Ethereum developers are currently considering the likelihood of splitting the network’s latest ‘Pectra’ upgrade into two parts. According to the developers, the upgrade will enhance Ethereum’s efficiency and scalability.
The Ethereum developers further stated that the first phase of the split could be launched by February 2025.
Ethereum Developers May Split Pectra Upgrade Into Two For Faster Delivery
On September 12, 2024, during Ethereum’s execution layer meeting, Tim Beiko, protocol support lead for Ethereum Foundation, announced that the highly anticipated upcoming Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade may be split into two separate parts.
The Ethereum developers claim that the network’s Pectra upgrade, touted as one of Ethereum’s most important updates, may likely split into two phases due to its complex nature.
At the meeting, the developers revealed that the Pectra upgrade combines two major developments – the Electra upgrade and the Prague upgrade.
The Electra upgrade will focus on Ethereum’s consensus layer, while the Prague upgrade will focus on the execution layer.
They added that splitting Pectra Upgrade into two hard forks will facilitate a faster delivery as they aim to launch the first release as quickly as possible. If possible, by February 2025, the first phase could be launched.
Concerns Over Delays In Pectra Upgrade
The complex nature of the Pectra upgrade has raised concerns about the potential delay to the upgrade. However, community members want timely delivery as it was six months ago that Ethereum had its last major upgrade.
An Ethereum researcher, Ansgar Dietrichs, stated that Ethereum developers should make sure that they “don’t delay” the launch of the upgrade beyond early 2025.
While some of the developers want the entire package launched at once, the risk associated with doing this too fast may be too high due to its complexity.
To minimize the risk involved with launching the entire package, most of the developers are considering splitting the upgrade as smaller upgrades can be done more efficiently and are less risky.
To avoid delays, Ethereum developers usually meet on a regular basis to discuss network updates.
The developers are supposed to meet on Thursday, September 19, for their next All Core Developers (ACD) meeting to possibly finalize whether the upcoming Pectra upgrade should be split or not.
If they all finally agree to split the upgrade, then the first phase of the Pectra upgrade is expected to come in February 2025. This upgrade is expected to significantly improve the network’s execution and consensus layers.
However, if the developers disagree to split the upgrade, the first phase will be pushed to the second phase, and this will lead to delay, which may possibly increase gas fees for L2 networks for the time being.
Ethereum (ETH) Network Growth
The plan to launch the Pectra upgrade is coming amid significant growth in the Ethereum network. The recent growth may likely be the reason for the upgrade.
Recently, the Ethereum network experienced a significant four-month high growth in wallet activities despite the current ETH price struggles around the $2.3K benchmark.
