Pocket Core protocol upgrades to RC-0.4.0

Published in

Pocket Network

3 min readJun 1, 2020

We are pleased to announce the release of our protocol update Pocket Core RC-0.4.0 on June 2nd, 2020!

Pocket Core RC-0.4.0 is our most stable and reliable release as of yet. This release mirrors the way the protocol will be for mainnet, representing a paradigm shift for infrastructure in the blockchain space and beyond.

We will also be rolling out an update to our Javascript / TypeScript libraries for Pocket-JS and Web3-provider.

RC-0.4.0:

This release is loaded with a lot of improvements and enhancements to the existing protocol. It makes it even easier than ever to set up a full Pocket Node and become a validator on the Pocket Network.

The full changelog can be found here, but some of the important features and improvements are:

Added MaxChains params to nodes and app modules to prevent any potential overflow attacks on the network. The initial max amount of networks a pocket validator node can service will be 15 max, and this number is subject change based on the DAO’s proposal.
Add RelaysToTokens as a parameter for the nodes module. This will convert relays your validator node has completed into token rewards.
Added basic auth to chains.json to allow users Pocket Validator Node to connect and authenticate their nodes securely.

In addition, any nodes running on RC-0.4.0 will be required to use HTTPS w/ SSL when connecting your validator node to the Pocket network.

Pocket JS:

Our Pocket-JS lib is focused on RC-0.4.0 compatibility along with added functionality to help support developers interact with the native Pocket blockchain by having:

Replaced webpack with browserify.
Multiple fixes for the web version.
Added HTTPMethod enum for sendRelay.
Fixed appStake and appUnstake functions.
Updated serviceUrl validation
Fixed TypeScript issue and the types file

Docker and Homebrew deployments:

Docker and Homebrew deployments have gone through an update to ensure every container and installation will be pointing at the correct network for RC-0.4.0.

Walkthrough Videos:

We are pleased to announce that we have published our first node walkthrough videos going over:

Installing the CLI using Homebrew and building it from source
Setting up a Pocket Node and Pocket Validator node which consists of:
Setting your validator
Configuring and understanding the chains.json
Changing the genesis.json file
Funding your account
Staking your validator node

Conclusion:

When Pocket upgrades to RC-0.4.0, we recommend updating your node to this latest version in order to take advantage of the new release. Follow these network reset instructions to learn how!

As we continue to increase the stability and reliability of the Pocket protocol, we will be keeping you up to date with the latest information on our Discord, Twitter, and blog. So get ready for mainnet, you have about a month left to participate in Pocket’s incentivized testnet!

In addition, we have created a Support Team that consists of individuals from our engineering department to help answer any question or assist with any issue you may have using, setting up, and troubleshooting Pocket between the hours of 9–6 PM EST Monday through Friday on the Pocket Discord server. If you are a node operator or developer, feel free to contact anyone from the @Pocket Team in the #support channel. We will make ourselves available to help in any way possible.