Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) refers to the capability of a distributed network to operate and attain a neutral agreement (consensus), considering that a few participants might act maliciously or fail. The name has been derived from the paradox of “Byzantine Generals’ Problem” while the Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) is the solution to the same. The consensus of the network is guaranteed with the help of certain rules and conditions such that the network can function properly despite a few participants encountering problems.

Byzantine Fault is one of the most discussed topics in computer science and distributed technology such as blockchain. It plays an important role in the crypto space. In crypto, when BFT is applied, the generals from the problem are the nodes in the blockchain system, which must reach a consensus via communication. This leads to methods that are known as consensus algorithms. Since there are several ways to achieve Byzantine Fault Tolerance, there are several consensus mechanisms for different blockchain protocols, each finding its own way to reach optimal efficiency.

Some of the commonly known consensus mechanisms are Proof of Work used in Bitcoin, Proof of Stake used in Cardano, etc.