Overview of Holochain Concepts
This section provides detailed explanations of the core concepts and terminology that form the foundation of Holochain’s distributed computing framework. Understanding these concepts is essential for developing applications and working effectively with the Holochain ecosystem.
Core Concepts
Agent-Centric Components
- Action - Operations that agents perform on their source chains
- Entry - The basic unit of data in Holochain
- Cell - The fundamental unit of agency in Holochain
- Capability Tokens - Authorization mechanism for Holochain applications
Network Architecture
- Link - Connections between entries in the DHT
- Path - Addressing mechanism for content in Holochain
- Signal - Real-time messaging between agents
- Network Seed - Initialization parameter for Holochain networks
- RRDHT - Redundant, Resilient Distributed Hash Table
Roles and Identities
- Host - Entity that provides computing resources for Holochain applications
- Guest - User of Holochain applications without hosting responsibilities
- Progenitor - Initial creator of a Holochain DNA or network
Conceptual Frameworks
- Web3 - Relationship between Holochain and Web3 technologies
- Layer0 - Holochain’s position in the protocol stack
- Social DNA - Patterns for social applications in Holochain
- Eventual Consistency - Data synchronization model in distributed systems
- Anchor - Discoverable entry points in Holochain applications
- Record - Signed data entries with provenance information
Learning Pathways
For Developers
- Start with entry, action, and cell to understand the basic building blocks
- Explore link, path, and anchor to learn about data relationships
- Study capability-tokens and signal for application interaction patterns
For Architects
- Begin with rrdht and eventual-consistency for distributed systems concepts
- Examine network-seed and progenitor for network initialization
- Understand layer0 and web3 for contextual positioning
For Application Designers
- Focus on social-dna and anchor for application patterns
- Learn about host and guest for deployment considerations
- Study capability-tokens for security and authorization models