The Bitcoin mainnet experienced a significant milestone as the BIP-110 fork officially split from the main chain at block height 961,632 on August 8. Since then, the mining activity has been remarkably sparse, with the Roughnecks mining pool producing only four blocks over the course of the past seven days, leaving the current on-chain progress at block 961,635.

Supporters of the BIP-110 fork are planning to implement a major change to the underlying proof-of-work algorithm, with intentions to transition from SHA-256 to Blake2b as early as September. This move would necessitate substantial modifications to block header validation processes and require a network upgrade to facilitate the new hashing function.

The transition to Blake2b is expected to bring about a significant shift in the network’s mining dynamics, potentially affecting miners’ hardware requirements and overall network security. The proposed update aims to enhance the proof-of-work process, but it also involves careful coordination among network participants to execute a smooth upgrade without disrupting consensus.

Given the current slow mining progress following the fork, the community is closely watching for signs of increased activity or further developments. The proposed change underscores ongoing efforts within the Bitcoin ecosystem to evolve and adapt through consensus-driven upgrades. More details are available in the official Binance Square post. #Bitcoin #BlockchainUpgrade #Mining