We are launching the Satoshi's Bitcoin project to create a full fork branch from Bitcoin with both larger blocks sizes and CPU mining, for Bitcoin uses who prefer to use a version of Bitcoin that scales to larger block sizes and who are tired of waiting.
All development work is complete & several test forks have been successfully completed. The public
trial fork is scheduled for this Sunday at around noon eastern time US (block 403562 specifically). The
actual launch will follow this test and activate mid-April. This will provide several weeks for anyone who would like to participate in the fork to setup clients.
To participate you only need to compile and start the trial client, everything has been setup to automatically run from there.
- Download and compile the public test branch “0.11.2_PublicTest_At403562” from github. The build environment is identical to Classic 0.11.2(link below).
- Backup your datadir, after the fork the datadir may not be compatible with the core client anymore
- Run bitcoind or bitcoin-qt
The project is a direct fork from Classic 0.11.2 and is on github here:
https://github.com/satoshisbitcoin/satoshisbitcoin/tree/0.11.2_PublicTest_At403562You can compare all code changes from Classic 0.11.2 here:
https://github.com/bitcoinclassic/bitcoinclassic/compare/0.11.2...satoshisbitcoin:0.11.2_PublicTest_At403562There is zero risk to participate and you are able to run a true full node that mines blocks at home again for fun. If the project does not take off there is nothing lost, but if it does you have the chance to mine early adopter blocks. The main thread for the project is here:
https://bitco.in/forum/threads/announcement-bitcoin-project-to-full-fork-to-flexible-blocksizes.933/This full fork provides an option for Bitcoin users who want to follow Satoshi’s vision of a global peer-to-peer currency that is accessible and usable by everyone. Currently a large number of Bitcoin users want to use a version of Bitcoin that scales as originally intended, but have no option to do. The project is opt-in and only users who want to follow this new branch will do so, users who prefer to stay on the current branch will not be affected.
Why a full fork?Bitcoin was designed by Satoshi as a global peer-to-peer currency accessible and usable by everyone with instantaneous low cost transactions. This vision was clearly laid out in the Bitcoin white paper, widely understood and agreed by all users and advertised as the vision on the bitcoin.org website and all Bitcoin related forums and websites since 2009.
Despite this clear vision, Bitcoin is now being artificially constrained to low transaction throughputs well below what the Bitcoin network is capable of supporting. User demand has now reached these artificial constrains and many Bitcoin users are no longer able to use the network and are being denied access.
This artificial change is best described by one of the primary early Bitcoin developers since 2010 in the link below. The reasons are complex but revolve around centralized control. A single company who’s business model develops off-chain solutions now controls Bitcoin development and due to electricity cost advantages mining is no longer performed by the broad user community but by a small number of individuals. As a result, despite the fact that a large majority of Bitcoin users clearly want to scale Bitcoin, those who have taken control refuse to do so.
https://medium.com/@octskyward/the-resolution-of-the-bitcoin-experiment-dabb30201f7However the strength of Satoshi’s design is users are in control of the system. Any individual user or group of users are able to decide for themselves what Bitcoin should be and which set of rules reflect their preferences. Because of this it is impossible for Bitcoin to ever be centrally controlled, as long as users are able to define for themselves which version of Bitcoin is optimal.
Additionally, it is hoped that this effort will demonstrate how users are in control of Bitcoin and kick-start multiple different full fork options that offer different multiple options for users and the market to choose from, and that the best option will win in time. In doing so Bitcoin benefits from its open nature and will follow user preferences based on market demand.
What is the full fork and what is being changed?The full fork will change the set of rules that define the block chain on a fixed date. After this date a new branch will be created that follows a set of rules that more closely follow Satoshi’s vision. At this point there will be two separate branches of the blockchain and two separate Bitcoins. One branch will follow the existing rules and a new branch will follow the new rules. Each individual user will be able to decide for themselves which branch to follow. The transaction history and BTC owned will be common on both branches up through the fork date, and after that diverge.
The base client used is Bitcoin Classic version 0.11.2. On top of this version the following rule changes will activate at block height 407232, which is the difficulty adjustment scheduled for mid-April 2016.
- The block size limit will be removed and replaced with a 2MB limit following Classic, and scale from there
- The POW algorithm will changed to re-enable CPU mining
I don't want to fork, will this affect me?No. The fork is fully opt-in and people who do not opt-in will not be effected. To use the fork you have to switch your client from an existing client to the Satoshi's Bitcoin client. Only users who switch clients will follow the fork and use the new branch.
If you continue to use your existing client, you will continue to use the existing blockchain branch and this fork will not affect you in any manner.
Is this client ready?Yes! Intial coding work is complete and several tests have been performed to demonstrate that the client can run on the main net, fork at a specific height, and start to build a new chain using a new block height and POW. Additional development to create a new seed peer list is needed and described below, but all the core functionality needed has been completed.
Further details are available in the github readme.
https://github.com/satoshisbitcoin/satoshisbitcoin