Bitcoin Core 32 is in final testing, set for release on October 10, featuring improved fee estimation, block processing, and enhanced security.
Upcoming Release to Enhance Fee Estimation, Block Processing, and Security
Bitcoin Core is currently in the final testing phase for its version 32.0 update, which began on September 14, with a full release scheduled for October 10. This update aims to improve transaction fee estimations, accelerate block processing, and address a security vulnerability related to wallet configurations.
The new version will introduce a dual fee estimation system that factors in both confirmed and pending transactions, allowing for more accurate fee recommendations. This change is designed to facilitate quicker fee adjustments during periods of low network congestion.
Additionally, Bitcoin Core 32 will employ enhanced data retrieval methods, allowing nodes to check blocks using multiple processing threads simultaneously, which is expected to reduce synchronization delays.
A critical security issue affecting wallet creation permissions, present since version 24.0 on non-Windows platforms, has been resolved. The flaw could allow an authenticated user to execute commands on the host node under certain conditions. The update will treat wallet names as plain text, mitigating this risk.
Improvements in Wallet Management and Web Server Performance
Version 32 will also adopt the updated PSBT version 2 format for commands that create partially signed transactions, improving compatibility when transferring transactions between wallet applications and signing devices. While older formats will still be available upon request, services built around these commands will need to adapt to the new version.
Moreover, the update will replace the current web server managing incoming requests from applications interacting with a node. An audit revealed that the new server could lead to excessive memory usage if not handled properly, potentially crashing the node. Fortunately, this issue was identified before the stable release, and fixes have been implemented to ensure stability during high data loads.
Testing showed that the memory usage could spike significantly under certain conditions, but after fixes, memory consumption during similar tests was drastically reduced, enhancing overall performance.
