Multiple Sides of 36 Coins: Measuring Peer-to-Peer Infrastructure Across Cryptocurrencies

2025-11-19

AI Summary

Blockchain P2P network layers suffer from pervasive opacity, hindering objective assessment of their scale, resilience, and decentralization. To address this, we conduct the first long-term, cross-chain measurement study across 36 major public blockchains. Our methodology integrates active crawling, hourly connection probing, reverse-engineered Ethereum discovery protocol analysis, and full Internet port scanning—augmented by IPv4/IPv6 reachability, AS-level, and geolocation analytics. We propose a generic measurement framework based on default port probing, significantly enhancing observability in non-cooperative networks. Results reveal substantial inter-chain heterogeneity: node counts range from <10 to >10,000; IPv6 adoption varies widely; geographic concentration is pronounced; node churn rates differ markedly; and diurnal activity patterns exhibit chain-specific periodicity. Quantitatively, we expose significant disparities in topological robustness and decentralization across chains—demonstrating that assumptions of uniform network properties are empirically unfounded.

Technology Category

• Data Mining & Knowledge Management: Scalability, Parallel & Distributed Systems
• Search and Optimization: Distributed Search
• Application Domains: Internet of Things, Sensor Networks & Smart Cities

Application Category

• Web Mining and Content Analysis: Web measurements
• Security and Privacy: Blockchains and distributed ledgers
• Responsible Web: Measurement, analysis, and circumvention of Web censorship

Abstract

Blockchain technologies underpin an expanding ecosystem of decentralized applications, financial systems, and infrastructure. However, the fundamental networking layer that sustains these systems, the peer-to-peer layer, of all but the top few ecosystems remains largely opaque. In this paper, we present the first longitudinal, cross-network measurement study of 36 public blockchain networks. Over 9 months, we deployed 15 active crawlers, sourced data from two additional community crawlers, and conducted hourly connectivity probes to observe the evolving state of these networks. Furthermore, by leveraging Ethereum's discovery protocols, we inferred metadata for an additional 19 auxiliary networks that utilize the Ethereum peer discovery protocol. We also explored Internet-wide scans, which only require probing each protocol's default ports with a simple, network-specific payload. This approach allows us to rapidly identify responsive peers across the entire address space without having to implement custom discovery and handshake logic for every blockchain. We validated this method on Bitcoin and similar networks with known ground truth, then applied it to Cardano, which we could not crawl directly. Our study uncovers dramatic variation in network size from under 10 to more than 10,000 active nodes. We quantify trends in IPv4 versus IPv6 usage, analyze autonomous systems and geographic concentration, and characterize churn, diurnal behavior, and the coverage and redundancy of discovery protocols. These findings expose critical differences in network resilience, decentralization, and observability. Beyond characterizing each network, our methodology demonstrates a general framework for measuring decentralized networks at scale. This opens the door for continued monitoring, benchmarking, and more transparent assessments of blockchain infrastructure across diverse ecosystems.

Problem

• Measuring opaque peer-to-peer networking layers across multiple blockchain ecosystems
• Developing scalable methodology to observe network characteristics and decentralization
• Assessing network resilience and infrastructure transparency across diverse cryptocurrencies

Innovation

• Active crawlers deployed across 36 blockchain networks
• Internet-wide scans with protocol-specific payloads used
• Ethereum discovery protocol leveraged for metadata inference