The Turkish equivalent of the term Fork is Forking. Fork cryptocurrencies available
blockchain
networks into different branches. The fork creates a new blockchain network using the same base that is completely inseparable from the base of the existing cryptocurrency. The fork can be done to fix or improve a bug in the system, or it can issue a new cryptocurrency/token that has been installed by leaving the blockchain network. As an example of this situation, a fork was created to eliminate bitcoin errors and a new crypto money, bitcoin cash, emerged.
The fork process is done in two different ways as “Hard Fork” and “Soft Fork”.
What is a Hard Fork?
A hard fork refers to a sharp fork made on the blockchain network. It is the creation of a new blockchain as an alternative to the existing blockchain. With this hard fork, either both forks exist simultaneously and operate independently of each other, or one of them becomes more dominant. As the name suggests, a hard fork brings with it harsh regulations. Users who choose the new fork that occurs do not have the opportunity to go back to the old version. Hard Fork is considered by the developers to be the last option. The best example for a hard fork; Ethereum Classic, ETC, is a successful fork of Ethereum. It was created after the hacking of the Decentralized Autonomous Organization, which we can translate as a decentralized autonomous organization, resulting in the theft of 50 million ETH. At the time, the Ethereum community was debating what to do, and most of them decided to use a hard fork.
What is a Soft Fork?
A soft fork is defined as the process of innovating on the blockchain network to be compatible with legacy software. In addition to the continuation of the chain in the old network, it also allows the transition to the new network. Users who switch to the new network can switch to the old network if they wish. For a soft fork to be a full success, miners and users often need to accept the new network.
What is the Difference between a Hard Fork and a Soft Fork?
- A new cryptocurrency does not emerge after a soft fork, but new cryptocurrencies are formed after hard forks.
- While the soft fork adapts to the old rules, this does not apply to the hard fork.
- While agreement is reached in soft forks, no agreement can be reached in hard forks.
Bitcoin Fork
It is the process of making a copy of the Bitcoin blockchain code and making changes to it. These changes can be created for a variety of reasons. The inability of the current blockchain network to meet the demands may be due to reasons such as disagreement among developers. While some of the forks experienced in Bitcoin were not accepted and were not effective, some forks were adopted by the majority and became permanent. Some of the most important forks experienced in Bitcoin are: Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Gold, Bitcoin Diamond, Bitcoin Private.
