Ethereum’s next major upgrade, Dencun, will likely have a delayed launch according to developer statements at a meeting on 21st of September.
Although Dencun is largely complete, it is still in development and needs to be tested. Ethereum Foundation member Tim Beiko said Dencun still needs to be deployed on a testnet. He added that the timing of this move could delay the Cancun launch on the Ethereum mainnet – where real transactions take place – into the new year.
Beiko said during the meeting:
“I think the implication is that we don’t testnet before Devconnect [Nov. 13-18] … it’s probably unlikely that we’ll be able to do mainnet before the … Christmas holidays … and there won’t be any people left, so that’s probably not the best time for engagement.”
Developers previously didn’t give Dencun a definitive date, but most previous estimates suggested the upgrade would go live before the end of 2023.
Developers consider target testnet
News of a possible delay at Dencun comes shortly after Ethereum’s Holesky testnet experienced launch issues. Holesky continues to wait for a restart.
During the current meeting, developers discussed whether the Holesky testnet will be available for Dencun testing ahead of Devconnect in November. Parithosh Jayanthi, a member of the Ethereum Foundation, said that Holesky’s relaunch will take place on September 28 and will be ready for testing by Dencun before the upcoming conference.
Jayanthi nevertheless suggested testing Dencun’s first fork on an older testnet, Goerli, which will be retired soon. He noted that the end of Goerli’s life means that all issues related to Dencun will be isolated to that testnet.
Jayanthi additionally suggested that Dencun’s second and third forks could be tested on the new Holesky testnet at a later date. “Like [Dencun] goes bad on Holesky, then we have to figure out how to save it,” Jayanthi concluded.
Dencun combines two upgrades, Deneb and Cancun, and brings several new features. The most notable of these features is proto-dankharding, which will improve Ethereum’s scalability when it eventually arrives on the mainnet.
The post of Ethereum’s ‘Dencun’ upgrade likely delayed until 2024 first appeared on CryptoSlate.