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In Ethereum’s transition from the proof-of-work (PoW) to proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism, network validators were expected to stake 32ETH to be eligible in the block validation process while accruing network rewards for validating transactions. However, since the completion of the Merge, validators have not been able to access their staked ETH. The Shanghai hard fork upgrade through EIP-4895 designed to primarily focus on ensuring that network validators can access or withdraw their ETH (both staked and accrued ETH). The hard fork upgrade also introduces other improvements related to gas fees.
The Shapella upgrade combines changes to the execution layer (Shanghai), consensus layer (Capella) and the Engine API. The Shanghai upgrade is expected to implement a change that unlocks validator withdrawals of staked ETH in securing the network as its major change among other upgrades. The Capella upgrade is the consensus layer upgrade with features that includes automatic withdrawals for withdrawable validators, partial withdrawals sweep for validators with certain credentials and balances, and an operation to change withdrawal credentials to enable withdrawals for a validator. The Engine API introduces changes to the execution layer APIs in Shanghai.
The Shanghai hard fork The Ethereum Shapella upgrade is expected to occur when the Beacon chain epoch reaches 194048 and Mainnet reaches timestamp 1681338455 which is estimated to take place on April 12, 2023, 10:27 pm UTC / April 13, 2023, 2:27am GST (epoch 1681338455).
Announcement | Ethereum ShanghaiShapella
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