Ethereum Core (ETH) developer Tim Beiko has outlined a series of recommendations and expectations for application and protocol developers on Ethereum regarding the upcoming merger.
For normal users of applications and protocols, Beiko just recommends testing to make sure nothing goes wrong when more tests are performed. "Running the program, please leave a comment if anything is unclear or questionable," he tweeted on May 24.
Beiko urged users and developers to "take note and make sure you're ready" for the merge.
The merger is a highly complex and long-awaited moment in the transition of the Ethereum network from Proof-of-Work (PoW) to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus. At that point, it will be called the “Consensus Layer” and is expected to happen this August.
The whole point of testing on multiple testnets is to make sure there are no cross-client issues, or that existing applications don't crash completely after being merged. In a separate Twitter thread, Beiko noted that such issues are likely to be rare because "99% of changes affect the protocol layer" while "hardly any changes are made to the application layer."
According to Beiko, developers should be aware of two major changes in how smart contracts and mergers work. First, he reminded them that the beacon randomness method that helps run the app will change. This was necessary for the transition to PoS and was released in an Ethereum Foundation (EF) update last November.
The second change is that block times will be shortened from 13 seconds to 12 seconds per block. As a result of this change, smart contracts that use block rate as a time metric will run one second faster after the merge occurs.
Beiko has shown confidence that despite delays in executing the merger, potential problems have been consolidated into a single echelon.
"Aside from cross-client testing and these two edge cases, the greatest risk of disruption lies in 'tools and infrastructure'."
He concluded that if any other issues arise between the thorough testing and the shadow fork taking place, the merge will be delayed further to ensure the security of the network.
“At any point, if we find issues, we will obviously take the time to fix and resolve them before moving forward. Only then will we consider moving mainnet to proof-of-stake.”
ETH investors who are worried about tokens being unlocked and dumped when the merger happens can rest easy. DeFi educator Korpi explained on Twitter on May 23 that once the merger happens, there is no way to unlock ETH on the Beacon Chain without upgrading the network. This includes rewards earned through staking.
He also said that they would be released gradually rather than all at once, and that the tokens are generally “never sold” by investors and unlikely to be sold.
There are currently 12.6 million ETH on the Beacon Chain. Launched in December 2020, the Beacon Chain is the first step towards making Ethereum a PoS network.