Solana, stop pretending to be a “beta” | CoinDesk JAPAN

Solana, one of the fastest growing blockchains, suffered a serious outage early on February 6th.

Engineers responded quickly, beginning work before 6 a.m. ET and applying the necessary patches to restart the broken chain.

However, the network started working again around 10 a.m. when the validators that control 80% of the staked cryptocurrency Solana (SOL) all updated to a new version of Solana’s source code.

This isn’t the first time Solana has gone down. Since 2021, there has been at least one major crash that severely impacts block generation every year, and some media reports say there have been at least 11 crashes in the past two years, including minor events. A failure has occurred.

Solana’s mainnet network is often said to be running in a “beta” version. This term usually refers to near-complete software that is being tested by a small group of users before its official launch.

“Engineers across the ecosystem are investigating an outage that occurred on the mainnet beta,” the Solana team’s incident report said.

While it’s true that Solana has never officially announced that it has left the beta testing stage, a period to identify bugs and assess real-world performance, the phrase seems increasingly evasive at this point. It sounds like.

The reality of Solana

Solana is a fully functional blockchain with a large and dedicated user base. It is the fifth largest “DeFi (decentralized finance) chain” in terms of TVL (assets under custody), with approximately $1.7 billion (approximately 251.6 billion yen, equivalent to 148 yen per dollar) being entrusted to various on-chain apps. There is.

Its native token, Solana (SO0)L, is the fifth largest cryptocurrency with a market capitalization of approximately $42 billion. Solana is frequently cited as one of the blockchains with the most exciting developer community.

Solana’s novel approach to blockchain architecture (which uses special “proof-of-history” algorithms to process transactions quickly and is often referred to as a “monolithic chain”) includes a fully serviceable There is an argument that we need time to prepare for the future.

Additionally, a number of major upgrades are planned for the network to increase programming flexibility and improve user experience (UX). At the same time, the developer community, including the nonprofit Solana Foundation, is promoting initiatives and projects to increase adoption.

For example, the foundation opened a store in central New York to introduce the technology to passersby. Solana is also the only network with its own smartphones (a second low-priced model is in the works).

Many apps, including the play-to-earn game STEPN, have been heavily promoted and viralized by influencers and celebrities like Sam Bankman-Fried.

Outside of Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain, Solana is one of the few chains that can be said to have developed a unique trading community, and many naive NFT projects and meme coins have spread to the outside world and been covered by international media. There was also.

dishonesty

All of this is a testament to what Solana is, what is being developed, and the charisma and leadership of Anatoly Yakovenko, the company’s head of development.

The project is clearly durable, as evidenced by its phoenix-like rebirth after the decline of its main backer, Bankman-Fried.

However, there is something disingenuous about the fact that he is actively trying to get into the world while claiming that it is unfinished. Especially if you truly believe that your crypto assets have real value. Otherwise, you will be putting people at risk unnecessarily.

For example, on the reservation page for the next-generation version of Solana Mobile’s Saga smartphone, the word “beta” is nowhere to be found. Instead, there was copy that incited FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), stating that the first model “sold out almost overnight…” (which isn’t exactly true unless you ignore it), tells them to “don’t miss out on the chance to become an early adopter” and “make the most of your chance to win ecosystem perks and freebies.”

Saga’s FAQ doesn’t mention Solana as an experimental technology, instead asking questions like “How many units can I order?”

There’s also little indication as to when Solana will exit its “beta” period. This word no longer speaks for itself, given that it is live, open and accessible like any other blockchain, and does not require users to submit feedback or find bugs. You could say that.

Ethereum, Zcash, and Cardano have all successfully replaced their core algorithms without disrupting service or re-entering beta.

Therefore, it’s time to retire the term “beta”, which only appears when something goes wrong. I’m not saying Solana won’t be able to resolve the issue in the end, and I hope this is the last time she goes down. However, mistakes should be firmly acknowledged.

｜Translation and editing: Akiko Yamaguchi, Takayuki Masuda
｜Image: Solana’s smartphone “Saga” (Danny Nelson/CoinDesk)
｜Original text: Can We All Stop Pretending That Solana Is in Beta?