Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum's co-founder, recently took to X with a post outlining the upcoming phases of protocol simplification, codenamed "The Purge."
This development aims to optimize the Ethereum protocol by reducing historical data storage requirements, thereby lessening the burden on node operators' hard disks and significantly decreasing the technical debt associated with the protocol.
In simpler terms, "The Purge" is a project to streamline Ethereum and address accumulated technical issues. Buterin's announcement implies the existence of other Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) that share the same simplification goal.
Vitalik Buterin Unveils "The Purge" to Simplify the Blockchain Protocol
In a recent report, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin highlighted the implementation of the Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP)-6780 during the Dencun upgrade hard fork, significantly simplifying the Ethereum protocol by reducing the functions of the "SELFDESTRUCT" code and enhancing security measures.
One of the critical changes after EIP-6780 is the introduction of a maximum number of memory slots that can be modified in a single block, roughly determined by the gas limit divided by 5000.
Buterin expressed optimism that future EIPs would eliminate the SELFDESTRUCT function, further improving network security and efficiency.
The name "The Purge" was chosen by Buterin because it also involves a complete cleaning operation within the Ethereum client Geth, aimed at removing redundant code created following the transition from Proof-of-Work (PoW) to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) mechanism.
Recent Ethereum improvement proposals have also helped improve empty account management methods, enhancing overall code efficiency.
Additionally, as one of The Purge's primary goals is to optimize data storage on the Ethereum blockchain, EIP-4444 adopted during the Dencun upgrade introduces the concept of "blobs" for storing specific data, reducing long-term storage requirements and facilitating node participation.
The proposal also suggests automatically removing older blocks after a certain period, further reducing storage needs.
Buterin emphasized that The Purge would enhance the decentralization of Ethereum nodes by more effectively distributing historical data across the network.
Furthermore, although not all nodes will store complete historical data, Buterin stated that solutions such as block explorers and decentralized peer-to-peer networks are being explored to ensure accessibility.
In addition, The Purge aims to evaluate and optimize precompiled Ethereum contracts and introduce a new data structure called SimpleSerialize (SSZ) to replace the current block structure, simplifying data usage and development processes.
Vitalik Raises Concerns About Complex Layer 2 Scalability Solutions
On December 30, 2023, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin updated Ethereum's roadmap, emphasizing significant progress in Surge initiatives (rollup scaling), including EIP-4844 and progress in rollup technologies.
Buterin also emphasized the need for long-term improvement in standards and interoperability among rollups to enhance the Ethereum ecosystem.
However, Buterin recently expressed concerns about overly complex Layer 2 scalability solutions in blockchain ecosystems. He used social media to highlight potential risks associated with complex Layer 2 networks and called for a more balanced approach to development.
In the blockchain community, there is a prevailing belief that Layer 1 networks should prioritize simplicity to minimize critical bugs and attack vectors. This approach delegates more complex functionalities to Layer 2 networks, which specialize in providing scalability solutions.
Buterin underscored the severity of critical bugs in Layer 2 networks, stating that while Layer 1 blockchains can relatively quickly recover from consensus failures, the same type of failures in Layer 2 could lead to permanent loss of user funds. Consequently, he cautioned against the increasing complexity of Layer 2 solutions and the risks they entail.
Proposing an alternative strategy, Buterin suggested empowering Layer 1 networks with sophisticated functions to lighten the load on Layer 2 networks, allowing them to remain reasonably simple.
By reducing the complexity of Layer 2 networks, the risks of critical bugs and security vulnerabilities could be mitigated, safeguarding user funds and improving system reliability.