Скачать или смотреть Solana 05 Is Solana Too Centralized?

The Centralization: For a “Decentralized” Network, It’s Surprisingly Centralized
This is arguably the most significant philosophical paradox of the Solana network. The core promise of blockchain technology is decentralization: the removal of power from any single entity, giving control to a dispersed network of participants (validators). In theory, anyone should be able to run a node and participate in securing the network.

However, the architecture required to support Solana’s breakneck speed introduces high barriers to entry for becoming a validator. To run a validator node capable of keeping up with Solana’s immense transaction throughput, you need high-end, specialized hardware – a powerful CPU, massive memory (often 256GB or of RAM), and top-tier SSDs as well as the capital needed to stake enough SOL. This is an order of magnitude more expensive than the hardware required for a validator on many other chains.

Network Outages & Risks (Stability Challenges)
Network Outages & Risks (Stability Challenges)
The high cost of hardware, combined with the significant capital required to stake tokens, means that the power to validate the network is concentrated in the hands of fewer, larger, and better-funded entities (like major data centers and institutional stakers).

As of mid-2025, the network includes over 4,500 nodes, with around 1,400 consensus validators. No single validator holds more than about 3% of total stake, which helps. While the number of total nodes is high, the Nakamoto Coefficient, a metric that measures the minimum number of independent validators required to collectively control over one-third of the network’s stake (enough to potentially halt the chain), remains lower than its competitors, a sign of higher centralization. Anyway, in 2025, the Nakamoto Coefficient for Solana has been cited to be in the low 20s, an improvement over its early days, indicating a gradual effort toward wider stake distribution.

In reality, the concern isn’t just numbers. Many validators rely on delegation from large stakeholders or support programs like the Solana Foundation’s. A small group of well-resourced operators still wields outsized influence. This makes Solana less decentralized than Ethereum, where thousands of smaller validators can participate with consumer-grade hardware.

Conclude everything on the Solana’s decentralisation question: This is the ultimate trade-off: Solana prioritizes speed and performance over an easily accessible, permissionless validation layer. It’s a design choice that fundamentally challenges the ethos of the movement, leaving critics to argue that it is a fast centralized database rather than a slow decentralized world computer.