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On Wednesday, Ethereum researchers will launch a new test network “Zhejiang” allowing users to begin testing Ethereum Improvement Proposal-4895, commonly known as staked ether withdrawals, which is part of the protocol’s next major update, the so-called Shanghai hard fork.
Testnets are a copy of the main blockchain that operate on top of it. They provide a safe place for developers and users to try out new features and apps before releasing them to the public.
At 15:00 UTC, a new testnet that allows for the simulation of staked ETH withdrawals (EIP-4895) will go live. Before the testnet update on February 7, users won’t be able to take part in the simulated withdrawals. Users of the testnet can now deposit ETH to validators and withdraw it the following week.
The Zhejiang public testnet is going live tomorrow (1st of Feb 15:00 UTC, 2023). Shanghai+Capella will be triggered 6 days later (at epoch 1350). You will be able to deposit validators, practice BLS change and exit without risk. All links are here: https://t.co/XNlsDIG0cm pic.twitter.com/sKKDJmolt2
— Barnabas Busa (@BarnabasBusa) January 31, 2023
In light of Ethereum developers’ decision to phase out support for the Shandong testnet, the Zhejiang testnet has now been officially launched. A few EIPs involving EVM Object Format (EOF) were only present in Shandong and not the Shanghai update, so they compromised and decided to shut it down.
Early this month, the Ethereum development community came to the consensus that the EOF improvement would be better served when included in a separate Ethereum hard fork scheduled for the third quarter.