Shadow Fork

Ethereum mainnet shadow fork 10 is now officially live. Another little but significant step has been made by Ethereum toward the merge, the blockchain’s much-discussed and frequently postponed switch to proof of stake.

The 10th shadow fork of Ethereum, which was supposed to go live the day before yesterday, went online earlier, more than 26 hours ahead of time.

Shadow forks are a targeted test run of the merge’s components; they simulate making one or two particular modifications to the blockchain that will take place in the future.

Ethereum shadow forks are different from hard forks

This is separate from complete testnet hard forks, like the Sepolia testnet that happened earlier this month. The merge, which turns the entire Ethereum mainnet into a test environment network, has been extensively tested on testnets.

The shadow split this week acted as a practice run for the releases scheduled for August 11 on Ethereum’s last testnet, Goerli.

This test will be the third and last of its kind needed before the merge is prepared to go into effect.

Over the past two years, there have been various changes made to the merge’s schedule. However, Ethereum core developers stated earlier this month that they planned to release the merge on September 19.

Developers are confident that this timeline will (more or less) stay as there is only one significant event left before then, the Goerli testnet.

ETH network which powers around 64% of all decentralized finance (DeFi) activity, will go from a proof-of-work methodology to a proof-of-stake model as a result of the merger.

At the moment, new ETH is produced through a resource-intensive process in which so-called “miners” devote enormous amounts of computational power to resolving challenging riddles in the hopes of earning blocks of new ETH.

The proof-of-stake architecture will make the ETH network 99 percent more environmentally friendly.

One of the final tests necessary for Ethereum to pass before the Merge was the blockchain’s much anticipated and frequently delayed switch to proof of stake.

The ninth shadow fork of the blockchain went live this morning, 15 hours early. Today’s shadow forks simulate one or two specific modifications that will be made during the Merge. Shadow forks are distinct from complete testnet hard forks, like the Sepolia testnet that occurred last week and switched the whole Ethereum mainnet to a test network.

The current Ethereum shadow fork focused on MEV

The so-called MEV boost functionality of Ethereum was tested during today’s shadow split. The mechanism through which those who produce fresh ETH may make more money by exploiting their power over the network and giving particular users’ transactions priority is known as MEV, or “maximum extractable value.”

After the Merge, ETH will be generated by “validating,” or promising significant amounts of pre-existing ETH, as opposed to currently being formed by “mining” for it with specialized technology.

A mechanism designed to promote competition among validators, raise overall validating profits, and reduce the risk of validators gaining undue control over the timing or order of user transactions is the MEV boost feature, which enables validators to offer space within blocks they create to other validators.

According to estimates from the Ethereum Foundation, the proof-of-stake method of generating new ETH will be 99 percent more environmentally friendly than the present, energy-intensive proof-of-work model, but it will also result in lower profits for the individuals involved.

The Merge’s switch to proof of stake is expected to leave thousands of Ethereum miners stranded since they won’t be able to match the post-Merge business model for mining Ethereum and will be stuck with the bill for tremendously expensive mining equipment.