Over the weekend, Ethereum went through a big software upgrade, dubbed Istanbul. The hard fork brought many enhancements to the network. And, it allowed the combination of a second layer scaling resolution that guarantees to modify quite 3,000 transactions per second (TPS) whereas maintaining decentralization and privacy.
Scaling solution
Earlier this year, Matter Labs received a grant from the Ethereum Foundation for their work on a second layer scaling resolution with zero-knowledge proofs. Since then, the team is functioning to make ZK sync. this can be a trustless scaling and privacy solution that emphasizes user and developer experiences.
According to Alex Gluchowski, the founder of Matter Labs:
“A successful solution to the scaling problem in public blockchains is not only a matter of high transaction throughput. It must also be defined as the ability of the system to meet the demands of millions of users without sacrificing decentralization. The prerequisites of mass crypto adoption include high speed, low cost, smooth UX, and privacy.”
ZK sync was designed to bring thousands of TPS to Ethereum whereas keeping the funds secure and maintaining a high degree of censorship-resistance. With the assistance of ZK Rollup technology, the second layer resolution will hold funds during a good contract on the mainchain whereas computing and storing transactions off-chain.
ZK Rollup keeps the protection options of the underlying protocol. As a result, validators will never corrupt the system or steal funds. Users can continually be ready to recover funds although validators don't collaborate. And, not even a “single trustworthy third party” has to be online to watch blocks to stop fraud.
At the instant, the devnet for ZK sync v0.1 is live, and it's the primary step to require advantage of the total potential of this technology.
Gluchowski assured:
“ZK Sync is going to be a bridge for bringing millions of users into crypto. We are setting a high bar for user experience and will demonstrate that zk-technology is capable of providing a Web-like experience without sacrificing the values of the blockchain revolution.”
“Scalability is a big bottleneck”
Ethereum has been struggling with disabling congestion over the previous few years. The blockchain’s network utilization surpassed 90 % many times in 2019, as an example, creating it expensive to run applications and use. The congestion is generally a function of ETH’s 15 TPS bottleneck.
Even Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum’s figurehead, admitted to the restrictions that could impede this blockchain from realizing its potential as a widely adopted “world computer.”
Buterin affirmed:
“Scalability is a big bottleneck because the Ethereum blockchain is almost full. If you’re a bigger organization, the calculus is that if we join, it will not only be more full but we will be competing with everyone for transaction space. It’s already expensive and it will be even five times more expensive because of us.”
Now, time will tell whether Matter Labs’ second layer solution will indeed solve the scalability issues that the Ethereum network is facing. And, bring with it a “VISA-scale throughput” of thousands of transactions per second.