Bitcoin Core developers have decided to remove a limit on transaction data in the next network upgrade, enabling more data to be included in a more efficient way. “Bitcoin Core’s next release will, by default, relay and mine transactions whose OP_RETURN outputs exceed 80 bytes and allow any number of these outputs,” read the announcement on GitHub by Bitcoin developer Greg Sanders on May 5. The long-standing limit was originally a “gentle signal that block space should be used sparingly for non-payment proof of publication data,” has outlived its utility, he added. The proposal (PR 32359) was created by Bitcoin pioneer Peter Todd at the request of Chaincode Labs. OP_RETURN is a special type of Bitcoin (BTC) transaction output that allows storing small amounts of data on the blockchain, popularized during the ordinals inscriptions craze in early 2024.
The original limit is no longer effective as people found ways around it, such as using fake output addresses, which are actually worse for the network, while some mining services were already ignoring the limit, said Sanders. “Large-data inscriptions are happening regardless and can be done in more or less abusive ways; the cap merely channels them into more opaque forms that cause damage to the network.” Related: Bitcoin block size could grow to 4 MB with inscriptions: ResearchBenefits of removing the limit include a cleaner UTXO set, or database of spendable outputs, more consistent behavior across the network, and better alignment with how Bitcoin is actually being used, he added. Three possible paths were considered: keeping the cap, raising the cap and removing the cap, which was ultimately decided upon after earning “broad, though not perhaps unanimous, support.” A controversial change to Bitcoin “Many users find this to be an undesirable change for a number of reasons,” said Bitcoiner Samson Mow on X on May 5.
He added that users “can refuse to upgrade and stay on 29.0 or run another implementation” of the network. Critics said that the proposal was introduced without a proper consensus process. “I think one thing is pretty clear, there is no consensus at the moment on this OP_RETURN issue,” said Ten31 Fund managing partner Marty Bent.
or
Share This Story
Article Details
Author / Journalist: Cointelegraph by Martin Young
The story "Bitcoin Core to unilaterally remove controversial OP-Return limit" has 425 words across 14 sentences, which will take approximately 2 - 4 minutes for the average person to read.
Which news outlet covered this story?
The story "Bitcoin Core to unilaterally remove controversial OP-Return limit" was covered 17 hours ago by Coin Telegraph, a news publisher based in United States.
How trustworthy is 'Coin Telegraph' news outlet?
Coin Telegraph is a fully independent (privately-owned) news outlet established in 2013 that covers mostly crypto news.
The outlet is headquartered in United States and publishes an average of 29 news stories per day.
It's most recent story was published 8 hours ago.
What do people currently think of this news story?
The sentiment for this story is currently Neutral, indicating that people are not responding positively or negatively to this news.
How do I report this news for inaccuracy?
You can report an inaccurate news publication to us via our contact page. Please also include the news #ID number and the URL to this story.
