Accounting groups

Netlets are grouped within a node into accounting groups. All resources consumed by netlets are billed to the accounting group, and each netlet belongs to exactly one accounting group. The mechanism by which bills are calculated and paid is a property of the contract between the netlet owner and the operators of the node.

When a netlet is executed through a hosting service, the contract is determined by the warrant used to access the hosting service. When a netlet is executed to satisfy a binding request, there are two possibilities:

1. The new netlet becomes part of the accounting group of the requesting netlet.

   The netlet binding the service is thus responsible for all charges incurred by the local provision of that service.

2. The new netlet joins a newly created accounting group.

   The new netlet is thus liable for its own resources. The contract here is determined through the binding protocol.

The warrant for the service may specify the way in which the new netlet is created.