There are different types of nodes in the Stellar network – watcher nodes, validator nodes, and archiver nodes.

A watcher node is a node that submits transactions to the network. This is similar to a bitcoin node that broadcasts transactions in the bitcoin network.

A validator node participates in the voting process to close a ledger. It is similar to a bitcoin miner that creates new blocks.

An archiver node publishes an archive of the Stellar ledger. This increases the network’s resiliency and helps new nodes to catch-up with the network.

You can choose which type you would like your node to be when subscribing

To run an archiver node, please contact us.

Further reading:

• Level of participation to the network