A data blob on Obsidian is a signed message containing arbitrary binary data. Unlike smart contract storage, blobs don't execute code—they commit your data into canonical chain history with archive-backed retrieval.
Message = {
sender: 0x742d35Cc6634C0532925a3b844Bc9e7595f... // Who signed it
payload: 0x48656c6c6f20576f726c64... // Your data (opaque bytes)
signature: 0x1b2c3d4e5f... // ECDSA proof
nonce: 0x0000000000000001 // Replay protection
chainId: 0x1a5 // Obsidian mainnet
bid: 0x0 // 0 = feeless (SM)
}The protocol doesn't interpret your payload. Store any format: JSON, protobuf, encrypted data, raw binary.
Every blob includes an ECDSA signature proving authorship. Verified at submission, gossip, and consensus.
Once included in a block, ordering is finalized on-chain while archive nodes preserve long-term retrieval. No pinning required.
| Metric | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Slot time | 12 seconds | Standard slot duration |
| Slots per day | 7,200 | 86,400s ÷ 12s |
| Lane count | 10 | Parallel message lanes |
| PM budget | 40 MB/slot | 4 MB per lane across 10 lanes |
| SM budget | 60 MB/slot | 6 MB per lane across 10 lanes |
| Annual capacity | ~263 TB | 100 MB × 7,200 × 365 |
Query and store data blobs using standard JSON-RPC. All message-specific methods are prefixed with eth_ for compatibility.
// Get all messages from an address
const messages = await provider.send(
"eth_getMessagesByAddress",
[
"0x742d35Cc6634C0532925a3b844Bc9e7595f...",
"0x0",
"latest"
]
);
// Each message includes:
// - hash, sender, payload
// - blockNumber, targetBlock
// - availableFull nodes verify the canonical chain and message commitments. Availability is attested during the serve window, while archive nodes preserve long-term message history for retrieval.
Archive nodes store complete historical data. Obsidian supports sharded archives where nodes store specific epoch ranges.
Shard 1: Epochs 0 - 1,000 // Genesis to early history Shard 2: Epochs 1,001 - 2,000 // Growing archive Shard 3: Epochs 2,001 - 3,000 // Recent history ... Lower hardware requirements. Same complete history. More operators.
Store device telemetry, sensor readings, and machine logs with cryptographic proof of origin and timestamp.
Hash and store document proofs for legal records, contracts, and compliance requirements.
Record product movements, certifications, and custody transfers with immutable audit trails.
Publish research data, experimental results, and datasets with verifiable attribution.
Store transaction logs, audit data, and compliance records that regulators can verify.
Build social applications where user content is truly owned and can never be deleted.
Archive-backed, queryable, cryptographically signed data blobs.