Subnets

The Avalanche network consists of the Primary Network and a collection of sub-networks (subnets).

Subnet Creation

Subnets are created by issuing a CreateSubnetTx. After a CreateSubnetTx is accepted, a new subnet will exist with the SubnetID equal to the TxID of the CreateSubnetTx. The CreateSubnetTx creates a permissioned subnet. The Owner field in CreateSubnetTx specifies who can modify the state of the subnet.

Permissioned Subnets

A permissioned subnet can be modified by a few different transactions.

• CreateChainTx
  • Creates a new chain that will be validated by all validators of the subnet.
• AddSubnetValidatorTx
  • Adds a new validator to the subnet with the specified StartTime, EndTime, and Weight.
• RemoveSubnetValidatorTx
  • Removes a validator from the subnet.
• TransformSubnetTx
  • Converts the permissioned subnet into a permissionless subnet.
  • Specifies all of the staking parameters.
    • AVAX is not allowed to be used as a staking token. In general, it is not advisable to have multiple subnets using the same staking token.
  • After becoming a permissionless subnet, previously added permissioned validators will remain to finish their staking period.
  • No more chains will be able to be added to the subnet.

Permissionless Subnets

Currently, nothing can be performed on a permissionless subnet.