# Background on Nodes **First of all, what are blockchain nodes?** Nodes store all the data of a particular blockchain network, such as Ethereum. They are essential to the health and security of the blockchain. Due to how technically challenging it is to set up a node for the average person, projects like Strongblock offer “nodes as a service” and incentivize users to create nodes through their protocol. **What are Strong Nodes?** Projects like Strongblock incentivize users to create ETH nodes through their automated services by paying node creators daily revenue in the form of $STRONG tokens. Since Ethereum is one of the most used blockchains and likely to continue growing in the near future, owning Strong nodes can be a stable and consistent source of passive income, in both bull and bear markets. **How much can you earn with Strong Nodes?** Bear with us as we do some simple math to calculate the income potential here: Each Strong node requires you to lock 10 $STRONG to set up, or roughly $4,500 total at current prices Each node generates 0.091 $STRONG per day, or $14,947 per year. The annual ROI on owning a Strong node is 232% for the first year At current emission rates and token prices, it takes about 4-5 full months to break even on your initial investment The bottom line is, when you buy Strong nodes, you’re projected to make 2.32x your investment after a year. **The Problem with Buying Nodes Directly** When you purchases nodes yourself, you’re required to lock up your initial investment forever meaning you need 4-5 months just to break even. This means if the price of $STRONG drops, it can take even longer. And this is before accounting for all the high ETH gas fees you use when buying, creating nodes, paying node maintenance fees and claiming rewards. $N2 solves this by giving you exposure to node-generated revenue while remaining completely liquid (you can sell your $N2 at any time with no lock up). --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://node-squared.gitbook.io/node-squared-docs/background-on-nodes.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.