Ethereum is gearing up for a significant upgrade known as Dencun, slated for release on March 13. This milestone, heralded as the most substantial change to the Ethereum blockchain since April 2023, aims to enhance the network by introducing the “proto-danksharding” feature, specifically designed to lower transaction costs on layer-2 networks and improve data availability.
The announcement came during a bi-weekly coordination call among Ethereum’s leading developers, setting the stage for the upgrade’s deployment. The Dencun upgrade, which underwent successful testing on the Holesky testnet—the last of three test networks—without any issues, marks a pivotal moment in Ethereum’s evolution.
Proto-danksharding is a technical innovation poised to create a dedicated storage area for data, thereby facilitating cheaper transactions on layer-2 solutions that operate atop the Ethereum mainnet. This feature represents the first step towards implementing the full danksharding proposal, aimed at significantly scaling the blockchain.
Parithosh Jayanthi, a devops engineer at the Ethereum Foundation, expressed excitement over the progress, noting that years of effort are finally culminating in a tangible update to the Ethereum mainnet. The Dencun upgrade is scheduled to be activated at block number 8626176, which corresponds to 13:55 UTC on March 13, pending ratification and confirmation through the GitHub platform.
Beyond reducing transaction costs, the Dencun upgrade is expected to lower the expense associated with making data available on Ethereum. This enhancement will likely boost the appeal of projects focused on blockchain data availability, such as Celestia, Avail, and EigenDA.
The upgrade’s deployment follows thorough testing across three test networks, ensuring a smooth transition to the mainnet. Although initially planned for the end of 2023, technical delays nudged the Dencun upgrade into early 2024, reflecting the developers’ commitment to quality and stability in Ethereum’s continuous development.
