How Hedera Works: HBAR, Accounts and NFTs

Hedera is a public distributed ledger. Applications use it to record transfers, create tokens and run other network operations. HBAR is its native currency, and Hedera Token Service provides the token operations used by many NFT collections.

You do not need to run a node to collect NFTs. You need a wallet, an account on the correct network and enough HBAR for the operation you approve.

Your account and your wallet

An account is an identity on the network that can hold HBAR and tokens. A wallet helps you use that account and authorize actions with its keys.

Connecting a wallet lets SentX work with the account you choose. Review each subsequent request separately. Keep recovery phrases and private keys private; a public account ID is the identifier to share when asking about a transaction.

What happens when you approve a transaction?

Your wallet signs the request. The transaction is submitted to Hedera, where consensus establishes its order and the network processes it. The resulting status tells you whether the operation succeeded.

The website then updates what you see. That final display can take longer because applications, indexes and media services update on their own schedules. A loading spinner is not the transaction result.

Wallet request
Hedera consensus
Result
1. Mirror data
2. App display

Where NFTs fit

A native Hedera NFT belongs to a token collection. The collection has a token ID, and each NFT has a serial number. Ownership changes when a transfer succeeds on the ledger.

Names, traits and artwork descriptions are normally supplied through metadata. The image itself is often retrieved from storage outside Hedera. This is why ownership, metadata and the picture on the screen are separate things to check.

Why HBAR is needed

Network operations have fees. Hedera defines its network fee model in dollar-denominated units and charges the corresponding amount in HBAR using the network exchange rate. The operation and its details affect the total.

An application can also charge for its own services. Read the current quote rather than assuming every Hedera operation has the same price. See Hedera's fee model.

What is a mirror node?

A mirror node makes network history and indexed data available to applications. It can answer questions such as which account owns a serial or what transfers are recorded for an NFT. It does not sign your wallet request or decide consensus.

Developers can start with mirror nodes explained. Collectors can use the same distinction when investigating an NFT that has not appeared on a page yet.

Mainnet and testnet

Mainnet is the network used for real assets. Testnet is a separate environment for development. An account or token identifier must be interpreted with its network; a testnet result does not establish mainnet ownership.

For your first purchase on SentX, follow the HBAR buying guide. For experiments with code, start with the Hedera developer guide.