Solana Devs Set Sights On April 15 To Fix Network Congestion

Solana developers are gearing up for a crucial update scheduled for April 15 aimed at resolving the pressing issue of network congestion. This move comes in the wake of transaction failures skyrocketing due to an “implementation bug” as elucidated by Mert Mumtaz, CEO of Helius Labs. Helius Labs is at the forefront of providing backend support exclusively to the network, playing a pivotal role in its ongoing maintenance and enhancement.

Solana Congestion Soon Over?

Mumtaz explained that the problems Solana is experiencing now are not due to flaws in its design but rather from mistakes made during the implementation of a particular protocol. “The troubles with Solana aren’t due to design faults, they’re implementation glitches,” Mumtaz clarified, highlighting how design issues are deeper-rooted and more challenging to fix compared to implementation errors.

“Mumtaz stressed in a lengthy X post that it’s important to distinguish between a design flaw and an implementation bug in Solana. The latter can be resolved more quickly without affecting the basic structure of Solana.”

The problem we’re dealing with here is related to the network adopting QUIC, a data transfer protocol created by Google, which has shown weaknesses affecting the network’s speed and dependability. To put it another way, Mumtaz used an analogy to clarify: “Just because a BMW encounters steering issues, it doesn’t mean all cars are faulty. The same goes for Solana; its problem isn’t with its fundamental design but with a particular implementation aspect of it.”

According to a remark aligning with Mumtaz’s viewpoint, SOL researcher Richard Patel stated, “Our study reveals that variations of Firedancer do not possess the same weaknesses. This finding supports our conviction that the answer lies in a tailored solution instead of a comprehensive revamp.”

Mumtaz warned the community, “If we find more problems during testing before the April 15 update, it may be postponed.”

(obviously, if additional issues are discovered in testing, this might get delayed)

— mert | helius.dev (@0xMert_) April 8, 2024

The strain on this network is due to a large increase in spam transactions and a memecoin trend, which have swamped Solana’s ability to process data efficiently. Users have been notified of potential delays by wallets like Phantom and other apps, highlighting the importance of addressing this congestion problem.

Matt Sorg from the Solana Foundation explained how the network handles transactions without using a queue (mempool), comparing it to how internet data is routed between IP endpoints. While this approach is efficient, it can be susceptible to spam attacks that cause transaction congestion and dropouts. Sorg acknowledged this as a complex problem that they are actively working to resolve.

The development team behind Solana is reportedly working on various solutions to help the network handle heavy traffic. They are focusing on software fixes and system improvements to increase capacity and durability. The upcoming 1.18 update is generating excitement as it’s expected to bring better transaction organization and reduce logjams.

In dApps running on the Solana network, implementing dynamic priority fees is an extra step to enhance functionality. According to a blog post published by Solana Labs in March, “Priority fees are essential for efficiently processing transactions and enhancing user experience.”

At press time, SOL traded at $176.

Solana Devs Set Sights On April 15 To Fix Network Congestion

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2024-04-09 12:12