# Forks and Internal Conflicts: From Idealism to Technical Divergence Bitcoin was conceived as a network without leaders, based on distributed consensus and immutable rules. However, that same openness, along with the absence of central authority, has led to inevitable internal conflicts. Throughout its evolution, the ecosystem has experienced forks that reflect both technical and ideological disagreements about the project's future direction. ### What is a Fork? A fork is a modification of the protocol or source code that generates a division in the blockchain. It can take two main forms: * Soft fork: changes compatible with previous versions; non-updated nodes can still operate, but with limited functions. * Hard fork: changes incompatible with previous versions; if there is no total consensus, a new chain may emerge that continues with different rules. In the context of Bitcoin, forks are visible expressions of disagreement on aspects such as scalability, governance, or fidelity to the original design. For beginners, a fork is like an update that splits the path. --- # 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://hub.bsvblockchain.org/higher-learning/bsv-academy/bitcoin-as-historical-phenomenon-1/forks-and-internal-conflicts-from-idealism-to-technical-divergence.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.