Ethereum Developers Discuss Pectra Devnet and Engine API Updates
Recently, Ethereum developers met for the All Core Developers Consensus Call #138 to address various modifications to the network. Here is a summary of the key discussions:
Pectra Devnet 1 Challenges
Despite the launch of Pectra Devnet 1 on July 23, the network encountered stability issues. The Erigon client faced issues post-launch, leading to a network split caused by an EIP 7702 transaction. Currently, developers are working on debugging the clients and resolving the chain split.
Introduction of “ExecutionPayloadEnvelope”
A proposal by Prysm developer “Potuz” suggested a new structure for the execution payload in the Beacon block body called “binded_execution_payload_envelope.” This change aims to simplify data storage required for state transitions by consensus layer (CL) clients. The proposal also calls for corresponding Engine API adjustments to facilitate efficient access to necessary information by execution layer (EL) clients.
- Lighthouse developer Mark Mackey supported the change to prevent performance degradation.
- Teku developer Mikhail Kalinin expressed reservations about the necessity of protocol changes.
Engine API Update for Devnet 2
A suggestion by Geth developer “Lightclient” proposed an Engine API change to streamline block conversion for EL clients. This proposal aims to unify all requests into a single type, assisting EL clients in interpreting block versions without referencing a fork schedule. However, Nimbus developer “Dustin” raised concerns that this change would shift complexity from the EL to the CL.
EIP 7688 & 7495 in Pectra
Nimbus developer Etan Kissling advocated for the inclusion of EIPs 7688 and 7495 to ensure forward compatibility with future SSZ-related changes. While some teams and staking pools support this, caution is advised against overloading the Pectra upgrade. EF Developer Operations Engineer Jayanthi emphasized the challenge of testing multiple EIPs together and suggested making a clear decision on their inclusion.
- Lighthouse developer Sean Anderson recommended consulting app developers to evaluate the importance of these EIPs.
PeerDAS Updates and BeaconBlocksByRange V3 Proposal
Developers also discussed PeerDAS updates and proposed changes to the BeaconBlocksByRange RPC to assist clients in syncing to the canonical chain during extended chain splits. While these changes are not urgent, they could be considered for inclusion in the Pectra upgrade.
- Some developers suggested keeping PeerDAS and Pectra workflows separate until both specifications stabilize.
Detailed Summary
For a comprehensive overview of the All Core Developers Consensus Call #138, check out the official summary on galaxy.com.
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