Testing Begins to Make This Altcoin Three Times Faster: A Critical Change for Users!
As the NU7 upgrade, which aims to make Zcash produce blocks three times faster, goes live on the public testnet, users holding coins in the old Sprout system will need to move their assets before the mainnet transition.
According to CoinDesk, Zcash (ZEC) activated the NU7 upgrade on its public testnet at block number 4,465,026. The upgrade reduces the target time between blocks, where batches of transactions are recorded on the blockchain, from 75 seconds to 25 seconds.
Zakura, software that tracks and verifies Zcash transactions, shows the new rules as active on the testnet. The results of testing will be awaited before the mainnet transition, which will affect real ZEC transactions.
Wait times for payments and exchange deposits may shrink
More frequent block production may allow the confirmations needed for a payment to be accepted or coins sent to an exchange to reach an account to come through sooner. For example, if a service requires three block confirmations and does not change the confirmation requirement, the target wait time will fall from 225 seconds to about 75 seconds. Actual times may vary depending on when blocks are produced.
The release Zakura published on October 1 and the Zebra test release that the Zcash Foundation presented the following day support this trial. Infrastructure operators participating in the testnet must use software compatible with the new rules.
Sprout coin holders will need to move their funds
The other NU7 change directly affecting users will disable transactions through Sprout, Zcash’s oldest shielded payment system.
Users with funds in Sprout will need to move them before mainnet activation to continue spending their assets through the existing system. The timeline for this preparation will depend on the developers’ decision about the mainnet transition.
The upgrade will also change how transaction fees are distributed: 40 percent will go to miners, while the remaining 60 percent will be taken out of circulation and recorded in a reserve intended to support future miner rewards. The planned reward per block will also be cut by one-third, preserving ZEC’s new coin issuance schedule as blocks speed up.
November target for mainnet remains in place
Developers plan to evaluate the test results on October 20 and decide on mainnet activation. The target date of November 5 remains in place for the transition, but the block at which the upgrade will activate on mainnet has not yet been determined.