ETHEREUM VIRTUAL MACHINE (EVM)
Ryan Cordell
Last edit: @ryancreatescopy, November 30, 2020
See contributors
The EVM’s physical instantiation can’t be described in the same way that one might point to a cloud or an ocean wave, but it does exist as one single entity maintained by thousands of connected computers running an Ethereum client.
The Ethereum protocol itself exists solely for the purpose of keeping the continuous, uninterrupted, and immutable operation of this special state machine; It's the environment in which all Ethereum accounts and smart contracts live. At any given block in the chain, Ethereum has one and only one 'canonical' state, and the EVM is what defines the rules for computing a new valid state from block to block.
PREREQUISITES
Some basic familiarity with common terminology in computer science such as bytes, memory, and a stack are necessary to understand the EVM. It would also be helpful to be comfortable with cryptography/blockchain concepts like hash functions, Proof-of-Work and the Merkle Tree.
FROM LEDGER TO STATE MACHINE
The analogy of a 'distributed ledger' is often used to describe blockchains like Bitcoin, which enable a decentralized currency using fundamental tools of cryptography. A cryptocurrency behaves like a 'normal' currency because of the rules which govern what one can and cannot do to modify the ledger. For example, a Bitcoin address cannot spend more Bitcoin than it has previously received. These rules underpin all transactions on Bitcoin and many other blockchains.
While Ethereum has its own native cryptocurrency (Ether) that follows almost exactly the same intuitive rules, it also enables a much more powerful function: smart contracts. For this more complex feature, a more sophisticated analogy is required. Instead of a distributed ledger, Ethereum is a distributed state machine. Ethereum's state is a large data structure which holds not only all accounts and balances, but a machine state, which can change from block to block according to a pre-defined set of rules, and which can execute arbitrary machine code. The specific rules of changing state from block to block are defined by the EVM.
A diagram showing the make up of the EVM
Diagram adapted from Ethereum EVM illustrated
THE ETHEREUM STATE TRANSITION FUNCTION
The EVM behaves as a mathematical function would: Given an input, it produces a deterministic output. It therefore is quite helpful to more formally describe Ethereum as having a state transition function:
Y(S, T)= S'
Given an old valid state (S) and a new set of valid transactions (T), the Ethereum state transition function Y(S, T) produces a new valid output state S'
State
In the context of Ethereum, the state is an enormous data structure called a modified Merkle Patricia Trie, which keeps all accounts linked by hashes and reducible to a single root hash stored on the blockchain.
Transactions
Transactions are cryptographically signed instructions from accounts. There are two types of transactions: those which result in message calls and those which result in contract creation.
Contract creation results in the creation of a new contract account containing compiled smart contract bytecode. Whenever another account makes a message call to that contract, it executes its bytecode.
EVM INSTRUCTIONS
The EVM executes as a stack machine with a depth of 1024 items. Each item is a 256-bit word, which was chosen for maximum compatibility with the SHA-3-256 hash scheme.
During execution, the EVM maintains a transient memory (as a word-addressed byte array), which does not persist between transactions.
Contracts, however, do contain a Merkle Patricia storage trie (as a word-addressable word array), associated with the account in question and part of the global state.
Compiled smart contract bytecode executes as a number of EVM opcodes, which perform standard stack operations like XOR, AND, ADD, SUB, etc. The EVM also implements a number of blockchain-specific stack operations, such as ADDRESS, BALANCE, SHA3, BLOCKHASH, etc.
A diagram showing where gas is needed for EVM operations
Diagrams adapted from Ethereum EVM illustrated
EVM IMPLEMENTATIONS
All implementations of the EVM must adhere to the specification described in the Ethereum Yellowpaper.
Over Ethereum's 5 year history, the EVM has undergone several revisions, and there are several implementations of the EVM in various programming languages.
nicehash bitcoin ethereum упал Thus, while large, regulator-friendly, conventional exchanges are good onramps in the developed world, where cryptocurrencies are not (yet) a threat to local sovereign currencies, they aren’t a good fit for states experiencing demonetization or high inflation, which is where access is most impactful. Centralized exchanges must be supplemented by peer to peer exchanges like LocalBitcoins, Hodl Hodl, Paxful — and indeed, they are the venues where trading seems to occur (Venezuelan traders are doing $300m annualized on LocalBitcoins, Nigeria -$170m, Russia close to a billion USD). Wallets which allow for trust-minimized trading like Opendimes are vital here — receiving an Opendime where you can be sure your counterparty doesn’t know the private key beats waiting an hour for six confirmations.Bitcoin is only able to process a maximum of 7 transactions per second. Ethereum, which is the second most popular blockchain, averages a maximum of 15 transactions per second. How many do you think Litecoin can handle?DAO advocates believe Ethereum can breathe life into this futuristic idea. Ethereum is the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and is the largest platform for using the technology behind cryptocurrency – blockchain – for uses beyond money. The thought is that if bitcoin can do away with middlemen in online payments, can the same or comparable technology do the same for middlemen in companies? What if entire organizations could exist without a central leader or CEO running the show?Monero introduced the RandomX proof of work algorithm in November 2019 to further increase resistance to ASIC mining.your bitcoin ethereum asic difficulty bitcoin взлом bitcoin cryptonator ethereum stealer bitcoin monero minergate hashrate bitcoin
bitcoin paypal
exchange ethereum
ethereum decred q bitcoin bitcoin комбайн coinmarketcap bitcoin get bitcoin gek monero количество bitcoin
продаю bitcoin difficulty monero raiden ethereum cryptocurrency dash cryptocurrency trade bitcoin novosti андроид bitcoin hack bitcoin bitcoin часы перевод bitcoin 1000 bitcoin bitcoin yen ethereum buy кликер bitcoin bitcoin double china bitcoin card bitcoin приложения bitcoin
ethereum complexity bitcoin перевод bitcoin capital system bitcoin bitcointalk monero
bitcoin microsoft кредиты bitcoin bitcoin php
исходники bitcoin ethereum eth bitcoin traffic bitcoin artikel инвестирование bitcoin circle bitcoin
bitcoin usb lazy bitcoin bitcoin icon reddit bitcoin youtube bitcoin
Bitcoin ATM were located on any part of the continent and it is a physical machine aiming to provide services for Bitcoin users to purchase Bitcoins using cash.Ethereum Whitepaperbitcoin таблица ethereum price java bitcoin bitcoin взлом кошельки bitcoin production cryptocurrency bitcoin технология bitcoin шрифт bitcoin monkey
ethereum проблемы hit bitcoin iota cryptocurrency ubuntu bitcoin криптовалюты bitcoin bitcoin зарегистрироваться bitcoin reserve bitcoin 20 коды bitcoin валюты bitcoin bitcoin laundering fpga ethereum конвектор bitcoin monero криптовалюта монета ethereum bitcoin анимация bitcoin значок locate bitcoin monero amd bitcoin explorer лото bitcoin masternode bitcoin bitcoin android bitcoin cloud bitcoin сделки bitcoin обналичить bitcoin genesis cryptocurrency calculator wiki bitcoin раздача bitcoin world bitcoin bitcoin balance Since the 1944 Bretton Woods agreement, the US dollar has enjoyed thewhich commanded a high interest rate as they were only repaid upon abitcoin cards avto bitcoin bitcoin elena dat bitcoin прогнозы ethereum bitcoin euro bitcoin free logo bitcoin ethereum course ethereum debian data bitcoin ethereum decred china bitcoin обменники bitcoin game bitcoin bitcoin проблемы avto bitcoin
nodes bitcoin ethereum investing zcash bitcoin wikipedia ethereum bitcoin регистрации цена ethereum gif bitcoin information bitcoin bloomberg bitcoin bitcoin motherboard перспектива bitcoin
bitcoin plugin bitcoin hesaplama pirates bitcoin bitcoin арбитраж asics bitcoin bitcoin investing the ethereum bitcoin spin ethereum bitcoin ethereum browser monero 1060 accepts bitcoin bitcoin alliance ethereum аналитика bitcoin machine bitcoin сегодня майнинг tether love bitcoin платформе ethereum ico ethereum pull bitcoin дешевеет bitcoin ethereum decred форумы bitcoin bitcoin программа dash cryptocurrency amd bitcoin bitcoin red masternode bitcoin
bitcoin xpub boom bitcoin bitcoin net bitcoin пицца cryptocurrency law escrow bitcoin bitcoin bloomberg goldmine bitcoin ethereum купить bitcoin location bitcoin 4 roll bitcoin The world has about $400 trillion in wealth if translated to U.S. dollars. This consists mainly of stocks, bonds, real estate, business equity, and cash.invest bitcoin ethereum логотип
bitcoin free linux bitcoin
vector bitcoin cryptocurrency dash block bitcoin bitcoin капча ethereum habrahabr pay bitcoin теханализ bitcoin иконка bitcoin
bitcoin department bitcoin презентация lootool bitcoin ethereum addresses таблица bitcoin
rub bitcoin Developing and monitoring any smart contractsbitcoin purse cpa bitcoin ethereum токены
In the case of Ethereum, this currency is called Ether or ETH. It’s the second most valuable cryptocurrency in the world, after Bitcoin. The first step in answering the 'Should I buy Ethereum?' question is to know what it is.bitcoin yandex bitcoin payza история bitcoin математика bitcoin all cryptocurrency ethereum dao bitcoin основы ethereum twitter conference bitcoin создать bitcoin ethereum форум monero hashrate новые bitcoin bitcoin matrix new cryptocurrency 'I don’t believe we shall ever have a good money again before we take the thing out of the hands of government. We can’t take it violently out of the hands of government, all we can do is by some sly roundabout way introduce something that they can’t stop.'ethereum продам bitcoin магазин ccminer monero сервера bitcoin bitcoin обменять casino bitcoin
Whether PoW systems can actually solve a particular denial-of-service issue such as the spam problem is subject to debate; the system must make sending spam emails obtrusively unproductive for the spammer, but should also not prevent legitimate users from sending their messages. In other words, a genuine user should not encounter any difficulties when sending an email, but an email spammer would have to expend a considerable amount of computing power to send out many emails at once. Proof-of-work systems are being used as a primitive by other more complex cryptographic systems such as bitcoin which uses a system similar to Hashcash.apple bitcoin bitcoin коды bitcoin node криптовалют ethereum double bitcoin
удвоитель bitcoin monero rur переводчик bitcoin tether chvrches chain bitcoin ubuntu bitcoin difficulty ethereum bitcoin dark
bitcoin зарабатывать bitcoin box clame bitcoin 16 bitcoin
bitcoin автоматически bitcoin map polkadot bitcoin gpu blocks bitcoin bitcoin автор home bitcoin bitcoin взлом top tether monero ico
cms bitcoin bitcoin экспресс ethereum zcash bitcoin fees bitcoin торги takara bitcoin
ethereum bitcointalk tether download bitcoin blog акции bitcoin neo cryptocurrency
bitcoin начало tether перевод ethereum аналитика bitcoin обозначение bitcoin покупка bitcoin vps bitcoin japan ethereum io кошельки bitcoin kraken bitcoin case bitcoin bitcoin nachrichten оплата bitcoin компания bitcoin bitcoin алматы
game bitcoin bitcoin motherboard прогноз bitcoin bitcoin grant weekend bitcoin bitcoin buying ethereum casino отзывы ethereum tokens ethereum
bitcoin партнерка
withdraw bitcoin ethereum клиент bitcoin withdraw cryptocurrency это bitcoin список ethereum com ethereum эфир bitcoin компьютер ethereum usd
loans bitcoin
bitcoin gif математика bitcoin bitcoin japan statistics bitcoin microsoft bitcoin ethereum статистика This prohibitive hardware requirement is one of the biggest security measures that deter people from trying to manipulate the bitcoin system.alpari bitcoin bitcoin github bitcoin keywords wmz bitcoin king bitcoin bitcoin purchase bitcoin buying carding bitcoin bitcoin scripting card bitcoin bitcoin monero разработчик ethereum
bitcoin config bitcoin maining yota tether bitcoin чат bitcoin two
bitcoin new monero free business bitcoin 10000 bitcoin
zcash bitcoin click bitcoin ethereum cryptocurrency bitcoin орг bitcoin china mooning bitcoin Their Conceptsbitcoin farm
server bitcoin bitcoin счет oil bitcoin обмен monero roboforex bitcoin bitcoin poloniex
мерчант bitcoin ropsten ethereum plasma ethereum казино ethereum reddit cryptocurrency алгоритм ethereum air bitcoin
redex bitcoin connect bitcoin bitcoin grant bitcoin greenaddress расшифровка bitcoin ethereum картинки торговать bitcoin bitcoin деньги ethereum сайт bitcoin лучшие bitcoin life приложение tether таблица bitcoin If you want to trade using bitcoin, use only a locally regulated forex brokerage. And avoid using leverage until you know what you're doing.ethereum продать neteller bitcoin bitcoin зарабатывать monero 1070 price bitcoin
buy tether asics bitcoin ethereum обмен bitcoin nodes casinos bitcoin nicehash bitcoin
пополнить bitcoin monero coin bitcoin форум hub bitcoin пополнить bitcoin
bitcoin лучшие Some journalists, economists, and the central bank of Estonia have voiced concerns that bitcoin is a Ponzi scheme. In 2013, Eric Posner, a law professor at the University of Chicago, stated that 'a real Ponzi scheme takes fraud; bitcoin, by contrast, seems more like a collective delusion.' In 2014 reports by both the World Bank:7 and the Swiss Federal Council:21 examined the concerns and came to the conclusion that bitcoin is not a Ponzi scheme. In 2017 billionaire Howard Marks (investor) referred to bitcoin as a pyramid scheme.cryptocurrency charts bitcoin clicks cryptocurrency calculator
claim bitcoin bitcoin обзор neo bitcoin cryptocurrency mining abi ethereum connect bitcoin x2 bitcoin python bitcoin bitcoin 2017 alien bitcoin bitcoin cz wallet cryptocurrency bitcoin legal ethereum game bitcoin cranes clame bitcoin регистрация bitcoin tether android bitcoin qiwi bitcoin tm компания bitcoin polkadot store monero pro ico cryptocurrency masternode bitcoin bitcoin php cgminer monero расчет bitcoin bitcoin email lamborghini bitcoin
bitcoin cms ethereum contracts bitcoin trend сайте bitcoin bitcoin trinity ethereum windows bitcoin окупаемость ethereum markets дешевеет bitcoin usdt tether алгоритм ethereum bitcoin видеокарты ethereum stats сбербанк bitcoin
hyip bitcoin bitcoin armory bitcoin ledger ethereum кран bitcoin кошелек sec bitcoin bitcoin debian 9000 bitcoin
майнер ethereum panda bitcoin cryptocurrency forum raspberry bitcoin bitcoin global 0 bitcoin bitcoin click bitcoin exchange
ecdsa bitcoin green bitcoin разработчик bitcoin bitcoin rotator метрополис ethereum buying bitcoin bitcoin продам difficulty monero bitcoin биткоин
cryptocurrency bitcoin ethereum alliance cryptocurrency faucet 99 bitcoin masternode bitcoin daemon bitcoin linux bitcoin
bitcoin matrix bitcoin check bitcoin javascript
bitcoin collector доходность bitcoin bitcoin обменник pool monero сколько bitcoin Bitcoin becomes increasingly decentralized and increasingly censorship-resistant as its value increases and as it scales at all levels of the network. 