# Exchange Order Book Connections Exchanges expose websockets to provide low-latency updates on trades, positions, and order books. The Elixir network consumes these real-time data streams and periodically snapshots the order book into a dataframe in time slices corresponding to the network's tick size. The dataframe data is normalized to provide a consistent representation of orderbooks across individual exchanges. ### What are Dataframes? In essence, dataframes are a consistent source of truth that allow Elixir's security infrastructure and users themselves to verify the honesty and accuracy of data flowing throughout the network. Dataframes are cryptographically signed and broadcast to all participants in the network. Network participants can verify the provenance of the data frame by checking the signature - this can be done both on-chain and off-chain. The signed dataframe can be used to contest proposed orders coming from validators in the network as well as the overall positions held in the network. For more information on how validators process dataframes, please reference the [Validators](https://docs.elixir.xyz/technical-architecture/validators) section. --- # 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://docs.elixir.xyz/technical-architecture/exchange-orderbook-connections.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.