Protocol Mechanics

Storage Ledgers

Irys uses multiple ledgers to manage how data enters the network and becomes permanent.

Submit Ledger

All new data enters through the Submit Ledger. The Submit Ledger serves as a temporary holding layer where:

• Data is received by the network
• Miners generate ingress proofs confirming receipt
• Storage responsibility is assigned, but permanence is not yet established

See ingress proofs for details on how miners confirm receipt of data.

Data remains in the Submit Ledger until it meets the promotion requirements defined by the protocol. If sufficient ingress proofs are not produced within the allowed time window, the data does not advance to permanent storage.

Publish Ledger

Once data has been verified in the Submit Ledger, it is promoted to the Publish Ledger.

Promotion requires ingress proofs from multiple distinct miners — each one evidence that data was uploaded into the ledger space the transaction header paid for and reserved — and enough funds to cover the storage commitment. A block that promotes data without the required proofs is rejected by the other miners.

When promoted:

• The data becomes part of the permanent ledger state
• Its Merkle root is recorded
• Storage responsibility becomes subject to ongoing verification and penalties

From this point forward, miners assigned to the relevant partitions must continuously prove that the data remains available.