Vitalik Buterin Proposes Single-Slot Finality System to Speed Up Ethereum Transactions
Summary:
In an effort to expedite transactions on the Ethereum network, co-founder Vitalik Buterin has proposed moving from the current epoch-and-slot mechanism to a single-slot finality system (SSF). In his recent blog post, Buterin also explains how Ethereum Merge, the network's transition from a proof-of-work consensus mechanism to proof-of-stake, reduced layer-1 transaction confirmations to 5-20 seconds. Buterin acknowledges that there are complexities and challenges associated with the SSF, such as potential network congestion. However, he believes that further exploration of systems like SSF could provide better solutions and improve user experience.
Utilizing tools to expedite Ethereum network transactions is the newest brainstorm of Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin. Through these potential instruments, he plans to reduce layer-1 (L1) confirmations from several seconds down to milliseconds. In his latest blog post on June 30, Buterin presented ways to quicken Ethereum transaction confirmation times by transitioning from the network's prevailing epoch-and-slot mechanism to a system known as single-slot finality (SSF), detailed with the associated challenges.
With the Ethereum Merge - the network's change from a proof-of-work consensus mechanism to proof-of-stake in 2022 - L1 transaction confirmations have shrunk to a speedy 5-20 seconds, according to Buterin. He equates this with the time it takes to process a credit card transaction, and promises to boost this speed even further. To achieve this, the network could revise the architecture of the epoch and slot mechanisms, integral to Ethereum 2.0 and its base Ethereum Gasper consensus.
On Ethereum 2.0, slots symbolize a 12-second window in which an ETH validator or staker is selected at random to suggest a new block. Every epoch is comprised of 32 slots, requiring 32 committees or validator groups to validate the process on the Ethereum blockchain. Ethereum's finality, a crucial concept which confirms that a block cannot be changed or removed from the blockchain following finalization of a transaction, slot, or epoch, is solidified by the Gasper consensus system.
Buterin suggested a transition from slot-by-slot finality to single-slot finality, akin to the existing Tendermint consensus, arguing that Ethereum Foundation is growingly uneasy with the current voting and finality mechanisms. Such a system is susceptible to many complexities and bugs causing excessive finality periods, currently at an average of 12.8 minutes.
However, transitioning to SSF poses significant challenges, such as requiring every Ethereum staker to transmit two messages every 12 seconds, inevitably leading to network congestion. Buterin suggested, though, that clever solutions exist to lessen this impact, referring to the recent Orbit SSF proposal. However, despite these efforts the waiting period of 5-20 seconds will remain unchanged.
Buterin admits that Ethereum is some distance away from finding definitive solutions to all the potential issues with methods designed to speed up transactions on the network. He argued that further exploration is required into designs like Orbit SSF and that the more diverse solutions there are, the better they can serve both L1 and L2 users, and ease the task of L2 developers.
Published At
7/1/2024 4:03:36 PM
Disclaimer: Algoine does not endorse any content or product on this page. Readers should conduct their own research before taking any actions related to the asset, company, or any information in this article and assume full responsibility for their decisions. This article should not be considered as investment advice. Our news is prepared with AI support.
Do you suspect this content may be misleading, incomplete, or inappropriate in any way, requiring modification or removal?
We appreciate your report.