Cardano’s Latest Optimization Upgrade Increases Block Memory Limits

Input Output HK (IOHK) recently announced that Cardano, its modular, parameter-based blockchain, has gone over to upgrade its mainnet at epoch boundary 328. The upgrade introduces a key feature that will effectively increase the per-block Plutus script memory units limit for the blockchain.

IOHK is the blockchain technology firm behind Cardano, providing commercial blockchains and cryptocurrency solutions to businesses and governments. It is also the leading research and development firm supporting Cardano, with over 200 engineers working on the project. IOHK’s CEO, Charles Hoskinson, is also a co-founder of Ethereum, crypto’s first blockchain built for smart contracts.

According to IOHK, the upgrade continues with its scaling strategy for Cardano this year, as the blockchain grows and releases new optimizations. The Plutus smart contract capabilities as mentioned in the update were introduced in September 2021 through the Alonzo upgrade. This latest upgrade increases the per-block Plutus script memory units limits from 56 million to 62 million.

The Cardano network has been under tremendous strain since it began, and this new upgrade will help to expand its scalability. Plutus is one of Cardano’s most recent major components, as the network made the shift to enable smart contract functions. Plutus enables Cardano developers to forge new tokens in a lightweight environment, build out smart contracts, and support basic multi-sig scripts, allowing all code to be executed from a single Haskell library.

In general, a blockchain network’s performance can be measured through two parameters, namely: throughput (volume of data transferred) and timeliness (the block adoption time). Cardano’s network distributes transactions and blocks across its global network of distributed nodes through data diffusion. Cardano’s consensus algorithm then processes the aggregated information from these nodes, driving the chain forward with verification and validation, producing new blocks.

#Cardano is one of the world’s most decentralized blockchains built for correctness & security. As the ecosystem grows, we’re now focused on delivering the scaling phase of its roadmap; improving speed and network capacity while maintaining security and decentralization.

7/8

— Input Output (@InputOutputHK) March 21, 2022

Cardano’s $ADA token remains in the crypto space’s top 10 cryptocurrencies based on market capitalization, with $31.6 billion in overall market cap.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.