Layer-2 zkSync Stopped working due to Excessive Caution

Layer-2 zkSync stopped working due to excessive caution

Recently, the zkSync Era Layer 2 network unexpectedly stopped generating blocks for about 3 hours, attracting the attention of the cryptocurrency community.

According to information from blockchain tracking site zkSync, the Layer 2 zkSync network stopped operating at around 5:48 a.m on December 25 UTC time and maintained this status for many hours afterward.

After the fix, the zkSync team clarified the cause of the problem. According to the project, there was an error during the process by which the Operator (the party that verifies transactions and sends them to Ethereum) calculates the status update. This made the Sequencer work properly, but performed an unnecessary and overly careful process, delaying transaction processing.

Specifically, at that time, the Operator encountered a “simple” error when processing a status update transaction and sent this error to other computational nodes. Then, the entire network, upon detecting the error, activated a “maximum defense” state, causing the Sequencer to wait a long time for processing, thereby clogging the zkSync network.

The project said the network was operating too securely, when a “simple” error could cause the network to be jammed for hours.

On December 25 at 05:50 UTC, zkSync Era encountered an issue triggered by one of the network’s automated safety procedures.

The issue is completely resolved, but we want to share details with the community about what happened, and what teams did to address it.

TL;DR
• There… pic.twitter.com/hO9TKlfBMQ

— zkSync Developers (∎, ∆) (@zkSyncDevs) December 25, 2023

Although the error has been fixed, the shutdown of zkSync has increased user concerns that zkSync is being overly centralized. Currently, the operation of the platform depends on Validators or Operators. If some important Validators or Operators are hacked or controlled by a third party, this could affect the security and reliability of the entire zkSync network.

TVL of zkSync

TVL of zkSync on December 26, 2023. Source Defillama