Ethereum Pectra Devnet 2 Proves Stable with 85% Network Participation, Further Bug Fixes Needed

• The Ethereum Core development team held a critical meeting to discuss the Pectra upgrade and other pivotal updates.
• Developers confirmed the stability of Pectra Devnet 2 with 85% network participation but noted that further bug fixes are needed.
• The debate over EIP 7688 concluded with a postponement due to the upgrade’s complexity.

Stay updated on Ethereum’s latest developments with insights into the Pectra upgrade, network stability, and upcoming changes.

Ethereum Core Developers Discuss Pectra Upgrade in Recent Meeting

On August 8, 2024, Ethereum’s core developers convened for their 139th All Core Developers Consensus (ACDC) call, with Alex Stokes of the Ethereum Foundation leading the discussion. Significant updates surrounding the Pectra upgrade were a focal point, including network stability, planned development networks, and improvements to the Beacon Chain’s consensus layer.

Stability of Pectra Devnet 2 and Future Releases

Hsiao Wei Wang from the Ethereum Foundation is set to launch the alpha.4 version of the Pectra consensus layer specifications, which addresses several bugs. Furthermore, Barnabas Busa, a Developer Operations Engineer, reported that Pectra Devnet 2 achieved 85% network participation. Despite this progress, bugs in the execution layer (EL), particularly in EthereumJS and Erigon, persist and need resolving.

Improving Developer Communication and Coordination

Prysm’s Kasey Kirkham highlighted a communication gap that occurred at Devnet 2’s launch, resulting in missed information. To address this, developers agreed on weekly meetings to streamline communication and ensure all teams are updated on Pectra testing activities. These sessions, scheduled for Mondays, aim to cover various facets like PeerDAS and EOF.

Addressing Protocol Transition Challenges

The meeting also touched on transitioning from the deprecated mplex protocol to yamux for data stream multiplexing. While Lodestar’s Phil Ngo confirmed completing yamux testing, Etan Kissling from Nimbus indicated ongoing tests. Thus, the transition’s finalization will be revisited once more client teams complete their evaluations.

Postponing EIP 7688 in Pectra Upgrade

There was a significant debate around including EIP 7688, which ensures forward-compatibility for smart contracts as the execution layer transitions from RLP to SSZ. Ultimately, due to the upgrade’s complexity, it was decided to delay its consideration until Devnet 5, allowing stabilization of existing Pectra EIPs first.

PeerDAS Implementation Updates

Discussion on PeerDAS led to calls for a future-focused breakout to tackle related API requests and sampling queries. Developers noted the importance of such discussions in refining future upgrades to both the consensus and execution layers.

Conclusion

The recent meeting highlighted vital updates and upcoming steps in Ethereum’s development, focusing on stability, efficient coordination, and careful upgrade planning. As developers address these pivotal issues, Ethereum is poised for significant advancements. Readers should stay tuned for further updates as these developments progress.