Prysm patch sets 200M gas limit for Ethereum test

Prysm released version 7.2.1 on Oct. 5, allowing Ethereum validators to propose blocks with a 200 million gas limit when the Glamsterdam upgrade activates on the Sepolia test network. Operators will not need to change their settings manually.

The release adds Sepolia’s new gas-limit schedule. Validators running v7.2.1 will automatically use the 200 million limit when the fork begins at 13:53 UTC on Oct. 6.

Prysm v7.2.0, released on Sept. 28, scheduled the fork but did not include the gas-limit change. Validators using that version would have continued proposing blocks with Sepolia’s previous 60 million gas limit, reducing the size of the capacity test.

Gas measures the computational work that can fit into an Ethereum block. Raising the limit from about 60 million to 200 million allows each block to contain more transactions, stablecoin transfers and activity from decentralized applications before demand for block space can increase fees.

Larger blocks require more processing, storage and network capacity from validators. The Sepolia test will measure whether validators can consistently process blocks more than three times larger than the network’s previous default.

Sepolia is an Ethereum test network where developers test protocol changes using tokens with no real-world value. The Glamsterdam trial follows an earlier test on the Platåberget network and will provide additional data on the proposed capacity increase.

Prysm version 7.2.1 also enables partial data columns by default and changes builder configuration in the validator client. Ethereum’s mainnet does not have a date for the Glamsterdam upgrade. Developers will use the Sepolia results to determine whether to increase mainnet capacity and by how much.