delvingbitcoin

Second Look at Weak Blocks

Second Look at Weak Blocks

Original Postby mcelrath

Posted on: April 19, 2024 16:13 UTC

The discussion revolves around the necessity for Braidpool to implement a system where weak blocks are treated as shares, necessitating the transmission of weak-compact blocks for every share.

This requirement stems from the need to validate an entire block with every share submission, potentially happening as frequently as once per second, a benchmark Kaspa has demonstrated with its sub-second block times. The process, while necessary, is recognized for its substantial overhead, prompting a call for optimization suggestions. BIP152 is highlighted for its efficiency in this context, with an additional advantage noted: the assumption that receivers are already familiar with previous weak blocks (referred to as beads) and their parent transactions, which must have been mined in an ancestor weak-block.

Furthermore, the email outlines a strategic decision to avoid imposing this overhead on Bitcoin by restricting the implementation to miners or centralized pools equipped with more robust hardware and networking capabilities. To accommodate this, plans are in motion to establish a completely separate peer-to-peer network dedicated to this functionality. However, it's mentioned that should a variant of weak blocks become applicable to Bitcoin, it will be adopted accordingly. This approach underscores a commitment to enhancing mining efficiency while being mindful of the technological and infrastructural demands such advancements require.