A GitHub post by Cardano software engineer Sebastian Nagel<\/a> detailed updates to the 0.2.0 version of Hydra.<\/p>\n Haskell developer Matthias Benkort, via his Twitter @_KtorZ_<\/span><\/a>, chimed in by saying steady progress is being made with the project moving closer to the testnet stage. \u201cNext steps, we\u2019ll focus on on-chain validations and closing the gap towards testnet!<\/span>\u201c<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Initial estimates put a late 2022 release for Hydra. But, given Benkort\u2019s words, should we expect a sooner than anticipated rollout?<\/p>\n All permissionless blockchains must overcome the problem of reaching a consensus on each and every transaction presented.<\/p>\n This issue is problematic when trying to achieve a throughput at scale, such as handling real-world tasks. Especially when taking into account network fees, protecting against flooding attacks (DDoS), and how to deal with storage.<\/p>\n IOHK<\/a> says they considered these factors and designed Hydra as the ultimate solution to meeting these challenges.<\/p>\n \u201cHydra is a layer 2 scalability solution that seeks to address all these concerns and aims to maximize throughput, minimize latency, incurring low to no costs, and greatly reducing storage requirements.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n It achieves this by a process dubbed isomorphic scaling, which works by processing transactions off the main chain for some users, while reserving the main chain as a secure settlement layer.<\/p>\n Drilling deeper, Hydra uses the concept of isomorphic state channels<\/a>. This reuses the same ledger representation to yield uniform, off-chain ledger siblings \u2013 known as \u201cHeads.\u201d<\/p>\n Therefore, native assets, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and Plutus scripting are available inside every Hydra Head. Isomorphism allows for a natural extension of the system, instead of a \u201cbolt-on\u201d solution.<\/p>\n This is analogous to sharding, in which processes are split across different partitioned ledgers. But Hydra has the advantage of sharding processes without sharding the ledger itself.<\/p>\n By adding more Hydra Heads, linear scaling can be achieved. And with a touted 1,000 transactions per second<\/a> (TPS) per Head, a 1,000 Head system could yield speeds of 1,000,000 TPS.<\/p>\n Back in September, Nagel<\/a> estimated a release date between six and twelve months. This, he said, would depend on the research and experimentation, plus community feedback. As such, many were anticipating a late 2022 rollout for Hydra.<\/p>\n However, given the recent GitHub update, more so Benkort<\/span>\u2018s optimistic tweet<\/a> on progress and approaching the testnet phase, could Hydra be ahead of schedule?<\/p>\n \u201cSteady progresses on the <\/span>#Hydra<\/a><\/span> proof-of-concept with another pre-release: end-to-end <\/span>#Cardano<\/a><\/span> node integration (on a private cluster), it\u2019s something<\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Benkort did not put a time scale on when the testnet would launch, nor is it known how long the testnet would run for.<\/p>\n But, all the same, the release of Hydra would mark another major milestone for Cardano. And another step towards its goal of positive global change.<\/p>\n Featuring a summary of the most important daily stories in the world of crypto, DeFi, NFTs and more.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Access more crypto insights and context in every article as a paid member of CryptoSlate Edge<\/span>.<\/p>\n On-chain analysis<\/strong><\/p>\n Price snapshots<\/strong><\/p>\n More context<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Join now for $19\/month<\/a> Explore all benefits<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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What is Cardano Hydra?<\/h2>\n
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How is Hydra progressing?<\/h2>\n
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