Overview

Storage is a pivotal component in blockchain infrastructure, especially when the task at hand involves operating full nodes for multiple blockchains. The storage requirements are substantial, and while speed is not the ultimate goal, the use of consumer-grade SSDs is essential for both performance and durability.

To effectively manage this storage requirement, we leverage Kubernetes alongside the Rook Ceph operator. This combination furnishes a robust and consistent framework for clustering and managing storage across multiple nodes. As we scale our compute resources in a modular fashion, Ceph seamlessly scales the storage capacity, making it straightforward to add storage resources as you expand your node count. Here's a deeper dive into Ceph's capabilities:

• Distributed Storage System: Ceph is a unified, distributed storage system designed for excellent performance, reliability, and scalability.

• Data Redundancy and Replication: Provides data redundancy and replication, ensuring data durability which is crucial for blockchain applications.

• Scalability: Easily scales horizontally, aligning with the modular approach to handle the growing data requirements of multiple blockchain networks.

• Self-managing: Features self-management capabilities, reducing the operational burden which is essential for independent operators.

• Cost-Effectiveness: Utilizing commodity hardware, Ceph provides a cost-effective solution to meet the substantial storage demands of blockchain operations.

From a financial standpoint, storage is likely to constitute the largest initial investment for an independent operator. The current strategy for scaling storage is to add compute nodes that are equipped with additional disks. While this is a practical approach in the short term, it's important to note that as blockchain networks continue to grow, a more scalable storage solution may become necessary.