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Ashen Docs

Consensus

Ashen uses Simplex consensus from Commonware with BLS threshold signatures for single-slot finality.

Overview

Section titled “Overview”

The consensus layer provides:

  • BFT Safety - Blocks are final once committed by quorum (2/3+ validators)
  • Single-Slot Finality - No confirmation delays or reorg risk
  • Threshold Signatures - Compact finality proofs via BLS aggregation

For finality guarantees and failure modes, see Finality.

Components

Section titled “Components”

Simplex Protocol

Section titled “Simplex Protocol”

Simplex is a streamlined BFT protocol optimized for:

  • Low-latency block production (~1 second)
  • Deterministic finality (no probabilistic confirmations)
  • Efficient validator communication

BLS Threshold Signing

Section titled “BLS Threshold Signing”

Validators collectively sign blocks using BLS threshold signatures:

  • DKG (Distributed Key Generation) establishes shared keys
  • Threshold signatures require t-of-n validators
  • Aggregated signatures are compact and efficiently verifiable

See DKG Flow for key generation details.

Epoch Management

Section titled “Epoch Management”

Validator sets can change at epoch boundaries:

  • Epoch transitions announced in block headers
  • Light clients track validator set changes
  • Key refresh via DKG at epoch boundaries
Section titled “Related”