Homework on Soft and Hard Forks - Questions

Blockchain and Bitcoin 101
#3672
  1. Soft fork makes previously valid blocks invalid while hard forks makes previously invalid blocks valid.
  2. A change in concensus.
  3. Risk would be split of hash power aned a less secure network and a split chain.
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#3673

1- Soft forks are the result of the updates that makes previously valid blocks invalid. Hard forks are the result of the opposite updates which makes previously invalid blocks valid. While in soft forks the majority that being updated is enough to avoid chain split, in the hard forks chain split is inevitable.

2- To get a clear update, to choose where would you end up, in the old chain or the new chain. It is a democratic choice.

3- Chain splits, with the community splits. New currency occurs. And the hashpower splits which reduces the security.

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#3674

What is the difference between a softfork and hardfork?

A softfork is a software update to the nodes which makes previously valid blocks invalid. It is a contraction of the protocol (going from 1 m.B. to .5 m.B.).That means that non-updated nodes in the network are still able to process blocks and transactions. The non-updated nodes will continue to process the blocks from all the updated nodes, but if the non-updated nodes want to push their block, it will get rejected by the updated nodes because it violates their new set of rules. This encourages older nodes to upgrade to the new protocol

A Hardfork is a software update that makes previous invalid blocks valid. It is an expansion of the protocol (going from 1 m.B. to 2 m.B.). When nodes add new rules in a way that conflicts with the rules of old nodes, as a result, the blockchain will end up splitting creating two separate networks running and propagating blocks and transactions.

What are some of the reasons why you would do a hardfork?

Increase the block size. Adding more scalability to the blockchain.

What are some of the risks with performing a hardfork?

Hardforks can ether be planned or controversial. The planned hardfork is a clear and democratic update in which the community agrees with its proposed upgrade and participants voluntarily adopt the new set of rules. The risk is in a controversial hardfork where participants can cause a split chain and split community, therefore making the blockchain protocol mutually incompatible with the communities proposal on how they would like to scale the blockchain, which leads to a new cryptocurrency in the market. However, this also causes a split in the communities’ hashing power. Once the user upgrades their nodes’ software that version rejects most transactions from the older software, thus creating a new branch of the blockchain. The users that retain the old software continue to process transactions, but with a similar set of transactions taking place across two different chains. A perfect example of this hardfork split is Bitcoin Cash.

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#3675

  1. Hardfork creates a new currency, a new fork and can also validate transactions that were invalid. A soft fork has minimal impact on the chain and miner’s also it can invalidate transactions that were valid.

  2. To improve scalability, to create a new asset, to increase block sizes.

  3. You can risk alienating miners and the community, create confusion, could lower security, split chains and hashrate.

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#3676
  1. What is the difference between a softfork and a hardfork?

Hardfork makes a previously invalid block valid.
Softfork makes a previously valid block invalid.

  1. What are some of the reasons why you would do a hardfork?

Hark fork is great for in consensus and expand the rules of the blockchain.

  1. What are some of the risks with performing a hardfork?

It will spilt the community and create new currency. It will reduce the security and hash power split.

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#3677

It is a change in the rule set, hard forks make previously invalid blocks valid and a soft fork makes previously valid blocks invalid.

this happens when the consensus rules change.

It can split the community, the chain and the hash power. it can cause lack of validation if some of the miners are not understanding the new consensus rules.

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#3678

  1. The difference between a soft fork and a hard fork depends on whether the conditions of a what an acceptable block is expands or contracts.

    • A hard fork occurs when the update of what is an acceptable block expands. This means that blocks that were previously invalid will now be considered valid.
    • A soft fork occurs when the update of what is an acceptable block contracts. This means that blocks that were previously valid will now be considered invalid.

  2. A hard fork can occur if there are members of the community that believe the current version of the protocol is too limited, and some benefit will exist through expanding the parameters of what is to be considered an acceptable block size. The most common example of this is expanding the size of an acceptable block. The benefit of doing something like this would be to create greater throughput (more transactions per minute), and lower transaction fees. If members of the community feel as if the blockchain is too taxing on fees, a hard fork of this nature would be beneficial.

  3. The main risks of performing a hard fork is that there is almost certainly a split chain. This causes a division of the community, which generally (all else equal) will significantly reduce the network’s hashing power. This is because a certain set of nodes join the new version of the protocol, and others will stay on the old network. Both of the networks will have lesser hashing power and less security than the single blockchain prior to the hard fork. This also means there would be a new token on the forked (or legacy) chain - depending on which is considered the consensus chain.

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#3679
  1. Softfork is when an update to the blockchain consensus makes the previously mined blocks invalid (if they do not adhere to the new ruleset), hardfork is when the previously mined invalid blocks (if they adhere to the new ruleset) become valid.
  2. When you deliberately want to split the chain into two, for examples like: major update that is needed for expanding the ruleset, changing the consensus, creating new tokens.
  3. Hash power, nodes, community are split between the chains, reducing security and usability.
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#3680
  1. Softwork has restricting updates while hardfork allows more blocks then before
  2. Add functionality, Updates
  3. splitting up the chain and community, hashpower divides
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#3681

  1. Hard fork is a permanent divergence, and nodes running previous versions will no longer be accepted by the newest version. All nodes and miners have to upgrade. Done only when there is enough support (90-95%) from the community.
    A soft fork happens when the change in the software is backward compatible. It can also occur due to temporary divergence.

  2. If you want a radical change in the protocol like, for example, making the transactions faster and cheaper.

  3. Divide the community, loss of hashing power and consequent decrease in security.

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#3682

Soft forks are a tightening of the rules- these updates make previously valid blocks invalid.
Hard forks are the opposite. They expand the rule set, making previously invalid blocks valid.

Reasons for doing a hard fork: Block size increase, for example. A hard fork is more democratic than a soft fork, and sometimes ‘dividing the community’ is useful because goals can diverge. Multiple currencies are not always a bad thing.

Risks with hard forks: Splitting the chain is pretty much inevitable, and the biggest risk with a split is losing hash power, thus decreasing the overall security of the network.

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#3683

1)What is the difference between a softfork and a hardfork?
hardforks expand the rule set, previous invalid blocks become valid
softforks contract the rule set (it becomes more restricted) so some valid blocks can now become invalid.

2)What are some of the reasons why you would do a hardfork?
used to change consensus rules used to help validate a block

3)What are some of the risks with performing a hardfork?
because the hash power is reduced or split across two change it will reduce overall security

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#3684
  1. What is the difference between a softfork and a hardfork?

Hardfork makes previously invalid block Valid and a softfork makes previously valid blocks invalid.

  1. What are some of the reasons why you would do a hardfork?

Clear update, If you don’t update you are not on new chain, if you update than you are on the new chain.
More democratic

  1. What are some of the risks with performing a hardfork?

Splitting the chain, splitting the community, splitting the hash power which decreases the security of the blockchain

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#3685
  1. Hark forks make changes that don’t work within the current rule set. Soft forks make changes that can work inside current rule set.
  2. Add functionality to network that can’t be done inside the current spec.
  3. The network could split with the community not agreeing on the changes, can also split the chain and make a new coin
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#3686

  1. The difference between a soft fork and a hard fork is that hard fork makes previously invalid blocks, valid and in a way is an expansion of the rules set, while in a soft fork we have previously valid blocks, invalid and is basically a contraction of the rule set.

  2. A hard fork could be beneficial because it has a clear change, it is democratic and you can create a new currency.

  3. Some risks of performing a hard fork is the split chain, the split community and the split of the computational power aka hash power.

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#3687

  1. A Hard Fork is an update to a chain that makes previously invalid blocks valid and a Soft Fork is an update that makes previously valid blocks invalid. A hard fork can create an indefinite fork that will continue to accept new rules as valid and the blockchain will devise ways to make up the differences between the forks. Soft forks cannot split the chain indefinitely because of density limitations within the blocks.

  2. A hard fork is democratic and clear and can allow indefinite chains.

  3. A hard fork can ultimately lead to splits in community and the chain and cause hash power splits.

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#3688
  1. A soft fork makes a previously valid block, invalid. A hard fork makes a previously invalid bock, valid.
  2. If you are expending the rule-set for block creation in the network
  3. Hard can split the community and create a new currency. Like BTC with BTC Cash
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#3689

  1. A hard-fork can be defined as an update which makes previously invalid blocks valid. In other words expanding the rules required to validate blocks. A soft-fork is an update which makes previously valid blocks invalid. Essentially the opposite of a hard-fork in which the rules required to validate blocks are constricted.

  2. One reason would be the creation of a new currency which may run a lot better or be more widely adopted by the community. Another reason would be that a hard-fork makes it very clear to the community that an update will take place, this gives miners the choice of whether they would like to continue working on an old chain or a new chain.

  3. One risk is that a hard-fork will split the community apart due to inevitable politics involved in the direction of the blockchain/currency. Another risk is that the splitting of chains tends to result in a splitting of the total hash-power which may reduce security fro both chains if not one more than the other.

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#3690

  1. What is the difference between a softfork and a hardfork?
    –> soft fork: previously valid blocks are invalid. existing rules restricted.
    –> hard fork: previously invalid blocks now valid. ruleset extended.

  2. What are some of the reasons why you would do a hardfork?

  • improve security
  • add new functionality
  • reverse transactions
  1. What are some of the risks with performing a hardfork?
  • someone could spend crypto on new blockchain and then again on old blockchain
  • decreased processing power to secure the network
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#3691

  1. A hardfork is a fork where the ruleset is expanded, wich leads to a split in chains (updated and non-updated), whereas a softfork contracts the ruleset, which doesn’t lead to a split, as the new blocks are still accepted in the old chain.

  2. If you wanted to expand the ruleset

  3. It’s not good for security, as the chain splits and thus also the hashpower. Also, it splits the community.

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