAR YouTube Channel

Need help with your project or have questions? Contact us via this form, on Twitter @Quicknode, or ping us on Discord!