How does Sui process transactions? A step-by-step guide
Sui sends transactions to validators that certify, order, execute, and finalize them. You sign in a wallet, then check the digest in an explorer.
Vahe HakobyanEditor-in-chief
Updated Oct 6, 20263 min readFact-checked
On this page
- Owned-object transactions skip consensus; shared-object ones do not.
- Independent object transactions run in parallel.
- The digest, effects, and events are your receipt.
Sui is a Layer-1 blockchain, which means it runs smart contracts and apps on its own base network. How Sui processes a transaction depends on what that transaction touches, because Sui tracks objects instead of balances in one long ledger. All it takes to join in is a wallet and a little SUI.
How does Sui process a transaction?
Every send or app call starts as an intent in your wallet. The wallet turns that intent into a transaction, and you approve it. Validators then certify, order, execute, and finalize it.
- 1Build the transactionYour wallet assembles a programmable transaction block, listing the commands and the object inputs they read or change.
- 2Check gas and recipientMake sure the wallet holds SUI for gas and that the recipient address is right. A mistake here is hard to undo.
- 3Sign and submitYou approve the block with the key your wallet holds, and the wallet submits it to a Sui full node.
- 4Certify, order, and finalizeOwned-object transactions skip consensus and go straight to execution. Shared-object transactions wait for consensus to fix their order, and then validators execute and finalize them.
What do you need before you start?
Sui asks for little before you send anything, but the basics matter. A transaction cannot be undone once validators finalize it.
What should you check after sending?
Sui returns a receipt as soon as the transaction finishes. Your wallet shows a digest, and a block explorer holds the full record.
- Digest: the unique ID for that transaction.
- Effects: the objects created, changed, or deleted.
- Events: notes the transaction left for apps to read.
Frequently asked questions
A Sui object is a unit of data with its own identity on the chain, such as a coin or an app record.
It is one transaction that can carry several commands, and later commands can use the results of earlier ones.
The commands stop and no object changes are saved, though the network may still charge gas for work validators did.
It is a set of transactions that validators agree on and record together, giving the network a shared point to sync from.
