# Proof-of-Stake on QRL 2.0

> How QRL 2.0 secures itself with staking instead of mining — validators, the beacon chain, and finality.

[QRL 2.0](/learn/glossary#qrl2) replaces QRL Legacy's mining with **[Proof-of-Stake](/learn/glossary#proof-of-stake)**. Instead of burning electricity to secure the chain, participants put their own coins at stake. This guide explains how that works at a high level; the deeper pieces have their own guides.

## Two layers: execution and consensus

QRL 2.0 is built from two cooperating clients, mirroring the modern Ethereum design:

- **Execution layer (`gqrl`)** — processes transactions, runs smart contracts, and keeps account balances. This is the EVM-compatible part.
- **Consensus layer (the [beacon chain](/learn/glossary#beacon-chain), run by `qrysm`)** — decides *who* gets to add the next block and *whether* it's final. This is the Proof-of-Stake part.

The execution layer asks "is this transaction valid?"; the consensus layer asks "is this the canonical block, and is it final?" Together they form QRL 2.0.

## Validators replace miners

In place of miners, QRL 2.0 has **[validators](/learn/validators-and-staking)**. A validator locks up — *stakes* — an amount of QRL as a security deposit, then takes on two duties:

- **Proposing** — occasionally being chosen to build the next block, and
- **Attesting** — voting that they've seen a valid block, which is how the network reaches agreement.

Honest validators earn rewards for doing this work. Validators that break the rules in provable ways can be **[slashed](/learn/slashing-explained)** — losing part of their stake. The stake-at-risk is what makes attacking the chain economically painful.

## The consensus clock: slots and epochs

The beacon chain runs on a fixed schedule. Time is divided into **[slots](/learn/slots-epochs-beacon-chain)** of 60 seconds — each slot, one validator may propose a block — grouped into **epochs** of 128 slots (about 2.1 hours), which the protocol uses to assign duties and account for finality. We cover this clock in detail in [slots, epochs and the beacon chain](/learn/slots-epochs-beacon-chain).

## Finality

Proof-of-Work offers only *probabilistic* settlement — a block becomes safer as more blocks pile on top, but is never formally "done." Proof-of-Stake adds **finality**: once enough validators have attested across epochs, a block is finalised and reverting it would require an enormous, self-destructing fraction of the total stake to be slashed. That gives QRL 2.0 a stronger, more explicit notion of "this is settled" than mining provides.

## Rewards arrive as withdrawals

Validator rewards aren't paid as a mined block reward. On QRL 2.0 they reach validators through protocol **[withdrawals](/learn/withdrawals-explained)** — a distinct mechanism from ordinary transactions. On a quiet test network, these withdrawals can be the main flow of value on the chain.

## Where to go next

- [Validators and staking](/learn/validators-and-staking) — how to participate.
- [Slots, epochs and the beacon chain](/learn/slots-epochs-beacon-chain) — the consensus clock.
- [Withdrawals explained](/learn/withdrawals-explained) — how rewards are paid.