The dream of Ethereum becoming a true “world computer” hinges on solving one of the most persistent challenges in blockchain: the blockchain trilemma—the idea that a public blockchain cannot simultaneously achieve decentralization, security, and scalability. For years, this trilemma has constrained Ethereum’s growth. But with the introduction of Danksharding and its foundational upgrade, EIP-4844 (Proto-Danksharding), a transformative solution is emerging—one that could redefine scalability without sacrificing Ethereum’s core values.
This article breaks down the complex mechanics of Danksharding in plain language, explains how it addresses long-standing limitations, and explores why it might usher in a new era for blockchain scalability and Web3 innovation.
Why Ethereum Needs Scaling
Since its inception in 2014, Ethereum has revolutionized decentralized computing through smart contracts, enabling innovations like DeFi, NFTs, and GameFi. However, as adoption surged, so did performance bottlenecks.
The Scalability Challenge
When too many users interact with Ethereum simultaneously, the network becomes congested—much like traffic piling up at a red light. This congestion leads to slow transaction finality and skyrocketing gas fees, where users bid against each other to get their transactions processed first. A notorious example was the 2017 CryptoKitties craze, which pushed gas prices to hundreds of dollars per transaction.
Unlike Bitcoin, which processes simple transfers at a fixed rate (~7 TPS), Ethereum handles complex smart contract executions. Its throughput varies based on data load per block:
- Each block has a gas limit of 30 million, with a target of 15 million.
- Block size averages 60–70 KB, ranging from 5 KB to 160 KB.
- Blocks are produced every 12 seconds, resulting in an average throughput of 13–30 TPS, peaking at around 45 TPS.
Compare this to Visa’s tens of thousands of TPS, and it’s clear: Ethereum needs a major upgrade to fulfill its vision as a global decentralized platform.
👉 Discover how next-gen blockchain scaling can power high-performance dApps.
Understanding the Blockchain Trilemma
The blockchain trilemma posits that a public blockchain can only optimize two out of three key properties:
- Decentralization: The degree to which network control is distributed across independent nodes.
- Security: Resistance to attacks, ensured by high cost-of-attack mechanisms.
- Scalability: The ability to process large volumes of transactions efficiently.
Ethereum prioritizes decentralization and security—its foundational strengths. But achieving scalability without compromising these pillars has been the holy grail. Increasing node requirements for higher throughput risks centralization; weakening security undermines trust. Danksharding aims to break this trade-off.
Current Ethereum Scaling Solutions
To scale while preserving decentralization and security, Ethereum relies on two primary approaches: Layer 2 (L2) rollups and sharding.
Layer 2 Rollups
Rollups execute transactions off-chain and post compressed data to Ethereum (Layer 1), reducing costs and increasing throughput. They come in two forms:
- Optimistic Rollups: Assume transactions are valid by default, allowing a challenge period (typically one week) for fraud proofs.
- ZK-Rollups: Use zero-knowledge proofs to cryptographically verify transaction validity instantly, enabling faster withdrawals and greater data compression.
While rollups significantly improve scalability, they still depend on Ethereum’s base layer capacity. Without expanding L1 data availability, L2s face bottlenecks.
Sharding: Scaling at the Base Layer
Sharding splits the network into parallel chains (shards) to distribute load. The original Sharding 1.0 design proposed up to 64 shard chains feeding into the Beacon Chain. However, it faced critical flaws:
- High development complexity
- Massive data synchronization overhead
- Growing storage demands threatening decentralization
- No mitigation for MEV (Maximal Extractable Value)
These issues led to the evolution of a new sharding paradigm: Danksharding.
Introducing Danksharding: A New Scaling Paradigm
Proposed by Ethereum researcher Dankrad Feist in late 2021, Danksharding reimagines sharding around data availability for rollups, not independent execution environments. It enables massive scaling while keeping nodes lightweight and decentralized.
But before full Danksharding arrives, Ethereum is rolling out EIP-4844: Proto-Danksharding—a critical stepping stone.
EIP-4844: Proto-Danksharding and Blob Transactions
EIP-4844 introduces a new transaction type called blob-carrying transactions, designed specifically for rollups:
- Each blob carries up to 128 KB of data.
- A single transaction can include up to two blobs (256 KB).
- Blocks can carry up to 16 blobs (2 MB), with a target of 8 blobs (1 MB).
- Blob data is stored temporarily—currently proposed for 30 days—then pruned.
This change dramatically increases available data space. While Ethereum’s entire historical state is roughly 1 TB, blobs could add 2.5–5 TB annually—far exceeding current usage.
Crucially, because blob data is ephemeral, node storage growth remains manageable (~200–400 GB per year), preserving decentralization.
But what if users need older data? Ethereum isn’t designed for permanent archival. Instead, it acts as a secure, short-term bulletin board, ensuring data is available long enough for L2s and decentralized storage networks (like IPFS or Filecoin) to retrieve and store it permanently.
👉 See how decentralized networks are redefining data availability.
Full Danksharding: Scaling Beyond EIP-4844
While EIP-4844 boosts data capacity to ~1–2 MB per block, full Danksharding scales this further—to 16–32 MB per block—using advanced cryptographic techniques that maintain decentralization.
Here’s how it works:
Data Availability Sampling (DAS)
Instead of requiring every node to download all blob data, Danksharding uses Data Availability Sampling (DAS). Nodes randomly sample small portions of each blob. If enough samples are confirmed across the network, the system assumes full data availability.
This approach reduces bandwidth and storage needs, enabling even low-powered devices to participate in validation.
To make DAS secure and efficient, two key technologies are used:
Erasure Coding
Erasure coding splits each blob into redundant fragments such that any 50%+ of the pieces can reconstruct the original data. This drastically reduces the risk of data loss due to incomplete sampling.
For example:
- A blob is split into 10 fragments.
- Nodes randomly sample one fragment each.
- As long as more than half are retrieved, the full blob can be recovered.
This mathematical redundancy ensures high availability with minimal overhead.
KZG Polynomial Commitments
KZG commitments allow nodes to verify that sampled fragments are authentic parts of the original blob—without downloading everything. It’s a cryptographic proof system similar in function to Merkle trees but optimized for polynomial evaluation.
Together, erasure coding and KZG commitments enable secure, scalable data verification under DAS.
Proposer-Builder Separation (PBS)
Creating large blocks with full blob data requires powerful nodes capable of handling high bandwidth and computation. To prevent centralization, Danksharding introduces Proposer-Builder Separation (PBS):
- Builders: High-performance nodes that construct blocks containing full blob data and erasure-coded fragments.
- Proposers: Lighter nodes that select which block to propose without needing full data access.
This separation allows resource-constrained nodes to remain active participants while delegating heavy lifting to specialized builders.
Censorship Resistance List (crList)
One concern with PBS is that builders could censor transactions or manipulate order for profit (MEV). The censorship resistance list (crList) mitigates this:
- Before block construction, proposers publish a list of pending transactions (from the mempool).
- Builders must include all transactions from the crList unless gas limits are reached.
- Builders cannot insert private transactions or exclude listed ones arbitrarily.
This ensures fairness and limits exploitative MEV strategies like sandwich attacks.
Two-Slot PBS
An early implementation model, Two-Slot PBS, adds auction mechanics:
- Builders submit block headers with bids.
- Proposers accept the highest bid.
- After confirmation of the header, builders reveal the full block body.
- Validators confirm inclusion and availability.
If a builder fails to deliver the body, the block is rejected. This incentivizes honest behavior and distributes MEV revenue more equitably to proposers.
However, Two-Slot PBS extends block time to 24 seconds, prompting ongoing research into faster alternatives.
Summary: The Future of Ethereum Scaling
Danksharding represents a paradigm shift in blockchain architecture—one that finally addresses the trilemma head-on:
✅ Scalability: With blob space scaling to 16–32 MB per block, rollups gain unprecedented throughput potential—targeting 100,000+ TPS in “The Surge” phase.
✅ Decentralization: Data Availability Sampling and PBS allow low-resource nodes to validate securely.
✅ Security: Cryptographic guarantees via KZG commitments and erasure coding ensure data integrity.
✅ MEV Mitigation: crList and PBS reduce builder monopolies and redistribute value more fairly.
EIP-4844 is expected to launch with the Cancun upgrade, following Shanghai. Once live, it will immediately benefit L2 rollups with cheaper data posting and higher throughput—paving the way for killer applications in gaming, social media, and real-time finance.
Beyond L2s, Danksharding enables the rise of modular blockchains, where execution, settlement, consensus, and data availability are decoupled—a new architectural frontier for Web3.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: What is the main goal of Danksharding?
A: To massively increase Ethereum’s data availability for rollups while maintaining decentralization and security through innovations like blob transactions, data availability sampling, and proposer-builder separation.
Q: How does EIP-4844 reduce gas fees?
A: By introducing cheap blob storage for rollups, EIP-4844 frees up main block space and reduces competition for inclusion—leading to lower L2 transaction costs by orders of magnitude.
Q: Will Danksharding make Ethereum fully scalable?
A: While not infinite, Danksharding unlocks ~100x–1000x scaling improvements when combined with rollups—bringing Ethereum much closer to global-scale usability.
Q: Is blob data stored forever on Ethereum?
A: No. Blob data is temporary (~30 days). Long-term storage is handled off-chain by L2 projects or decentralized storage networks.
Q: Does PBS lead to centralization?
A: Builders may become centralized due to performance demands, but proposers remain decentralized. Mechanisms like crList and MEV sharing help mitigate risks.
Q: When will full Danksharding launch?
A: EIP-4844 (Proto-Danksharding) comes first—likely in 2025. Full Danksharding will follow in subsequent upgrades as protocols mature.