The Ropsten network will close its doors soon. Since the transition from Proof of Work to Proof of Stake, several blockchain test networks have become obsolete. As of the end of December, the developers have announced that maintenance will no longer be provided. They encourage migration to other networks.
What is Ropsten?
The Ropsten network is actually a test network a clone of the Ethereum network. Like other networks, new functionalities can be tested and implemented, without changing the proper functioning of the Ethereum blockchain. But Ropsten will soon be history.
In fact, between 15 and 31 December, it is planned stop maintenance on the network. As the developers of the blockchain seem to suggest:
The vast majority of remaining validation nodes will be shut down during the period from December 15 to December 31, 2022. After that, Ropsten will no longer be supported by customer, test or infrastructure teams.
On the Ethereum blockchain, there are many networks that are used for dry runs. To name these networks, we sometimes hear the term “sandbox”. These allow developers to test the functionality of their application. And at the same time make sure there are no bugs that prevent deployment on the main network.
The developers cleaning up the test networks!
If the shutdown of Ropsten is already fixed, the developers of the Ethereum blockchain will also close another test network: Rinkeby. If no exact date has been announced yet, the break could be in the summer of 2023. The developers are already consulting developers migrate to other solutions like Goerli or Sepolianetworks that provide the same utility as Ropsten or Rinkeby.
The Ropsten and Rinkeby networks have been the most used in recent years before updates were made available to the Ethereum blockchain. But after the merger (The Merge) that took Ethereum from Proof of Work to Proof of Stake, these two networks found that they were not compatible with the environment of the new Ethereum blockchain. Making their operation completely obsolete.
Ethereum: What’s next?
After The Merge, the next big update will tackle the shaving. This step should greatly reduce the costs associated with each transaction made on the network.
In the next update of “Shanghai”, the EIP-4844 may be included.
