A transaction in Ethereum is a digitally signed data packet using a private key that contains the instructions that, when completed, either result in a message call or contract creation.
Transactions can be divided into two types based on the output they produce: Message call transactions: This transaction simply produces a message call that is used to pass messages from one contract account to another.
From Initiation to Immutable Confirmation (Part 2)
Contract creation transactions: As the name suggests, these transactions result in the creation of a new contract account.
This means that when this transaction is executed successfully, it creates an account with the associated code.
Both of these transactions are composed of some standard fields, which are described here.
Nonce: Nonce is a number that is incremented by one every time a transaction is sent by the sender.
It must be equal to the number of transactions sent and is used as a unique identifier for the transaction.
Gas price: The gas price field represents the amount of Wei required to execute the transaction.
Why This Matters for Blockchain Technology
In other words, this is the amount of Wei you are willing to pay for this transaction.
This is charged per unit of gas for all computation costs incurred as a result of the execution of this transaction Wei is the smallest denomination of ether; therefore, it is used to count ether.
Gas limit: The gas limit field contains the value that represents the maximum amount of gas that can be consumed to execute the transaction.
For now, it is sufficient to say that this is the amount of fee in ether that a user (sender of the transaction) is willing to pay for computation.
Key Points to Remember
- Transactions and messages A transaction in Ethereum is a digitally signed data packet using a private key that contains the instructions that, when completed, either result in a message call or contract creation.
- Transactions can be divided into two types based on the output they produce: Message call transactions: This transaction simply produces a message call that is used to pass messages from one contract account to another.
- Contract creation transactions: As the name suggests, these transactions result in the creation of a new contract account.
- This means that when this transaction is executed successfully, it creates an account with the associated code.
Going Deeper: Advanced Concepts
To: As the name suggests, the to field is a value that represents the address of the recipient of the transaction.
Value: Value represents the total number of Wei to be transferred to the recipient; in the case of a contract account, this represents the balance that the contract will hold.
Signature: Signature is composed of three fields, namely v, r, and s.
These values represent the digital signature (R, S) and some information that can be used to recover the public key (V).
Conclusion
Transactions and messages represents one of the many innovative layers that make blockchain technology so powerful and transformative. As distributed systems continue to evolve, a solid understanding of these core concepts becomes increasingly valuable — not just for developers, but for anyone building, investing in, or working alongside blockchain-powered systems.
Whether you are just starting your blockchain journey or deepening existing expertise, mastering these fundamentals gives you the tools to think clearly about decentralized systems and make smarter decisions in this rapidly evolving space.