What You Need To Know About The Constantinople Constantinople Hard Fork

The Constantinople hard fork is a major upgrade to the Ethereum blockchain that was activated on February 28, 2019. This upgrade introduced several changes to the Ethereum network, including changes to the block reward structure, improvements to smart contract functionality, and other optimizations to the network's performance and security.

One of the most significant changes introduced by the Constantinople upgrade was the reduction of the block reward from 3 ETH to 2 ETH. This change was designed to help reduce inflation on the network and improve its long-term sustainability.

The Constantinople upgrade also introduced several improvements to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), which is the engine that executes smart contracts on the Ethereum network. These improvements included a new opcode called 'CREATE2' that makes it easier to create smart contracts and other improvements that help make the network more efficient and secure.

It's worth noting that the Constantinople hard fork was not without controversy. A bug in one of the proposed upgrades, known as EIP-1283, was discovered shortly before the upgrade was scheduled to go live. This bug could have allowed attackers to exploit smart contracts on the network and steal funds. As a result, the upgrade was delayed to allow time to fix the issue and ensure the network's security.

Overall, the Constantinople hard fork represented an important milestone in the development of the Ethereum network, introducing several improvements and optimizations that help make the network more efficient, secure, and sustainable.