Today, 8 June 2022, the first actual test of the Ethereum Merge is scheduled.
In a few hours, @ethStaker is hosting the Ropsten Merge Call! 🐼🔜
Predicting the exact time is a bit of a challenge (see https://t.co/B4rZmXAMnL), so make sure to keep this tab open if you'd like to listen in and claim the attendance @poapxyzhttps://t.co/9qAqnHrqX5 pic.twitter.com/xogB5Gr0tO
— trent.eth (@trent_vanepps) June 8, 2022
Summary
The Ethereum Merge test live on YouTube
The final Merge, the date of which is not yet known, will see the current Proof-of-Work (PoW)-based blockchain being merged with the new Proof-of-Stake (PoS)-based Beacon Chain.
However, this is such a critical and delicate step that many tests are required to ensure that everything can go smoothly.
One of these tests, probably the most important, is the Merge between the Ropsten testnet and the new Beacon Chain, scheduled for today.
The outcome of this test Merge, in fact, will not affect the normal functioning of Ethereum, but will serve to understand whether there are still critical issues to be resolved before setting the date for the final Merge.
All other tests carried out so far have been successful, although not without problems. After all, the purpose of these tests is precisely to bring to light any anomalies so that they can be addressed and resolved before the final switchover takes place.
Once the actual merge has taken place, the current PoW-based blockchain will no longer be used for ETH transactions and exchange of standard tokens, such as ERC-20, ERC-721 and ERC-1155 among the most popular. All this will move to the new PoS-based Beacon Chain. It is therefore absolutely necessary that the Merge does not jeopardize the functioning of the Ethereum network in any way.
The crux of the matter is precisely on the one hand the proper functioning of transaction validation using PoS, and no longer PoW, and on the other hand the inclusion of the old blockchain within the new ecosystem.
It is not certain that today’s test will give an immediate positive outcome, also because there are still some problems to be resolved on the Beacon Chain: the important thing is that it brings to light any critical issues that are still unresolved.
The great anticipation of the test and Vitalik Buterin’s comments on the protocol changeover
The co-founder of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, seemed rather optimistic a few days ago, so much so as to suggest that today’s test merge might even have a positive outcome immediately.
There is a lot of anticipation about today’s test, not least because Ropsten is the main Ethereum testnet.
EthStaker has even organized a live broadcast on YouTube to observe and analyze the start of the test.
It is not even certain that the outcome will be known immediately, since theoretically speaking, the problems could also occur some time after the start of the test itself. One would have to wait perhaps a few days before being able to make a final judgement, should things go well.
However, even if the outcome were not positive, this would not mean that the process of replacing PoW with PoS on Ethereum would come to a halt. In that case, it would be necessary to analyze the problems and try to understand whether there are viable solutions, and how long it would take to implement and apply them.
The only thing that is certain is that in the event of a negative outcome, the price of ETH could suffer, while a possible positive outcome seems to have already been priced in by the market.
