How exactly does Bitcoin work? This is a question that has confounded many of us. As a new user, you may not be aware of its technical details and yet have set out to make Bitcoin transactions. It is, however, advised that you must know the nitty-gritty of the network before you start off.

Wallet and Address

After you have downloaded a Bitcoin wallet and installed it on your PC or smartphone, you will immediately have access to your first ever Bitcoin address. You can also create more addresses depending on the requirements. Your sender must know your wallet address in order to send you Bitcoin. This is quite similar to electronic mail, where you need to know the recipient’s address in order to send him/her a mail.

The Blockchain

The blockchain is basically a shared (distributed) public ledger which powers the overall Bitcoin network. All transactions which have been verified are recorded on the Bitcoin blockchain. This is how the Bitcoin wallets calculate the spendable account balance and the latest transactions as spent by the owner can be confirmed. The reliability of the blockchain and the sequential order of the blocks are ensured with end-to-end cryptography.

Bitcoin Private Key

The word ‘transaction’ implies an exchange of value (essentially a certain amount of Bitcoin) that occurs between two Bitcoin wallets and henceforth gets added in the blockchain. Bitcoin wallets hold a secret bit of information known as ‘private key’, which is utilized to sign or validate transactions, giving a carefully worked-out proof that these have originated from the wallet’s owner. This signature additionally keeps the transaction from getting modified by anyone after it has been given out. All Bitcoin transactions are communicated amongst users and, for the most part, start to be affirmed by the system in the subsequent 10 minutes, via a procedure popularly known as ‘mining’.

The Processing of Transactions through Mining

‘Bitcoin Mining’ refers to a distributed, transparent and consensus system which is utilized to affirm ongoing transactions by simply incorporating them as ‘blocks’ in the blockchain. It follows a sequential order, ensures the neutrality of the system, and enables diverse PCs to correspond on the state of the network. In order to be validated, transactions must be recorded in a block which fits into the strict codes of cryptography that, in turn, will be authenticated by the system. These tenets keep older blocks from getting altered, on the grounds that doing so will negate every single block that is generated after them. Mining, likewise, makes what might as well be called a competitive lottery which keeps any person from effectively and sequentially including new blocks in the blockchain. Along these lines, no individual can control what is incorporated into the blockchain or substitute parts of it to reverse their transactions.