IOTA is stateless
One important aspect of the IOTA network is that it is stateless, meaning, there is nothing to be saved locally. All your coins reside in the network. Your transactions are expressed by the mobility of your inputs. Therefore, it has nothing to be saved locally, no information regarding the proper function of the network resides locally.
That, combined with the "map-reduction" of the network, that is, the shrinking of the pathways that compose the network, that is called a snapshot and is done today by a coordination, requires the users to "re-run" the addresses generated and send 0 transactions thereafter to the network in order to get back to the point where the user balance is correct as it was before the snapshot.
This process is sometimes long and worrisome. Specially for those holding big sums of IOTAs or, in our case, for systems dealing with IOTAs that simply do not belong to us and are under our supervision and custody and protection.
We have now a working script that reads back balances as they were, quite fast actually but computationally costly nevertheless.
All clear now, we'll put the market back on soon!!
EDUARDO CAPANEMA
@bitworkers
xTANGLE CEO - www.xtangle.com.br