Published on: 2017-06-19T15:41:01+00:00
In a Bitcoin-Dev mailing list, Paul Sztorc introduced the concept of "Blind Merged Mining" (BMM) as part of his work on "drivechain," a sidechain enabling technology. BMM allows SHA256^2 miners to merge-mine drivechains without running the actual sidechain software, ensuring that sidechains do not affect the fairness of mining. While not necessary for drivechain, BMM addresses some remaining concerns.However, Peter Todd raised concerns about the security properties of BMM, stating that it is weaker than his proposed solution in ZooKeyv. Todd explained that if miners do not validate sidechains, someone could bid the most for the chain and spam invalid headers for months, then withdraw all the coins deposited to the sidechain. Additionally, blind mining prevents miners from determining who should receive the funds. Todd also questioned the incentive for miners to upgrade to full nodes, considering the expenses and time involved.Sztorc has been working on drivechain for some time and provided technical information, changes to Bitcoin related to drivechain, and a blank sidechain template in the email. He has sought feedback at conferences and meetups, such as Scaling Milan, and plans to seek further input at Consensus2017 in New York City.The drivechain upgrade would remove the blocksize limit from the Bitcoin system by adding sidechains through a soft fork. Users who want a larger block Bitcoin can move their BTC to such a network, freeing up space in Bitcoin Core. This upgrade has significant scaling implications and may resolve the scalability debate by allowing users to scale as much as they want through sidechains.Sztorc's proposal includes Blind Merged Mining, which enables SHA256^2 miners to merge-mine drivechains without running the sidechain software. While not mandatory for drivechains, BMM addresses remaining concerns. The author also argues against the need for a maximum block size limit to ensure non-negligible transaction fees in the future.The author compares his drivechain proposal to a recent "Scaling Compromise," highlighting its advantages. Unlike the compromise, Sztorc's proposal does not require a hardfork and can quickly add any amount of extra blockspace. In contrast, the "Scaling Compromise" activates SegWit and then performs a hard fork to double the non-witness blockspace within 12 months.Sztorc acknowledges that those familiar with first and second-generation sidechain technology may find his approach different. He expresses pessimism about scalability discussions and suggests that individuals work on their passion projects until the problems are solved, disappear for other reasons, or until everyone agrees to stop discussing them.
Updated on: 2023-08-01T20:40:46.011696+00:00