Ethereum increases capacity: network can now handle many more transactions

Ethereum (ETH) took a notable technical step this week. New data shows that validators have approved a major change. The gas limit will increase further just as Ethereum prepares for a major network upgrade later this year.

ETH gas limit goes up

Ethereum has significantly increased its base layer capacity, according to data from the GasLimit.pics platform. The gas limit per block has been increased from 45 million to 60 million gas.

The gas limit is the maximum amount of computing that can fit into one Ethereum block. The increase means that Ethereum can now process significantly more transactions per block. This provides immediate relief at times of higher network activity. The decision was made last Tuesday when more than half of the validators agreed, after which the protocol automatically increased the limit.

The adjustments should pave the way for the upcoming Fusaka upgrade. The update mainly focuses on scalability, specifically for rollups.

Rollups process many transactions outside the main network and then send back one compressed packet. As a result, they relieve the network and transactions remain cheaper and faster.

The most important part is PeerDAS, a new way to distribute and verify data. This allows rollups to publish data much more efficiently, which further increases the total capacity of the Ethereum network.

Analysts are optimistic about the adjustment. One of them is Kyledoops, who writes that Ethereum has picked up a meaningful upgrade. He also indicates that it is “a solid step for the scalability of the network.”

Why Ethereum can now make this adjustment

You would think that Ethereum could have raised the gas ceiling much earlier, but the technical conditions for this were lacking for a long time. Only in recent months has the network become robust enough to safely handle a greater load. This is due to three important improvements.

For starters, EIP-7623 introduced new security limits that should prevent blocks from growing too large. This significantly reduces the risk of overload.

In addition, several Ethereum clients have been significantly optimized in the past period. By processing transactions and data more efficiently, nodes can handle more computing work without delay.

Finally, the large test nets showed stable results. Even under heavier pressure, new blocks were propagated quickly and smoothly to all nodes, giving developers and validators the confidence to advance to a 60 million gas limit.

Vitalik Buterin: targeted scaling instead of brute force

Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin also responded positively to the increase, but emphasizes that future growth must be more targeted. He expects that capacity can continue to increase, but with a more nuanced approach.

Buterin writes that a future scenario is possible in which the gas limit is five times higher, but at the same time certain operations will have to become more expensive. This prevents inefficient actions from slowing down the entire network.