Ethereum developer James Hancock has released five Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIP) updated in the Berlin hardfork specification.
The Berlin update aims to improve the current Ethereum Proof-of-Work (PoW) network. Earlier, the developers decided to suspend work on the Berlin hard fork until August due to excessive dependence on the Geth client. Otherwise, any failure in this client could suspend the entire network.
The developers considered that the best solution would be the transition of node owners to alternative clients. However, the launch of the Berlin hard fork has been postponed several times. Its last tentative launch date has been set for this month, following the activation of Ethereum 2.0’s Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus phase zero.
Over the past few months, the developers have changed the list of EIPs that will be included in the update. In the illustrated embodiment, there are five enhancements: EIP-2565, EIP-2315, EIP-2929, EIP-2718, and EIP-2930. They provide modification of how to deal with transactions, fees and the existing Ethereum Machine (EVM). The developers of all clients have already completed preparations for Berlin, so the update could be launched soon. However, the block number on which the hard fork should occur has not yet been determined, so the exact launch date in Berlin remains unknown.
Previously, Ethereum developers considered implementing small hard forks every three to six months to update the protocol more frequently. At the same time, some developers believed that large and rare hard forks provided a better assessment of the security of an update. As a reminder, in 2019, the Constantinople and St. Petersburg updates were successfully launched on the Ethereum network.
