Since its launch in 2020, Solana (SOL +3.93%) has stood out from other programmable blockchains for its performance. Transactions process in seconds, and transaction fees are well under $0.01.
Successful blockchains are constantly evolving, and Solana is no exception. This year is shaping up to be a big one for Solana, as there are two major technical upgrades scheduled.
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The first is Alpenglow, a new consensus protocol to replace its current system of validating transactions. While Solana's existing consensus protocol is fast, it has some limitations. Transaction finalization takes about 12 to 13 seconds, for starters. With Alpenglow, it will drop to as low as 100-150 milliseconds.
Alpenglow also improves the network's security. It provides "20+20" resilience, meaning the network remains safe even if 20% of the validation nodes act maliciously and another 20% are offline.
In addition, Solana will release the full version of its Firedancer validator client software. Firedancer could drastically improve Solana's transaction processing, as it handled up to 1 million transactions per second (tps) in testing.
It's also more bug-resistant than the previous validator client, Agave. Firedancer breaks each validator's task into separate tiles, which keeps issues contained. If there's a bug, the validator can simply restart that tile. Solana also runs a bug bounty program for Firedancer, offering bounties of up to $500,000.
Solana is currently running a hybrid software with elements of Firedancer and Agave, known as Frankendancer. The full release is expected later this year.
CRYPTO: SOL
Key Data Points
Solana and most major cryptocurrencies have declined significantly recently. Downturns come with the territory when investing in crypto, and it's important to look at technological developments rather than just price movements. While Solana may not have had a poor start to the year from a price perspective, its upgrades should make it a faster, more secure blockchain and attract more users to its ecosystem.
