By Solomon Odunayo
In a report made available on 5th June 2020, the IOTA Foundation, in conjunction with the IOTA community, released the latest version of Hornet, the node software of the network.
This latest development implies that the level of decentralization of the IOTA network has been increased.
Basically, Hornet is a lightweight node written in Go. This version 0.4.0 is expected to lay the foundations for IOTA 1.5, known as Chrysalis upgrade, which is a set of protocol enhancements that will notably enhance the speed, performance, and usability of the IOTA network.
Going by the announcement, the IOTA community conducted a stress test on the network lately, which showed encouraging outcomes.
The stress test demonstrated a stable network of over 150 nodes with more than 650 confirmed transactions per second (TPS), aiding the IOTA network to witness speed increase by a factor of 20.
Another notable advantage is that Hornet uses 10x less memory under normal operations in relation to IOTA’s previous node software IRI. Additionally, with the latest development, developers can now set up nodes within a short time.
Also, the release of Hornet version 0.4.0 marks the beginning of protocol upgrades that will open the door for the eventual removal of the coordinator node from the IOTA network.
Reacting to the new development, Software Engineer at IOTA Foundation, Luca Moser, said:
“Due to IOTA’s parallel architecture and feeless transaction model, developers can build real-world applications without the constraints imposed by traditional blockchain technology. IOTA’s focus on regulatory compliance, standardization, and industry collaboration are key pillars of its adoption strategy. Many of the upcoming protocol upgrades were developed in partnership with our community and network of partners in industry and academia.”
Hornet team also commented as follows:
“We are proud and excited to deliver Hornet to the IOTA community and finally bring the first Coordicide components to the main network. With the new Hornet release, we expect the number of nodes in the IOTA network to increase significantly, and we welcome any feedback on further improvements and features requested by the community.”