Bitcoin forks are one of the most prominent aspects of the cryptocurrency and blockchain landscape. Public blockchain networks such as Ethereum and Bitcoin operate on the basis of decentralization which focuses on achieving an agreement between all network participants on the state of the blockchain network. Unanimous consensus among network participants is essential to create a single blockchain that includes data on verified transactions. The list of Bitcoin forks is evidence of the consequences that arise from the failure to reach consensus on the expected state of the blockchain in the future.
Forks are a common solution in scenarios where a blockchain network needs to change the way it operates. As of November 2023, there are over 70 active forks of the Bitcoin network. Technically, you can find over 100 different forks throughout the Bitcoin history timeline, although many of them have become inactive. Let’s learn more about forks and understand the details of the most notable Bitcoin forks.
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What are Forks in Blockchain?
The curiosity to learn more about Bitcoin forks may have piqued your interest in learning how forks work. The forking mechanism involves copying and modifying the source code to generate a new blockchain from the original. Forks are common in the case of open-source blockchains that provide the flexibility to access, edit, and modify the code without any restrictions.
You can find answers to questions like “How many Bitcoin forks are there” in categories like codebase and live blockchain forks. Codebase forks involve copying the blockchain code and modifying it to suit your needs. Most altcoins use Bitcoin’s code with a few modifications to create a completely new experience.
Live blockchain forks involve accidental or temporary forks and intentional forks. Accidental or temporary forks occur in situations where nodes in the network have conflicting opinions about the chronological sequence of events. Intentional forks involve intentionally changing the blockchain code for different purposes, leading to the formation of soft forks and hard forks.
Soft forks involve changing a blockchain protocol in a backwards-compatible manner, implying that there would be no conflict between the old and new rules. Hard forks are evident in scenarios where the software required to run a full node is changed. This means that all nodes operating on the new chain would have to update their software or protocols according to the new chain. The highlight of hard forks is that they are not backwards compatible with the original blockchain.
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Purpose of blockchain forks
Looking for the most popular Bitcoin forks may also make you curious about the need for forks. Do blockchain forks offer any significant benefits? You may have many other similar questions in mind when thinking about forks for a popular blockchain like Bitcoin. The benefits of blockchain forks can help you understand why you need Bitcoin forks.
First of all, blockchain forks allow for adding new features through regular updates. Most public blockchains are open source, network participants can use forks as a solution to release new versions and fix issues. For example, the best Bitcoin forks can aim to fix security issues or create entirely new cryptocurrencies. Forks can also help the blockchain community stop all transactions for a certain period of time when they identify a malicious transaction.
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What are the most notable Bitcoin forks?
You can find over 100 forks in the Bitcoin blockchain throughout its history. However, most of them are not functional at present as they failed to gain traction among the broader blockchain community. Let’s take a look at the major Bitcoin forks that played a major role in transforming the cryptocurrency landscape.
At the time of its creation, Bitcoin XT had over a thousand nodes. The project had begun to decline in early 2016 despite its hard fork from Bitcoin Core. Bitcoin XT is still under maintenance, albeit on a minor scale.
As of today, the project has only about a hundred nodes and is still in existence. Within 8 months of its launch, the project changed direction and focused on a block size that was tailored to market requirements.
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Bitcoin Unlimited’s hard fork strategy presents a unique example. Bitcoin Unlimited has released the code but without any clear instructions regarding the type of fork it will use. Bitcoin Unlimited’s design suggests that the network would require over 75% of miners to approve transactions. Miners can choose the block size in this hard fork as well as the flexibility to set limits on the size of acceptable blocks.
Bitcoin transactions include different components such as signature. Segwit works by removing signatures to reduce the size of transactions. In fact, signatures take up about 60% of the total Bitcoin blockchain. Segwit works by storing the signature on an extended block which is a special type of data structure for this fork. Segwit also stands out by providing a solution to transaction malleability which has been a dreadful bug for the Bitcoin blockchain.
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Bitcoin Cash wallets rejected Bitcoin transactions and blocks after August 2017. The Bitcoin Cash fork received support from popular influencers and major crypto wallets. Bitcoin Cash mining is a more profitable option because miners can switch from the main blockchain to Bitcoin Cash when Bitcoin Cash gains value.
Discussions about the list price of Bitcoin forks have gained a lot of momentum in the case of Bitcoin. Bitcoin Cash has seen many fluctuations since its inception. It is also important to note that most of the Bitcoin Cash generated by the fork has gone unclaimed.
One of the most promising highlights of Bitcoin Gold is the pre-mining feature. The development team was able to mine about 100,000 coins after the fork and allocated them to the governance of the Bitcoin Gold ecosystem. Bitcoin Gold follows many of the core principles underlying Bitcoin’s design, albeit with deviations from the proof-of-work algorithms.
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Final thoughts
The utility of forks in the blockchain landscape offers some notable reasons to think about Bitcoin forks. You can find several additions to a collection of prominent Bitcoin forks that are still active. Hard forks and soft forks on the Bitcoin blockchain play a major role in the blockchain and cryptocurrency landscape. Popular altcoins in cryptocurrency markets around the world were designed using Bitcoin’s codebase forks.
As you delve deeper into the cryptocurrency landscape, you will notice that Bitcoin forks would improve the blockchain and cryptocurrencies in the long run. The success of existing forks would pave the way for new forks to come to meet different needs. Learn more about upcoming Bitcoin forks and discover their importance now.
*Disclaimer: This article should not be considered investment advice and is not intended to be. The statements made in this article do not constitute investment advice and should not be relied upon as such. 101 Blockchains will not be liable for any losses incurred by anyone who relies on this article. Do your own research!
