Key takeaways:
- The Ethereum community has been asked to assist test the long-awaited Merge between the Mainnet and the Beacon Chain.
- The Merge is a significant step forward in the transition to Eth2, as it will transform the Ethereum network into a PoS blockchain, reducing energy consumption by 99 percent.
- Non-technical users, developers with limited experience in blockchain, and experienced developers are all served by the programme.
Ethereum (ETH) developers have asked the Ethereum (ETH) community to help test the long-awaited Merge between the Ethereum Mainnet and the Beacon Chain, which is based on proof-of-stake (PoS). Developers have started a program for users with both technical and non-technical backgrounds to help test the planned merge in conjunction with the looming Eth2 changeover.
The merger is a significant step toward the Eth2 transition, as it would transform the Ethereum network into a PoS blockchain, cutting power consumption by 99 percent.
On November 29, Ethereum developer Marius van der Wijden announced a new plan to get the community involved in fusion testing, with three levels of participation: non-technical users, developers with limited experience in fusion testing blockchain, and highly technical and experienced blockchain developers.
โTesting is the best way to contribute to #Ethereum. We are starting a new program to get the community involved in testing the merge. If you want to do your part in getting Ethereum to Proof of Stake as soon as possible and save the environment, #dm me.โ
The self-guided program gives non-technical users duties like configuring consensus layer clients, reporting problems and sending transactions.
Technical users can specify goals like controlling their own validators, implementing and testing contracts, and creating their own test networks, while highly technical users can study specifications, propose invalid blocks, and divide the network into invalid block voting.
A third layer is available for users with a strong technical background. They can suggest invalid blocks, evaluate the spec, and vote on invalid blocks to split the network. Nobody, however, will be compensated. Wijden continued, On that topic, Wijden added:
โThe program is not compensated, but if you find a critical bug (consensus issue/panic), Iโll buy you a beverage of your choice at the next DevCon.โ
Participants are encouraged to document as much of their work as possible and post it publicly using the hashtag “TestingTheMerge” on Twitter. Wijden also directed the Ethereum R&D discord channel to keep the community updated during the test program.
The merging with the beacon chain is planned to be finished by the first or second quarter of 2022, according to the Eth2 page on Ethereum.org. The merger is viewed as the most recent chapter in blockchain’s evolution toward the PoS consensus, but there is still much more work to be done. to be completed by the completion of the ETH 2.0 transition and sharding
The Shard chain upgrade, which is expected to happen at the end of next year, is the final chapter. The network will be able to extend its capacities in a decentralized manner after this is completed, as the load will be split across 64 additional chains. Gas prices will fall as a result of the process.