The #Ethereum team has delayed the launch of the #Holesky #testnet and scheduled a new attempt in two weeks.
The initial launch date for the testnet, set for September 15th, coincided with the anniversary of The #Merge, a major upgrade that transitioned the blockchain to a #Proof-of-Stake consensus algorithm.
According to developer Paritosh Jianti, the failure occurred due to an incorrect configuration in the genesis file. Some validators manually made changes and managed to start the chain, but this was insufficient for finalizing the network.
"Apologies for the chaos! We will conduct additional checks and improve the documentation to ensure that such incidents do not recur," wrote Jianti. The new testnet is expected to replace Goerli, which has been operational since 2019. Support for Goerli will cease in early 2024, and Holesky is planned to run until 2028.
Holesky is designed to test staking solutions, evaluate infrastructure, and protocols. Sepolia will continue to be used for testing decentralized applications, smart contracts, and other Ethereum Virtual Machine-related functions.
One significant difference between Holesky and existing testnets will be the significantly larger number of validators, surpassing the main network's figures. Developers believe this will allow for testing solutions under more stringent conditions.
Another notable feature of Holesky is the circulation of 1.6 billion test ETH. In Goerli, there is a limit of 120 million goETH, equivalent to the market supply of the second-largest cryptocurrency. This limitation has occasionally posed issues, increasing the cost of testing applications.
"It is possible to revive the network through a fix, but we decided that it's probably cleaner to start over, given that this will be a new testnet for many years," commented Jianti for CoinDesk.
Holesky is intended to play a crucial role in the planned Ethereum hard fork called Dencun (Cancun-Deneb). According to the developer, the delay in launching the testnet will not affect the update timeline.$ETH
