The Ethereum development community continues to push forward with critical upgrades and protocol refinements, as demonstrated in the 190th All Core Developers Execution (ACDE) call. Held on June 20, 2024, this biweekly coordination meeting brought together core protocol contributors to align on progress across key initiatives—including EIP 7702, Pectra Devnet 1, EOF (Ethereum Object Format), and PeerDAS—laying the groundwork for future network enhancements.
Hosted by Tim Beiko, Protocol Support Lead at the Ethereum Foundation (EF), the ACDE calls serve as a vital forum for execution-layer (EL) client teams to synchronize on upcoming changes. These discussions are instrumental in ensuring compatibility, security, and smooth implementation across the decentralized ecosystem.
Key Updates from the ACDE Meeting
Developers provided detailed progress reports on several high-impact proposals and infrastructure projects shaping Ethereum’s evolution.
Introduction of New Collaboration Tools
To streamline EIP (Ethereum Improvement Proposal) discussions, Beiko introduced a new discussion thread template aimed at improving clarity and review efficiency. Meanwhile, Parithosh Jayanthi, Developer Operations Engineer at EF, highlighted the launch of a new GitHub repository called eth-clients. This centralized resource offers configuration files for both mainnet and testnet deployments, maintained collaboratively by all consensus-layer (CL) client teams. Jayanthi also invited volunteers from EL client teams to help expand and maintain this valuable developer tool.
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Pectra Devnet 1: Testing Ground for Major Upgrades
A central focus of the call was Pectra Devnet 1, a dedicated testnet designed to simulate the upcoming Pectra upgrade—a significant milestone in Ethereum’s roadmap.
Unlike previous testnets based on finalized specifications like Deneb, Pectra Devnet 1 is built using the latest draft of the Pectra specification. This approach allows early testing but introduces potential complexity during debugging, as noted by Barnabas Busa, another EF Developer Operations Engineer.
Client teams shared their current status:
- Besu: First version ready, though some tests are pending. The team has questions around gas pricing mechanics.
- Nethermind: Actively reviewing implementation, merging code changes, and developing test cases.
- Erigon: Draft implementation of EIP 7702 is complete; currently assessing updates to EIP 7251.
- Reth: Aiming to finalize implementation before the next ACDE call.
- EthereumJS: Working on EIP 7702 integration, expected to be ready within a week.
- Geth: Also advancing its EIP 7702 implementation.
Notably, EOF will not be tested on Devnet 1, with plans to evaluate it after other Pectra-related changes are integrated.
EIP 7702: Enhancing Account Abstraction with Reversible Authorization
One of the most discussed topics was EIP 7702, which proposes a mechanism to simplify account abstraction by allowing externally owned accounts (EOAs) to temporarily delegate signing authority to smart contract wallets.
During the call, an anonymous Geth developer known as Lightclient proposed a modification to support transaction authorization revocation—a feature that sparked debate among participants. While developer Arik expressed preference for the current design, Lightclient argued that enhanced revocation capabilities could improve security without compromising existing use cases.
Tim Beiko suggested organizing a breakout session to resolve design disagreements and reach consensus before finalizing the specification.
Daniel Lehrner, a Besu developer, raised concerns about implementing EIP 7702 on Devnet 1, warning that changes in Devnet 2 could render early work obsolete. However, Richard Meissner, co-founder of crypto wallet Safe, countered that having any version of EIP 7702 on testnet would benefit wallet developers by enabling real-world testing and integration planning.
This tension underscores the balance between rapid iteration and stability in Ethereum’s upgrade process.
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EOF Progress: Moving Toward Standardized Smart Contract Formats
The Ethereum Object Format (EOF) aims to standardize contract bytecode layout, improving execution predictability and reducing deployment costs. Busa reported that EOF testing will follow other Pectra-related code integrations.
Significant progress has been made:
- Besu and Reth have implemented all relevant EOF EIPs.
- Other client teams are still in development phases.
- New test vectors are being created to simulate blocks containing EOF-formatted transactions, ensuring robustness under real conditions.
EOF represents a foundational upgrade that will make smart contracts more efficient and easier to verify—a critical step toward scalability and long-term maintainability.
PeerDAS Update: Advancing Data Availability Layers
PeerDAS (Peer-to-Peer Data Availability Sampling) is another key initiative under development. It supports Ethereum’s scaling roadmap by enabling lightweight nodes to verify data availability without downloading full blocks.
Busa confirmed that the next PeerDAS Devnet is expected to launch within two weeks. Unlike Pectra Devnet 1, it will be based on the finalized Dencun specifications, ensuring greater stability for testing purposes.
This parallel development path highlights how different components of Ethereum’s upgrade stack can progress independently while maintaining interoperability.
Community and Process Improvements
Beyond technical updates, the meeting emphasized improvements in developer experience and collaboration:
- A new EIP author template was proposed to standardize proposal submissions and improve review quality.
- The eth-clients GitHub page was promoted as a living document for configuration standards, inviting broader community participation.
- Tim Beiko announced he would not host the next ACDE call on July 4 due to U.S. Independence Day. Instead, Ethereum Foundation researcher Alex Stokes will take the lead.
These procedural refinements reflect Ethereum’s maturing governance model—balancing technical innovation with sustainable contributor engagement.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: What is Pectra Devnet 1?
A: Pectra Devnet 1 is a test network designed to trial features of the upcoming Pectra upgrade, including EIP 7702 and other execution-layer improvements. It uses draft specifications rather than finalized ones.
Q: Why is EIP 7702 important?
A: EIP 7702 enables EOAs to delegate signing rights to smart contract wallets, simplifying account abstraction and improving user experience—especially for wallet providers and dApp developers.
Q: Is EOF part of the Pectra upgrade?
A: While EOF is being developed alongside Pectra components, it will not be included in Devnet 1. Testing is planned for later stages once core Pectra changes are stable.
Q: How does PeerDAS differ from Pectra?
A: PeerDAS focuses on data availability sampling for rollups and light clients, while Pectra encompasses broader execution-layer upgrades like account abstraction and validator enhancements.
Q: Where can developers find official configuration resources?
A: The newly launched “eth-clients” GitHub repository provides standardized configurations for both mainnet and testnet setups across all major client implementations.
Q: Who will host the next ACDE call?
A: Alex Stokes, an Ethereum Foundation researcher, will主持 the July 4 ACDE meeting in place of Tim Beiko.
Core Keywords
ethereum, eip 7702, pectra devnet, account abstraction, eof ethereum, peerdas, ethereum upgrade, blockchain development