- Ethereum has delayed the Glamsterdam Hoodi testnet upgrade over smart contract security risks.
- ChainSecurity identified 13 real-world examples potentially affected by proposed gas-accounting changes.
- Developers are investigating the issues, with no new activation date confirmed.
Ethereum developers have postponed the Glamsterdam upgrade on the Hoodi testnet, originally scheduled for October 26, after security concerns emerged over proposed changes to gas accounting. The delay gives developers more time to investigate potential risks to existing smart contracts before setting a new activation date.
The Ethereum Foundation announced the decision on October 22 following discussions at the All Core Developers Execution meeting. No revised date has been confirmed, and the postponement does not affect Ethereum mainnet users.
Security Risks Force Ethereum Upgrade Delay
The postponement follows warnings from blockchain security firm ChainSecurity about two proposed Ethereum Improvement Proposals, EIP-8037 and EIP-8038. The proposals aim to change how Ethereum charges gas for creating and modifying blockchain state.
EIP-8037 introduces a separate gas reservoir for state creation, while EIP-8038 adjusts gas costs for accessing and modifying state. Both changes are designed to better reflect the resources smart contracts consume and support improvements to Ethereum’s capacity.
However, ChainSecurity warned that the new rules could affect how existing contracts handle failed transactions. Some applications rely on gas levels to decide whether to retry an operation or record it as permanently unsuccessful.
ChainSecurity reported that it had identified 13 real-world examples of potentially affected applications. The firm is working with the projects involved to address the issues through responsible disclosure.
The findings prompted Ethereum developers to postpone the Hoodi activation while they assess the risks and determine the necessary changes.
How Glamsterdam Could Affect Existing Smart Contracts
The proposed gas-accounting changes could alter how smart contracts behave when external calls fail.
Under the new rules, some operations could restore gas after a failed call. This could allow a contract to continue executing its failure-handling logic rather than running out of gas and reverting the entire transaction.
For applications that use gas consumption to determine whether an operation has failed, this change could produce unexpected results. A contract might retry an operation when it should stop or continue processing when it was designed to revert.
ChainSecurity also warned that some operations could become more expensive under the proposed rules. As a result, existing gas limits might no longer be sufficient for certain transactions.
The security firm has advised developers to review their smart contracts, gas limits and retry mechanisms before the upgrade proceeds. It also cautioned against relying solely on gas checks to determine why an external call failed.
These concerns highlight the challenge of introducing changes that improve Ethereum’s efficiency without disrupting applications already running on the network.
Ethereum Foundation Updates Hoodi Upgrade Schedule
Following the postponement, the Ethereum Foundation removed the planned Amsterdam execution-layer and Gloas consensus-layer activations from Hoodi’s configuration. The scheduled increase in the testnet’s gas limit to 200 million was also canceled.
The foundation has asked node operators and validators to verify that their software reflects the revised schedule. Client versions listed in the earlier upgrade announcement should not automatically be treated as compatible with the postponement.
Operators must follow their client teams’ release notes and use versions that explicitly confirm the October 26 activation has been removed.
The updated guidance listed Lodestar v1.50.1 for the consensus layer, alongside Besu 26.10.1 and Nethermind 2.2.1 for the execution layer. Ethrex v30.0.1-rc.2 was also listed as a prerelease.
Validators must check the relevant instructions for their validator clients and any external block-building infrastructure they use.
Glamsterdam Testing Continues After Sepolia Activation
The Hoodi delay follows the activation of Glamsterdam on Ethereum’s Sepolia testnet on October 6. The upgrade combines Amsterdam changes on the execution layer with Gloas changes on the consensus layer.
Glamsterdam is designed to improve transaction processing, block construction and the management of Ethereum’s growing state database. Its proposed features include enshrined Proposer-Builder Separation under EIP-7732 and Block-level Access Lists under EIP-7928, alongside changes to gas pricing.
These improvements aim to make transaction execution more efficient and support Ethereum’s future scaling needs.
However, the latest security findings show why testing remains essential before protocol changes move closer to mainnet deployment. Developers must establish that the proposed changes work as intended and remain compatible with existing applications.
The Hoodi postponement does not mean the Glamsterdam upgrade has been canceled. Instead, developers must investigate the reported vulnerabilities and determine whether adjustments are needed before resuming testing.
No Ethereum Mainnet Activation Date Confirmed
The Ethereum Foundation has not announced a mainnet activation date for Glamsterdam. The latest decision applies to the Hoodi testnet, and Ethereum holders and mainnet users do not need to take action because of the postponement.
Application developers should also avoid scheduling Hoodi tests around the canceled October 26 activation until a revised date is announced.
The next steps include investigating the reported security issues, coordinating updated client releases and providing further instructions to node operators and validators.
Until developers resolve the concerns, the Hoodi upgrade remains postponed. The timing of its return will depend on the security review and any changes required to ensure that Glamsterdam can proceed without introducing unexpected risks to existing smart contracts.
ALSO READ: IOTA Price Eyes $2.40 as Falling Wedge Signals a Potential Rebound
DISCLAIMER:
This article reflects the author’s views and is provided for informational purposes only. While we strive for accuracy, the publisher does not guarantee that all information is complete or current. Readers should verify important information and consult appropriate sources before making decisions based on this content.
About the Author
