Historical state access differs from merely retaining block history.
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A library can keep every diary entry yet also maintain snapshots of the entire catalog at many dates.
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Receive, check and share across independent nodesStep 1 / 4
A node receives a proposed transaction or block-related message. Receipt is not the same as accepting its claims.
A node receives a proposed transaction or block-related message. Receipt is not the same as accepting its claims.The node checks the relevant authorization and protocol rules. Popularity does not make an invalid state transition valid.Valid candidate data can propagate to peers. Connections and timing differ, so there is no perfect simultaneous worldwide view.Peers validate under the same protocol rules. This illustration is about verification and propagation, not a complete proof-of-stake consensus algorithm.
Animated local teaching model. No wallet, RPC or live blockchain data. Some labels and hashes are abbreviated for readability.
Current state answers current queries
A node needs appropriate state to verify and serve its current view. Historical blocks and transactions describe the past, but answering an arbitrary old state query may require additional retained or reconstructed data.
Archive behavior serves history
Archive configurations retain data intended to support historical state access. Exact formats, storage requirements and available historical ranges depend on the client and configuration.
History is not one universal file
Block bodies, receipts, state snapshots and trie-related data have different retention and retrieval roles. Saying a service has history does not specify every old query it can answer.
Read a provider’s actual capability
A historical balance query needs the correct network, block context and available state. Our local tools do not offer archive queries; they calculate from supplied examples and avoid pretending to inspect past balances.
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Is keeping transaction history automatically the same as serving every historical state query?
Historical execution inputs and readily accessible historical state are different data capabilities.