Author: Gavin Andresen 2016-01-29 16:39:14
Published on: 2016-01-29T16:39:14+00:00
In a discussion on the bitcoin-dev mailing list, Jannes Faber raised concerns about the effects of a hard (or soft) fork on non-upgraded clients, particularly with regard to the 2016 blocks recalibration window. Gavin Andresen responded by saying it doesn't matter where in the difficulty period the fork happens, as the lower-power fork's difficulty will adjust a little quicker if it happens in the middle. However, he acknowledged that this was an unrealistic scenario, with there being no more than single-digit percentages of hash power on a minority fork, which would lead to significant delays and difficulty adjustments lasting months before normal block times are resumed. Andresen also referred to his blog post on minority branches, which explains why miners have little incentive to mine on a minority fork.
Updated on: 2023-06-11T03:26:20.015490+00:00