Solana News Today: Solana Community Votes on Alpenglow Upgrade to Boost Speed and Scalability

The Solana network has entered a pivotal phase in its development as the community initiates voting on the Alpenglow consensus upgrade, also known as SIMD-0326. This upgrade is intended to replace the existing TowerBFT and Proof-of-History consensus mechanisms with a more efficient structure, aiming to improve speed, scalability, and overall network resilience [1]. The voting period commenced in epoch 840 and is set to conclude at the end of epoch 842, with stake weights recorded in epoch 839 to determine ballot eligibility [1].

Under the new framework, validators are able to claim voting tokens corresponding to their stake and cast their votes for one of three options: Yes, No, or Abstain [1]. To pass, the proposal requires at least two-thirds of the Yes votes compared to the combined total of Yes and No votes, with an overall minimum quorum of 33% of total stake weight. Validators who fail to vote or submit conflicting votes may face disqualification from receiving rewards [1].

A central feature of Alpenglow is Rotor, a new block propagation protocol designed to replace Solana’s existing Turbine system. Rotor simplifies data transmission by using a single layer of relay nodes, selected based on stake weight, to distribute bandwidth more evenly and reduce network congestion [1]. This change aims to cut confirmation times to between 100–150 milliseconds if 80% of validators participate, while also enhancing fault tolerance. The network can continue operating even if up to 40% of validators act maliciously or fail to respond [1].

To maintain economic security in the off-chain voting process, the proposal introduces a Validator Admission Ticket (VAT), a fixed fee of 1.6 SOL paid by validators in each epoch. These fees are burned and not redistributed, ensuring they do not re-enter the circulation [1]. Validators are also compensated for their role in submitting aggregated vote data and finalization certificates, which helps reduce network overhead and maintain fairness among participants [1].

The Alpenglow upgrade is expected to have a positive impact on Solana’s ecosystem of decentralized applications (dApps), particularly those in decentralized finance (DeFi), gaming, and social platforms. Faster confirmation times could reduce risk in high-volume trading environments and improve user experiences by minimizing lag [1]. The improvements in latency and fault tolerance are also seen as a step toward making blockchain interactions feel more like traditional internet applications [1].

Market observers note that such a significant technical upgrade could influence the price of SOL, particularly if it supports broader adoption and attracts more developer interest. However, any price movement will depend on broader market conditions, the success of the upgrade post-implementation, and continued adoption [1].

The Alpenglow proposal reflects the decentralized governance model of Solana, where upgrades are determined by the community rather than a central authority. The outcome of the vote will determine whether the network moves forward with this major overhaul or explores alternative proposals [1].

Source: [1] Kosta Gushterov, Author at CryptoDnes EN (https://cryptodnes.bg/en/author/kosta-gushterov/)