Cointime

Cointime

Download App
iOS & Android

Sepolia & Holesky Dencun Announcement

Posted by Protocol Support Team on January 24, 2024

Research & Development

  • Goerli blobs are here: Dencun went live on Goerli at 6:32 UTC on January 17, 2024. You can now use blobs there!
  • Sepolia and Holesky will upgrade over the next two weeks. Dencun will activate on Sepolia at epoch 132608 (January 30th, 22:51 UTC), and on Holesky at epoch 29696 (February 7th, 11:35 UTC).
  • Client releases in this announcement are suitable for both testnet upgrades.
  • Assuming the Sepolia and Holesky upgrades go well, Dencun will be scheduled on the Ethereum mainnet next.
  • To receive an email alert for network upgrade announcements, including the Dencun mainnet one, subscribe here.

The Dencun network upgrade has successfully activated on the Goerli testnet on January 17, 2024. It is now scheduled for the two remaining testnets, Sepolia and Holesky, at the following times:

NETWORKEPOCHUTC TIMEFIRST EPOCH SLOT
Sepolia1326082024-01-30 22:51:124243456
Holesky296962024-02-07 11:34:24950272

The upgrade includes several changes, most notably the introduction of ephemeral data blobs with EIP-4844, also known as "protodanksharding", which will help reduce L2 transaction fees.

Dencun follows last year's Shapella upgrade. It will first be deployed to Ethereum testnets. Once these all are smoothly running the upgrade, Dencun will be scheduled for deployment on the Ethereum mainnet.

Upgrade Specification

The Dencun upgrade combines changes to both Ethereum's consensus and execution layers. The full list of protocol changes can be found in EIP-7569. For reference, they are:

Deneb

Complete python specifications for changes affecting Ethereum's consensus layer can be found in the deneb folder of the ethereum/consensus-specs repository.

Cancun

The EIPs linked above contain the full specifications for changes affecting Ethereum's execution layer.

Additionally, a python specification for these is being implemented in the ethereum/execution-specs repository.

Lastly, Deneb requires changes to the Engine API, used for communication between the consensus and execution layer nodes. These are specified in the cancun.md file of the ethereum/execution-apis repository.

Client Releases

The following client releases support Dencun on both Sepolia and Holesky. Further versions will activate support on mainnet. Once these are released, another announcement will be made on this blog.

When choosing which client to run, validators should be especially mindful of the risks of running a majority client on either the execution layer (EL) or consensus layer (CL). An explainer of these risks and their consequences can be found here. An estimate of current EL and CL client distribution and guides for switching from one client to another can be found here.

Consensus Layer Sepolia & Holesky Releases

NAMEVERSIONLINK
Lighthouse4.6.0Download
Lodestar1.15.0-rc.0Download
Nimbus24.1.2Download
Prysm4.2.1-rc.1Download
Teku24.1.1Download

Note: when running a validator, both the Consensus Layer Beacon Node and Validator Client must be updated.

Execution Layer Sepolia & Holesky Releases

NAMEVERSIONLINK
Besu24.1.0Download
Erigon2.57.1Download
go-ethereum1.13.11Download
Nethermind1.25.3Download
Reth (alpha)0.1.0-alpha.16Download

Note: while Reth supports Dencun, the client is still pending a full audit and is not recommended for production use. See the Reth README for more context.

FAQ

As an Ethereum user or Ether holder, is there anything I need to do?

In short, no.

If you use an exchange, digital wallet or hardware wallet you do not need to do anything unless you are informed to take additional steps by your exchange or wallet provider.

If you run your own Ethereum node, see the next question.

As a non-staking Sepolia or Holesky node operator, what do I need to do?

To be compatible with the upgrade on either testnet, update your node's execution and consensus layer clients to the versions listed in the table above.

As a Sepolia or Holesky staker, what do I need to do?

To be compatible with the upgrade on either testnet, update your node's execution and consensus layer clients to the versions listed in the table above. Make sure both your beacon node and validator client are updated.

As a non-Sepolia or Holesky node operator or staker, what do I need to do?

Nothing for now. Further announcements will be made for Dencun's activation on mainnet. You can sign up to receive an email alert for them here.

Stakers who want to run through the upgrade process more times before mainnet are encouraged to use ephemery.dev, which now supports Dencun.

What happens if I am a Sepolia or Holesky staker or node operator and I do not participate in the upgrade?

If you are using an Ethereum client that is not updated to the latest version (listed above), your client will sync to the pre-fork blockchain once the upgrade occurs.

You will be stuck on an incompatible chain following the old rules and will be unable to send Ether or operate on the post-Dencun Ethereum network.

As an application or tooling developer, what should I do?

Review the EIPs included in Dencun to determine if and how they affect your project --- there are many new exciting features being introduced across both the execution and consensus layers! The only EIPs with backwards compatibility implications are EIP-6780, EIP-7044 and EIP-7514.

Why "Dencun"?

Upgrades to the consensus layer use star names, and those to the execution layer follow Devcon city names. "Dencun" is the combination of Deneb, a first-magnitude star in the Cygnus constellation, and Cancun, the location for Devcon 3.

Original cover image by Darren Lawrence, with modifications by Tomo Saito.

Ethereum Dencun
Comments

All Comments

Recommended for you

  • Whale Transfers 1,133 BTC to Coinbase Prime, Valued at $71.48 Million

    According to Onchain Lens monitoring, a whale transferred 1,133 BTC from Coinbase to Coinbase Prime through an intermediary wallet, valued at $71.48 million.

  • U.S. AI Chip Stocks Decline Before Market Open, Intel Falls Over 3%

    On July 7, U.S. AI chip stocks experienced widespread declines before the market opened. Intel dropped over 3%, while AMD, Qualcomm, and NXP fell more than 2%. TSMC, Broadcom, and Tesla decreased by over 1%, and NVIDIA declined by 0.7%.

  • China's Central Bank Increases Gold Reserves for the 20th Consecutive Month

    As of the end of June, China's gold reserves stood at 75.44 million ounces (approximately 2,346.446 tons), an increase of 480,000 ounces (about 14.93 tons) from the end of May, which reported 74.96 million ounces (approximately 2,331.52 tons). This marks the 20th consecutive month of gold accumulation.

  • China's Foreign Exchange Reserves in June at $341.6262 Billion

    On July 7, China's foreign exchange reserves for June stood at $341.6262 billion, a decrease of $26 billion from the end of May, representing a decline of 0.75%, with expectations set at $343.2 billion.

  • U.S. Storage Stocks Drop Pre-Market, SanDisk and Micron Down Over 4%

    On July 7, U.S. storage concept stocks collectively fell in pre-market trading. Western Digital dropped over 5%, SanDisk and Micron Technology fell over 4%, Seagate Technology declined over 3%, Rambus fell over 2%, and SMI fell over 1%.

  • U.S. Stocks in Optical Communication Sector Drop Pre-Market

    On July 7, stocks in the optical communication sector of the U.S. market collectively fell pre-market. Astera Labs dropped over 4%, while Marvell Technology, Credo Technology, and AXT Inc. fell more than 3%. Tower Semiconductor, MaxLinear, Corning, Applied Optoelectronics, GlobalFoundries, Lumentum, and Qorvo all declined by more than 2%. Coherent, Nokia, Amphenol, and Broadcom dropped over 1%.

  • Pre-market Decline in U.S. Storage Stocks

    In pre-market trading, U.S. storage concept stocks experienced a widespread decline, with Micron Technology falling by 4.8%, SanDisk dropping over 4%, Corning down more than 2%, and Intel decreasing by over 3%.

  • Two Departments: Support for Reinsurance Institutions to Increase Capital and Issue Supplementary Capital Tools

    On July 7, the National Financial Supervision and Administration Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Government released several measures to accelerate the construction of the Shanghai International Reinsurance Center. Among these measures, they proposed to enhance the quality and efficiency of the reinsurance industry, support reinsurance institutions in increasing capital and expanding shares, and issuing supplementary capital tools to improve the capacity for internal capital accumulation and external capital supplementation, thereby strengthening the reinsurance industry's capabilities. The initiative aims to guide the insurance industry to focus on major national projects, strategic emerging industries, and livelihood security, consolidating insurance and reinsurance underwriting capabilities to enhance risk protection levels. It also supports reinsurance institutions in leveraging their professional technical advantages to assist the insurance industry in reducing risk.

  • Sources: Saudi Arabia Plans to Expand Oil Pipeline to Red Sea, Increasing Capacity by 2 Million Barrels Daily to Bypass Strait of Hormuz

    On July 7, five informed sources revealed that Saudi Arabia is considering expanding the crude oil pipeline capacity to its western coast on the Red Sea, allowing Saudi Arabia and its neighbors to transport more oil without passing through the Strait of Hormuz. This east-west pipeline, built in the early 1980s, has gained strategic importance since the outbreak of the Iran war in February and the disruption of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. The pipeline can deliver up to 7 million barrels of crude oil per day to the Red Sea port. The CEO of Saudi Aramco stated in May that approximately 2 million barrels are supplied to west coast refineries, while about 5 million barrels are for export. Sources indicate that Saudi Arabia is in preliminary discussions with some neighboring countries regarding the pipeline expansion, aiming to add about 2 million barrels of pipeline capacity per day. It remains unclear whether Aramco's planned expansion involves upgrading existing infrastructure or constructing new pipelines. One source mentioned that the expansion plan also includes a smaller refined oil pipeline. Two sources indicated that the expansion scale could range from 1 million to 2 million barrels per day, with refined oil also being considered. Another source stated that the project would take several years and cost billions of dollars, requiring adjustments to Saudi crude pricing mechanisms.

  • Citi: Tencent's WorkBuddy Gains Momentum, Maintains 'Buy' Rating

    On July 7, Citi released a research report stating that, according to the latest industry data, Tencent's AI agent product WorkBuddy has reached 20 million monthly active users (MAU) and over 13 million daily active users (DAU), with a DAU/MAU ratio between 65% and 75%. Considering the product has only been launched for a few months, user stickiness and daily engagement are performing strongly. Citi quoted Tencent's management as saying that in terms of daily active users, Tencent is leading its Chinese peers in the deployment of AI agents. Early user data reflects strong natural growth for both CodeBuddy and WorkBuddy, with high retention rates. Early users are interacting with the AI agents for long durations and with high frequency, creating a positive feedback loop. It is expected that AI products will become a key revenue source for Tencent Cloud. The firm believes that WorkBuddy's success demonstrates the strength of Tencent's ecosystem, the synergy between various productivity tools, and users' trust in Tencent's products and security. Citi maintains a 'Buy' rating on Tencent with a target price of HKD 763 unchanged.

Daily Must-Read

Popular Activities

RaveDAO at Terra Solis by Tomorrowland: A Female-Led Techno Night Where Web3 Culture Converges

RaveDAO at Terra Solis by Tomorrowland: A Female-Led Techno Night Where Web3 Culture Converges

April 30 - April 30
Dubai

Popular Tags

Cointime
News
Contents
RSS
Company