• Polygon’s zkEVM chain experienced a 10-hour outage due to a block sequencer issue amid a layer 1 chain reorganization, prompting an emergency response from the Polygon team.
• Despite the setback, industry experts remain optimistic about Polygon’s technology, emphasizing the resilience of the ecosystem and its potential for future growth.

Polygon’s zkEVM network encountered a significant setback on March 23, experiencing a ten-hour outage attributed to issues with the blockchain’s sequencer amid a layer 1 chain reorganization.

Polygon’s core team swiftly responded to the disruption, resolving the glitch that caused the zkEVM mainnet beta chain to remain inactive for an extended period.

Ethereum’s Layer 2 network, Polygon, faced a substantial downtime over the weekend, with the zkEVM chain remaining inactive for over ten hours, as evidenced by data from Polygon’s block explorer.

During this period, there was a notable discrepancy of approximately ten hours between the sequencing and addition of consecutive blocks to the chain, causing concerns among users and observers alike.

The Polygon team acknowledged the outage in a post on March 23, clarifying that the issue was isolated to the rollup chain, while other chains within Polygon’s ecosystem continued to function normally.

Root Cause and Response

A more detailed analysis of the incident is yet to be released, but initial findings suggest that the problem stemmed from the block sequencer during a layer 1 chain reorganization. The block sequencer, responsible for packaging ordered transactions into blocks, encountered difficulties amidst the reorganization process.

In response to the crisis, Polygon’s emergency council activated an “emergency state” to empower the core team to address the issue promptly. Following the resolution, the emergency state was deactivated, subjecting further system updates to a 10-day timelock before implementation.

Long-Term Implications and Industry Response

Despite this setback, industry experts remain optimistic about Polygon’s technology and its future prospects. Nick Dodson, CEO of Fuel Network, emphasized the inevitability of occasional failures in early-stage technologies and urged against allowing such incidents to tarnish Polygon’s reputation.

While the zkEVM chain has faced challenges in gaining traction compared to rival layer 2 ZK rollup chains, Polygon’s Proof-of-Stake (PoS) chain on the layer 1 blockchain has demonstrated significant growth. Transaction volumes on the PoS chain surged by 93% in the latest quarter, with total value locked (TVL) reaching $1.1 billion, according to data from Messari.

The temporary outage of Polygon’s zkEVM chain serves as a reminder of the inherent complexities and challenges associated with emerging blockchain technologies. However, the swift response from Polygon’s team and the broader industry’s supportive stance underscore the resilience of the ecosystem in overcoming such obstacles, ultimately driving innovation and progress in the decentralized space.