Solana Exec Reveals Actual Reason Behind Recent Congestion

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Recently, there was a notable interruption in the operation of the blockchain project Solana (SOL), which is recognized for its speed and scalability. This incident sparked intense examination and debate within the cryptocurrency community as some users temporarily moved to Ethereum, Solana’s long-term competitor. In response, Austin Federa, the Head of Strategy at the Solana Foundation, provided clarification on the root cause of the issue and the ongoing efforts being made to resolve it.

Austin Federa Explains What Caused Solana Outage

Before explaining the causes, Federa mentioned that developers have been putting in long hours to address the Solana congestion, resulting in over 75% of transactions failing. In a recent post on X, Federa shared, “Anza, Firedancer, Jito, and other key contributors are tirelessly working to strengthen Solana’s network infrastructure to cope with the unforeseen surge in demand.”

Further, Federa acknowledged that there are varying views on what’s causing the traffic jam. Yet, he emphasized that at its core, the problem originates from the software system’s inability to manage the current heavy volume efficiently. He explained, “In essence, the challenge is straightforward: the existing software solution is unable to cope with the large influx of data it’s receiving.”

Additionally, Federica acknowledged the need to tackle the technical debt hidden in Solana’s design. She drew attention to the dilemma of deciding between advancing new projects and addressing necessary upkeep and enhancements. She explained, “In essence, this is tech debt we’re dealing with.”

Furthermore, Federa assured the community that the setback with the Solana network would be addressed. He explained that developers of the core protocol were actively working on and testing improvements to resolve the current congestion issue in the network stack.

About The Recent SOL Congestion

Last week, more than 75% of Solana’s transactions failed, which is significantly higher than usual. This issue raised worries about the network’s capacity to manage increased activity. The network congestion also led to intense discussions within the community about Solana’s potential future as a leading Layer-1 blockchain.

In addition, the value of SOL has declined relative to Ethereum, with Ethereum hitting a new peak in March. Persisting network issues may further expand this disparity, enabling Ethereum to recoup some of its previous losses from early 2023.

Recently, some users of the widely-used Phantom wallet on the Solana network have experienced longer-than-usual transaction times and an uptick in failed transactions. This problem emerged after a significant increase in network activity, primarily fueled by meme coins and liquid staking on Solana’s Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs). In simpler terms, there have been more people using the network for transactions, especially with meme coins and DEXs, leading to longer wait times and failed transactions for some users.

Matt Sorg, Product and Tech strategist at Solana Foundation, explained that the network’s high rate of unsuccessful transactions is not a defect but rather a deliberate feature meant to protect users. Around 80% of these transactions, identified by error code “0x1771”, are due to exceeded slippage amounts.

Essentially, transactions that don’t go through happen when users try to buy or sell unstable Solana meme coins. The value of these coins can differ between various Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs) on the Solana network. Therefore, if the price moves more than the user has allowed for in their transaction settings, the deal will not go through. This feature is intentionally part of the system.

Instead, Sorg pointed out that the major issue isn’t about unsuccessful transactions but rather dropped ones. These happen when a transaction fails to make it into the finished block despite trying multiple times.

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2024-04-10 19:51