BigchainDB Documentation
========================

`BigchainDB <https://www.bigchaindb.com/>`_ is a scalable blockchain database.
That is, it's a "big data" database with some blockchain characteristics added, including `decentralization <decentralized.html>`_, 
`immutability <immutable.html>`_ 
and 
`native support for assets <assets.html>`_.
You can read about the motivations, goals and high-level architecture in the `BigchainDB whitepaper <https://www.bigchaindb.com/whitepaper/>`_.

At a high level, one can communicate with a BigchainDB cluster (set of nodes) using the BigchainDB Client-Server HTTP API, or a wrapper for that API, such as the BigchainDB Python Driver. Each BigchainDB node runs BigchainDB Server and various other software. The `terminology page <terminology.html>`_ explains some of those terms in more detail.

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     <a class="button" href="http://bigchaindb.com/http-api">HTTP API Docs</a>
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     <a class="button" href="http://docs.bigchaindb.com/projects/server/en/latest/index.html">Server Docs</a>
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More About BigchainDB
---------------------

.. toctree::
   :maxdepth: 1

   BigchainDB Docs Home <self>
   production-ready
   terminology
   decentralized
   diversity
   immutable
   bft
   assets
   smart-contracts
   transaction-concepts
   permissions
   timestamps
   Data Models <https://docs.bigchaindb.com/projects/server/en/latest/data-models/index.html>