Purse proposed the Bitcoin "TuDaMu" expansion plan, and the extended block received a positive response from the community

Bitcoin startup Purse is leading the development of a solution called “Extension Blocks,” which is believed to be able to break the long-standing expansion deadlock on the Bitcoin network.

Purse CEO Andrew Lee today released a specification for the solution, including demo functionality and code for upgrading its bitcoin software solution Bcoin to support “extension blocks.”

Here is the blog post by Andrew Lee:

The goal of this proposal is not only to make Bitcoin a global currency that is accessible to everyone, it is also about expressing a spirit of innovation and freedom. We believe we can maintain these key properties of the Bitcoin ecosystem by extending the blockchain.

The extended block makes large blocks possible through an optional second-layer block and truly realizes on-chain expansion.

Originally proposed by Johnson Lau in 2013, extension blocks (EXT-B/E-Blocks) are effectively nailed to the end of every activated block. The proposed transaction malleability fix paves the way for smart contracts in Bitcoin. In our proposal and implementation, funds can be easily transferred between regular blocks and extension blocks and remain interchangeable.

This change is optional for both users and businesses. While we strongly recommend that users upgrade to this new feature, existing users can choose not to upgrade, but they can continue to use Bitcoin.

Notable features:

1. Can be upgraded via soft fork;

2. Increase the block size immediately;

3. Further increase the flexibility of the block through a soft fork;

4. Only minor changes were made to the wallet software;

5. Support Lightning Network and smart contracts;

6. Provides an upgrade path for future innovations (e.g. mimblewimble, Rootstock);

Once a majority of miners support the proposal, bitcoin users will be able to use these features, opening up new applications for bitcoin. The upgrade also provides a path to larger blocks.

A draft specification demonstrating the scheme’s functionality and code is available for review today, and a working test network is expected to go live within weeks.

In the coming months, we look forward to finalizing the instructions and making it available for activation.

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Community Response

The proposal was reportedly led by developer Joseph Poon and BitPay CEO Stephen Pair.

So far, one source said the idea has gained support from some members of the bitcoin mining community, although miners do not have any prior access to the code.

Industry companies also seem to have great expectations for the proposal, and BitPay said the company wants to test the idea as an alternative to controversial hard forks. BitPay CEO Stephen Pair said that Bitcoin payment processing startups may have to suspend operations in the face of events such as controversial hard forks, and the company is currently open to all alternative ideas.

Pair said:

“With extension blocks, you can implement something that maybe only a small portion of the network will care about, but it can be enforced by miners and included in a block. It can work or it can’t work, and the important thing is that its existence doesn’t affect the rest of the network.”

So far, the sentiment among network stakeholders about the proposal appears to be positive, with mining pool F2Pool embedding a message on the bitcoin blockchain last week mentioning the proposal.

Bitcoin Unlimited software backer ViaBTC, a mining company, also endorsed the concept on Twitter, and Bitmain is said to be similarly behind the proposal.