The Lisk Testnet is an invaluable tool as its main function is to enable all relevant upgrades to be tested publicly first before they are released into production onto the Lisk Mainnet. Essentially, the Lisk Testnet can be defined as an independently deployed testing network which to a large extent simulates the actual Lisk Mainnet.

Testnet Migration

As stated before, the Lisk Testnet migration will occur on the block 20,449,414 which will be reached approximately September 26, 2023, at 12:00:00 in the Europe/Berlin. The exact time is dependent on the current Testnet conditions and how reliably new blocks are being created. With the migration, all the protocol improvements introduced with the Lisk SDK v3.0.0, v4.0.0, and v5.0.0 will be functional on the Lisk Testnet.

Please ensure that the Lisk Core v3.1.0-rc.0 config.json file is updated to include the backup.height property with a value of 20449414.

Once migrated, the Lisk Testnet can be used by developers and users to prepare themselves for the upcoming Lisk Mainnet migration. For that, we recommend reading the Actions Required for the Migration to Testnet and Mainnet blog post.

One special note for node operators, please keep the following minimum requirements in mind for Lisk Migrator:

• 4 GB RAM
• 40 GB HDD

After the Lisk Testnet migration has been successfully performed, we will shut down the Lisk Betanet v4. Consequently, we will proceed with the testing of all new features on the public Lisk Testnet and start preparations for the Lisk Mainnet migration.

If you are running a Lisk Testnet delegate please follow our migration documentation to ensure no downtime occurs with your Testnet delegate. In case you have a Lisk Mainnet delegate, then this is the perfect test run for you to ensure that everything is functioning correctly for the upcoming Mainnet migration.

What Comes With The Update?

For a more thorough and technical overview of what is included in this upgrade, please see our Lisk Improvement Proposals repo. This upgrade includes all LIPs from 0037 - 0071, with the exception of LIP 0047 and LIP 0052, which we will discuss later.

With this upgrade, the Lisk Interoperability vision becomes a reality. In short, this means that all blockchain applications created through the Lisk SDK will be able to communicate with one another though the Lisk Mainchain.

Take a look at the applications page to see what is currently being built through the Lisk Accelerator program.

Other features worth mentioning here are an onchain staking reward system, as well as dynamic block rewards.

Onchain Staking Rewards

On the Lisk blockchain, validators (formerly known as delegates), receive rewards for generating blocks. In contrast, those that stake their LSK onto a validator have not had any onchain incentive to do so. If they were staking to earn rewards, they needed to rely on the validators to calculate and process these rewards, which could prove problematic.

Rewards are shared between validators and stakers as follows: a certain part of the rewards is awarded to the validator as a commission (the precise percentage of the commission is chosen by each validator); then, the remaining rewards are shared by the validator and the stakers proportionally to their staked amounts.

Please read LIP 0070 for a full overview.

Dynamic Block Rewards

Currently, all active Lisk validators receive the same block reward (1 LSK per block), regardless of the stake on their validator. This results in validators that have a large validator weightnot having any incentive to lock further tokens, which in turn results in reduced security of the network. With this change, we expect an increase of the Total Value Locked (TVL) and therefore, an increase of the security of the Lisk Mainchain.

Please read LIP 0071 for a full overview.

What Comes Next?

The Lisk Core v4.0.0 migration to Testnet is one of the final steps prior to the long awaited migration to Mainnet. Adequate testing is still required to ensure as smooth and reliable transition as possible is achieved. Once that has been established, we will announce the migration block height and expected date for Lisk Mainnet.