What will The Merge change for Ethereum? Currently, The Merge interests many people. Indeed, 2022 is the year when Ethereum proof of work (PoW) will end, but will see the appearance of Ethereum 2.0 with proof of stake (PoS).
Miners have been waiting for this new version for a long time. The Merge is therefore this very important update for Ethereum which will make it possible to reduce the costs of transaction fees while making this crypto-currency more ecological. Here's everything there is to know about it!
The Merge what is it?
The field of IT is constantly evolving, and the world of cryptocurrencies is one of them. The current Ethereum version, that is to say, the Ethereum blockchain which uses proof of work, presents many problems from a resource consumption point of view, but also from the scalability of the network.
Indeed, after 6 years of use, minors have, for example, seen a significant increase in transaction fees. Therefore, the creation of a version offering to reduce these transaction fees within the reach of everyone is necessary for the health of the Ethereum blockchain.
The event of passing from proof of work to proof of stake defines The Merge. This initiative, it will help reduce energy consumption. In addition, a security tightening of the Ethereum network will take place thanks to this update.
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The role of the Beacon Chain
The Beacon Chain has a key role in the new version of Ethereum. Indeed, it serves as a test and design of the new Ethereum version. With The Merge, all this will change.
The Ethereum 1.0 network that runs on PoW and the Beacon chain that runs on PoS will join together. The PoW will then be completely replaced. There will of course be many consequences on the blockchain. However, not all histories are lost and the funds will be more secure.
The Beacon Chain will then be responsible for verifying new blocks, but will also ensure network security through validation with ETH.
What will The Merge change for Ethereum?
At first, there was no specific date for The Merge. The developers have always said that the new version will arrive in the near future. Nevertheless, after July 15, the exact date was leaked. Indeed, in the calendar, a roadmap of one of the team members contained a date.
It is therefore technically September 19, 2022, that The Merge will take place. Like all things, unforeseen events and complications can occur and cause a slight delay.
Once the update is in place, there will be nothing to worry about since none of the parameters will change during and after the transaction. Proof of work will only change to proof of stake. Users will get access to the funds and there will be no downtime for it.
What will become of Ethereum after The Merge?
Vitalik Buterin, one of the co-founders of the project promises that with the new Ethereum version, transactions will be more numerous and faster. He confirmed that it will arrive to complete a treatment of 100,000 T/s. Besides, The Merge is only the beginning of a long series of protocols. In all, there will be 5 stages of development.
First of all, The Merge is the event that everyone is waiting for. It is the transition from proof of work to proof of stake by merging with the Beacon chain. Then there is The Surge, this is the stage where the protocol will be shared.
There will then be scaling that will divide the networks into several parts called “shards”. This is necessary to balance the distribution of calculations on the mainnet and therefore lighten the server load.
Then will come The Verge which consists of updating Merkle proofs with Merkles trees and also optimization of data storage in Ethereum nodes. Next will be The Purge which is about storing data for validators while reducing disk space needed to avoid network congestion.
Finally, The Splurge will be the fifth major step or rather the last planned development protocol which will aim to provide a number of updates to further facilitate transactions and the flow of data on the blockchain while optimizing the previous ones. protocols already in place.
Some false rumors about The Merge
There are a lot of misconceptions going around about The Merge. A lot of people don't do thorough research and settle for rumors. However, these unfounded rumors can cause great confusion. So here are some of those false rumors.
One of the mistakes often heard is that for the node to work, 32 ETH is needed. Indeed, on ETH, two kinds of nodes exist. The first offer blocks, while the second does not. Even if these nodes cannot offer blocks, the securities need them.
There will be an increase in transaction speeds. The changes will be made during The Merge, but the transaction speed will remain as before according to the latest information.
The network will stop during The Merge: this is totally false. Shutting down the network can cause several negative effects. So there will be no stopping. Finally, all the ETH present in the staking will be withdrawn: although for security some will be, it is only a small amount.
Finally, you have to pay attention to the information circulating for the good of the project, but also to prepare for the coming of The Merge which, although complex from a technical point, will bring positive effects to the Ethereum blockchain. Some cryptos like Ethereum Classic (ETH) also benefit from this future update indirectly.
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