Hub and Zones Architecture

Cosmos proposed a new architecture to connect the different blockchains via Hub and Zones classes.

Zones are the regular heterogeneous blockchains while Hubs are designed blockchains to connect the Zones. Once an IBC connection is created between a zone and a hub, the zones can gain access to every other Zone connected so there’s only a limited number of connections required with a restricted set of hubs. The hubs prevent double-spending among zones so when a zone gets a token from the hub, it needs to trust the origin zone of the token.

The first hub on the network is the Cosmos Hub and it is a proof of stake blockchain whose native staking token is ATOM. The transaction fees are payable in multiple tokens and the launch of the hub indicates the launch of the Cosmos network. To tackle these challenges and work to a new internet of blockchains, the network architecture has to be organized by the zones and hubs. Based on the type of organization, the hubs assume the role of the centralized ledgers for every independent chain on the network so all tokens held on hubs can be swapped with the help of the hubs. The Cosmos hub itself is the PoS blockchain that runs on Tendermint and serves as the main linchpin of the network while holding together all unrelated blockchains under one umbrella stopping them from entering a chaotic mode of operation. The key role here is played by the hub that is supposed to promote the interactions between the chains with the help of IBC.

The support for these activities like token exchange could present itself as a challenge when it comes to ensuring that the token sources are trusted as well as the validators. As the tokens are moved between other chains, each time the chain gets a new token it has to trust all of the preceding validator sets.

The cosmos platform hopes to bypass the issue based on the fact that hubs link the zones with them instead of supporting the direct connection between the zones themselves. Once the connections are limited to other hubs, the exposure to double spending or unfreezing the tokens should be reduced. The hubs act as the main source of trust among the chains rather than forcing them to account for trusting each other to do the same for the chains the tokens pass during the transfer.

The support for the activities like token exchange could present itself as a challenge when it comes to ensuring the tokens sources are trusted as well as the validators. As the tokens are moved between the chains, each time the chain receives a new token it has to trust the preceding validator sets.

the central role played by the hubs, puts the security at the forefront of the efforts undertaken b teh developers and its security is managed by a decentralized validator group that operates at a global scale. The decentralized nature of the architecture is expected to draw open source devs to this technology and in addition to the hub itself, there are already secondary hub projects underway. One of the projects is the China-based IRIS network that was launched in 2019 with the goal to connect various business services and individual chains with the Cosmos network.