Starknet Overcomes Second Major Outage, Grinta Update to Improve Network Resilience
By: Eva Baxter
Starknet, a prominent Ethereum Layer 2 (L2) scaling network, recently resumed block production following a significant disruption due to a sequencer malfunction. The outage, marking the second mainnet disruption in two months, halted activity for nearly three hours, urging users to resubmit transactions. This setback raised concerns about the network's reliability and the performance of its latest "Grinta" update.
The disruption on Starknet's mainnet was attributed to its sequencer, which plays a critical role in managing the flow of transactions. As a result, transactions meant to be recorded between 2:23 A.M. and 4:36 A.M. UTC were excluded and needed resubmission once services were restored. Starknet's team quickly took action by rolling back to block 1,960,612, effectively removing about one hour of network activity and striving to secure normal operations. The team has committed to publishing a thorough post-mortem analysis to prevent future incidents.
The incident occurred shortly after Starknet deployed its "Grinta" update. This release aimed to enhance network decentralization and usability by introducing a three-node Tendermint consensus system, replacing the old single sequencer model. Although StarkWare currently manages the new system, it is intended to gradually evolve into a more decentralized framework. Furthermore, "Grinta" introduced pre-confirmations and a redesigned fee structure inspired by Ethereum's EIP-1559. These changes aim to make block production more efficient and transaction fees more predictable for users.
Despite the recent challenges, Starknet remains one of the largest Layer 2 ecosystems on Ethereum, securing approximately $550 million in assets. However, the recent sequencer failure led to a decline in market sentiment, affecting the value of the Starknet token (STRK), which saw a 5% dip. As Starknet continues to address these hurdles, the community remains optimistic about improvements in the network's robustness and its role in Ethereum's broader scalability landscape.
