Over the years, there’s been much speculation about the number of actual Bitcoin nodes on the network. Many have mistakenly thought that it’s around the 10,000 mark but a recent statement by Luke Dash Jr, one of the longest time developer of Bitcoin Core, gave us detailed insight and showed us that the actual number is closer to 100,000.
Why Such Discrepancies in the Number of Nodes?
According to Luke Jr, as he’s widely known in the Bitcoin development community, most major platforms be that information providers or exchanges, use an algorithm that scans the network for listening nodes. These nodes are easily traceable and in general, are not of no value statistically speaking. They do not represent the actual number of nodes that perform transactions on the network, nor do they secure it as full nodes do. Based on the chart he provides users we can determine that there are over 100,000 active nodes on the Bitcoin network. Luke Jr collected data over the course of a month, to determine which nodes were actually active and which ones are permanently offline for a more accurate figure.
A key statistic included in this sample is the software version of Bitcoin Core clients that are being run. Looking further into the matter, it turns out that more than 60% of the userbase is running an outdated version of the client that is vulnerable to attacks. The exploit that affects this portion of users is commonly referred to as CVE-2018-17144, more which you can read by visiting Bitcoin Core’s official website.
The Difference Between Listening and Full Nodes
Compared to full nodes, listening nodes perform more actions on the network on average. This is so as they’re actively scanning and relaying large amounts of data to other nodes. As such, the requirements for running one exceed those of full nodes, both in hardware equipment and expenses. These two characteristics of listening nodes could serve as an explanation of why this type of node is not as prevalent as full nodes.
On the other hand, we have full archival nodes which store a complete copy of the blockchain and re-distribute this information to other nodes. One could argue that despite the importance and improved decentralization provided by listening nodes, full nodes overshadow them due to their sheer number and the fact that having multiple copies of the ledger serves to increase the overall security of the network. Full nodes also maintain the consensus and ensure all conditions are met by users thus reinforcing their position in the blockchain and their importance, compared to listening nodes, which are not crucial to the network’s operation.