Gas Metering Models

Gas metering models are the economic and technical mechanisms used to measure and charge for the computational resources required to execute transactions and smart contracts. By assigning a cost to every operation, such as memory access, storage writes, or mathematical calculations, the network prevents spam and infinite loops.

The gas model also ensures that the demand for block space is balanced by the cost of consumption, which is critical for network stability. In modular blockchains, gas models may vary between layers, with execution layers having different pricing structures based on their specific performance requirements.

These models are essential for preventing denial-of-service attacks and ensuring that miners or validators are compensated for their resources. Effective gas metering is a balancing act between making the network affordable for users and providing enough incentive for network participants to secure the chain.