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Forks are a key part of the blockchain experience. They are similar to a systems update. To "forge" the chain is to change the software that makes the blockchain work. Depending on the situation, the forks range from extremely trivial to extremely controversial.
A fork can be used by the core developer team of a blockchain to push long-planned updates on the network. Or they can be proposed and attempted by renegade groups outside the normal "command line", showing the decentralized nature of these networks. Understanding the nature of the forks is crucial if you want to have an informed opinion about the problems of blockchain.
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Soft forks rarely arouse much controversy because they are backwards compatible with the pre-fork implementation of the blockchain. There is no creation of a new branch in the chain.
A hard fork is what happens when an update is incompatible with older versions of the blockchain software. This means that anyone who does not update will be left behind on an old and potentially useless legacy chain. If the vast majority of developers and mining nodes are in favor of a new update to a blockchain, the process will take place without drama.
When multiple factions of a blockchain community are at war with each other and a difficult fork is attempted, unusual things can happen.
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Both of the two most popular blockchains in the world have experienced hard forks due to the debate within their communities.
When $ 55 million of Ethereum tokens (ETHs) were stolen from hacking a high profile fund, part of the Ethereum community wanted to use a difficult fork to bring back the stolen funds to their original owners.
Others have opposed this action. They said that such a tough fork would invalidate the integrity of the ETH token as a currency and will make more nefarious forks possible in the future. Despite the hard shelling took place despite these arguments, many dissidents refused to update their software. The resulting hard fork left a large number of people on the legacy blockchain, now known as Ethereum Classic.
The good news is that Ethereum and Ethereum Classic coexist in relative tranquility as of 2018. It is easy to argue that their mutual existence is a good thing because it makes it possible to compare the two governance options over time, with little inconvenience.
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Domenic Thomas, CEO of WORBLI, states:
Some blockchain projects use the same underlying blockchain software and protocols, but they do not have a shared history and are not the result of controversy or implicit need to satisfy a different set of requests. Instead, these "sister chains" benefit from the open source nature of the blockchain and can instead provide further innovations to the borrowed blockchain protocol that is used to start the new Sister Chain network. WORBLI is a good example of this thanks to the use of EOSIO software to build a network of financial services blockchains ready for the company.
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Bitcoin's hard fork did not end so well. In fact, it constitutes a critical case study in the governance of the blockchain.
Endured by an almost religious debate on the limits of the block size, Bitcoin's blockcoin suffered a major blow on August 1, 2017. A large minority of developers and miners has updated a new version of Bitcoin software for their nodes. This immediately divided the Bitcoin into two branches: the main branch and a new and vital secondary branch now known as Bitcoin Cash.
Unlike the Ethereum / Ethereum Classic division, the split of BTC (Bitcoin) and BCH (Bitcoin Cash) was harsh. With regret to many, influential members of the Bitcoin Cash movement have stated that BCH is "the real Bitcoin". Starting from the time of publication, Bitcoin Cash has approximately 8% of the market capitalization of the original Bitcoin blockchain.
The harsh rivalry with forks started in mid-2017 continues today, with two separate communities that are in widely separated eco-rooms (complete with active subreddits) on what is and is not the real bitcoin.
The future of forks
The forks, either of the hard or soft variety, are an inextricable part of the blockchain experience. Sometimes they occur without any kind of discussion, as a simple necessity of the development process. Other times they will be the result of disagreement within a community.
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The future of forks must evolve towards peaceful debate as seen in the example of Ethereum, not a polemical argument as seen with Bitcoin. As blockchain networks become more and more valuable, the good fork label becomes increasingly important.
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To create the best possible result for future forks, people must discuss in good faith. Disagreements should be managed on an organizational level as often as possible.
The creation of two separate blockchains due to a lack of compromise should be considered the last resort. However, when this situation becomes inevitable because two parties can not reach an agreement, the fork must be executed with the utmost mutual respect and coordination possible. In this way exchanges, portfolios and miners can keep users safe throughout the process and people will be able to vote with their network activity over time. If the forks are executed in this way, the development of the blockchain will proceed with the minimum of drama and maximum productivity.
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