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Ethereum: What is NTime Rolling/Nonce Range?
Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, recently introduced a major improvement to its consensus algorithm: NTime Rolling and Nonce Range. This improvement aims to provide better performance, energy efficiency, and security to the miners who use it.
What are Nonces?
In traditional Proof-of-Work (PoW) cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, miners compete to solve complex mathematical puzzles to validate transactions on the blockchain. A “nonce” is a random number generated by a miner to try to solve these puzzles before another miner finds a puzzle that solves them more efficiently than the others.
What is NTime Rolling?
NTime Rolling refers to a new consensus algorithm developed by Ethereum that replaces the traditional Proof of Work (PoW). This algorithm allows miners to broadcast blocks (transactions) without the need for nonce generation. Instead, the number of blocks (nonce range) is determined dynamically based on the current block height and weight.
What does NTime Rolling offer?
By eliminating the need for nonce generation, NTime Rolling offers several benefits:
- Improved performance: Since fewer computational resources are required to solve complex mathematical puzzles, miners can complete transactions faster.
- Lower power consumption: The lower power consumption is the result of fewer one-off attempts required to verify transaction validity.
- Increased security: By reducing the dependence on nonce generation, the algorithm is more resilient to exploits and attacks.
Miners support NTime Rolling
Currently, not all miners support NTime Rolling as it requires significant changes to their mining equipment and software. However, several major mining pools have announced support for this new consensus algorithm, including:
- Muddy Pool
- Pool F2
- Anthill
Update Instructions for Miners
To update your NTime Rolling Support Set, follow these steps:
- Check your set’s documentation: View your set’s documentation or contact customer support for specific instructions.
- Update your mining software: Make sure your mining software is compatible with NTime Rolling and has the required updates installed.
While NTime Rolling offers many benefits, it is important to note that this new consensus algorithm may negatively impact older miners who rely on traditional Proof-of-Work (PoW) algorithms. Therefore, it is important that these miners update their equipment and software before switching to NTime Rolling.
Currently, the Ethereum network is still in transition to NTime rolling, which means there may be initial fluctuations in block rewards and transaction fees due to this change. However, as more miners adopt NTime rolling, these issues are expected to resolve themselves over time.