How to Prepare for Network Upgrades

A network upgrade, or hard fork, is a non-backward-compatible change to a blockchain's protocol. For developers, this means your smart contracts, dApps, and infrastructure must be compatible with the new rules. Preparation is not optional; failure to upgrade can result in service disruption, lost funds, or security vulnerabilities. The process involves three core phases: pre-upgrade testing, the upgrade execution, and post-upgrade monitoring. This guide outlines actionable steps for each phase, using examples from major networks like Ethereum and Solana.

Begin by thoroughly reviewing the official upgrade specifications, often called Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs), Solana Improvement Documents (SIMDs), or similar. Identify changes that impact your stack, such as new opcodes, modified gas costs, or deprecated features. For example, the Ethereum London upgrade introduced EIP-1559, which fundamentally changed transaction fee mechanics. Set up a test environment using a testnet (like Sepolia or Solana Devnet) that mirrors the upgrade. Deploy your contracts and run your dApp's full workflow to catch integration issues early.

Automated testing is critical. Update your development frameworks (e.g., Hardhat, Foundry, Anchor) to versions supporting the new protocol. Write and run comprehensive test suites that simulate post-upgrade conditions. Pay special attention to edge cases and integrations with oracles, bridges, and liquidity pools. Monitor for any deviations in transaction outcomes or event emissions. Tools like Tenderly or Solana Explorer can help debug transactions on the testnet. This phase is your primary defense against post-upgrade bugs.

For node operators, the upgrade involves updating your client software (e.g., Geth, Erigon, Solana Labs client). Always download binaries from the official project repository and verify checksums. Plan for a maintenance window. If you're running a validator, ensure you understand the new consensus rules to avoid being slashed. Use infrastructure tools like systemd or Docker for seamless rollbacks if necessary. Have a rollback plan and communicate scheduled downtime to your users. The key is to execute the upgrade promptly once the network reaches the designated block height or slot.

After the upgrade activates on mainnet, immediately begin monitoring. Watch your node's sync status, peer count, and resource usage. For dApps, implement health checks that verify chain ID and block confirmations. Be prepared to handle reorgs or temporary chain splits. Monitor community channels (Discord, Telegram) and block explorers for network-wide issues. Analyze the first few hours of post-upgrade transactions to ensure your application logic behaves as expected. Document any encountered issues and solutions for your team.

Long-term, staying informed is part of the job. Follow the core development forums (e.g., Ethereum Magicians, Solana Stack Exchange) and set up alerts for new proposals. Consider joining a testnet incentive program to gain early experience with upcoming changes. By treating each upgrade as a structured project with clear testing, deployment, and monitoring phases, you can minimize risk and ensure your services remain reliable through every protocol evolution.

A network upgrade, or hard fork, introduces new consensus rules, features, or bug fixes that require all nodes to update their client software. Failure to upgrade results in nodes being forked off the main chain. Preparation is not optional; it's a critical operational procedure for node operators, validators, and dApp developers. This checklist covers the essential steps to ensure a smooth transition, from initial research to post-upgrade validation.

Your first step is information gathering. Monitor official communication channels: the project's blog, GitHub repository, and Discord or Telegram announcements. The key document is the Hard Fork Specification, which details the upgrade block height or epoch, the new client software versions (e.g., Geth v1.13.0, Prysm v4.0.0), and the specific Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) or changes being activated. For example, the Dencun upgrade introduced EIP-4844 (proto-danksharding) and required updates to execution and consensus clients.

Next, conduct a comprehensive audit of your infrastructure. Inventory all components: execution clients (Geth, Nethermind, Besu), consensus clients (Prysm, Lighthouse, Teku), validator clients, RPC endpoints, block explorers, and monitoring tools (Prometheus, Grafana). Check their compatibility with the new client versions. This is also the time to review your backup and recovery procedures. Ensure you have recent, verified backups of your validator keys, chaindata directory, and node configuration files stored securely offline.

Before applying the upgrade to production, test in a staging environment. Most projects release testnets (e.g., Goerli, Sepolia, Holesky) that simulate the upgrade weeks in advance. Deploy the new client versions there and run your validators or services. Monitor for sync issues, increased resource usage (CPU, memory, disk I/O), and compatibility with your tooling. Use this phase to finalize your upgrade runbook—a step-by-step playbook for your team to execute on mainnet, including rollback steps if critical issues arise.

Finally, execute the pre-upgrade mainnet procedures. Schedule a maintenance window. For validators, plan your exit and re-entry if the upgrade requires it. Update your client software, ensuring you use the correct --fork flags or configuration for the activation epoch. Double-check your system's resource capacity, as new features like blobs (EIP-4844) can increase disk and bandwidth requirements. Have team members on standby during the activation block to monitor logs and public dashboards (like beaconcha.in) for network health.

Network upgrades are critical events that introduce new features, fix bugs, or implement consensus changes. For developers, preparation involves more than just updating a node; it requires ensuring your smart contracts, backend services, and user interfaces remain functional. The first step is to identify the scope of the upgrade by reviewing the official Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs), Solana Feature Proposals, or equivalent documentation for your chain. Key changes to watch for include new opcodes, modifications to gas costs, alterations to precompiled contracts, or updates to the JSON-RPC API. Bookmark the official upgrade announcement page, such as the Ethereum Foundation blog or the relevant chain's governance forum.

Once you understand the technical specifications, create a dedicated test environment. This should mirror your production setup as closely as possible. For Ethereum-based chains, use a testnet fork (like Sepolia or Holesky) that has already implemented the upgrade. Tools like Hardhat, Foundry, or Ganache allow you to fork the testnet at a specific block. For other ecosystems like Solana or Aptos, use their respective devnets or testnets configured with the new runtime. Deploy your full application stack—contracts, indexers, bots, and frontends—to this environment. Execute your full suite of integration tests, paying special attention to transactions that interact with upgraded system components or new functionality.

Audit Dependencies and Tooling

Your application's dependencies are a major source of risk. Audit every library and service in your stack. For smart contracts, check if your OpenZeppelin Contracts version, Hardhat plugins, or web3.js/ethers.js libraries are compatible. Update them to versions that explicitly support the new fork. For backend services, verify your node client (e.g., Geth, Erigon, Besu for Ethereum; Solana Labs client for Solana) is upgraded to the correct version. If you use third-party APIs, oracles (like Chainlink), or indexers (like The Graph), confirm their upgrade timelines and any required endpoint changes. A dependency audit prevents failures caused by indirect breaking changes.

Prepare your production node infrastructure. If you run your own nodes, schedule a maintenance window to upgrade your client software. For cloud-based node services (e.g., Alchemy, Infura, QuickNode), check their status pages for upgrade procedures—some may handle the transition automatically, while others require you to manually switch to a new endpoint. Ensure you have a rollback plan: take snapshots of node data and be prepared to revert to the previous client version if critical issues arise post-upgrade. Monitor node sync status and health metrics closely in the hours following the upgrade.

Finally, communicate with your users. Update your application's documentation, blog, or social channels with clear information about the upgrade. Specify any required actions on their part, such as updating wallets, or detail expected downtime. After the upgrade is live on mainnet, conduct immediate smoke tests on production functionality. Monitor for anomalous behavior in transaction success rates, gas estimates, and API responses. This end-to-end process—from specification review to post-upgrade monitoring—minimizes disruption and ensures your dApp continues to operate seamlessly through the network evolution.

The core of your preparation is a robust testing strategy. Before the mainnet upgrade, you must test your applications and infrastructure on the designated testnet. This involves deploying your smart contracts, running your node software, and executing critical transaction flows. Use tools like Hardhat or Foundry to create a local fork of the testnet at the upgrade block height, allowing you to simulate the fork in isolation. Monitor for any discrepancies in contract state, RPC endpoint behavior, or gas estimation.

On upgrade day, establish a clear communication and monitoring plan. Designate team members to track the upgrade's progress via block explorers and community channels like Discord or Twitter. If you operate a node, have the upgraded client binary ready and know the precise block number or timestamp for the activation. Prepare a rollback procedure in case of critical issues, which may involve switching back to the previous client version and replaying the chain from a snapshot. Automated health checks for your services are essential during this period.

After the upgrade is finalized, the work shifts to validation and optimization. Verify that all your application's core functions—token transfers, staking interactions, oracle calls—operate correctly on the new chain rules. Pay special attention to any EIPs or consensus changes introduced; for example, an upgrade introducing EIP-1559 requires checking fee calculation logic. Analyze post-upgrade metrics like block propagation times and gas usage to identify potential performance improvements or new bottlenecks for your dApp.

To stay ahead of future upgrades, integrate proactive measures into your development lifecycle. Subscribe to official announcement channels for the networks you build on, such as the Ethereum All Core Developers calls or the Solana Validator announcements. Consider implementing upgrade simulations as part of your CI/CD pipeline. Finally, engage with the community by participating in testnets, reporting bugs, and contributing to public documentation, which strengthens the entire ecosystem's resilience.