> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.zkshine.xyz/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.zkshine.xyz/node-operations/node-overview.md).

# Node Overview

**Node Architecture**

Each zkShine node belongs to one or more operational categories, forming a distributed privacy mesh:

| Node Type            | Role                      | Description                                                                                   |
| -------------------- | ------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| 🧠 **Compute Node**  | zk Proof Engine           | Generates and verifies zk-SNARK/zk-STARK proofs for confidential computation and AI tasks.    |
| 🛰️ **Relayer Node** | Privacy Transaction Layer | Rebroadcasts Solana transactions through anonymous relays to unlink wallet and IP identities. |
| 🌐 **VPN Node**      | Network Privacy Layer     | Provides encrypted tunnels for RPC requests and Solana wallet connectivity.                   |
| 🔒 **Vault Node**    | Data Privacy Layer        | Hosts encrypted zkVault files and manages zero-knowledge access proofs.                       |

Each type can be operated independently or combined into a **multi-role node** for optimized performance and higher rewards.


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