The Ethereum Foundation has announced plans to phase out Holesky TestNet by September 2025.
In a statement released on March 19, the network confirmed that Hoodi, the new testnet, will take over Pectra-related testing.
Holesky’s problem
Holesky ran into a major problem during Pectra upgrade tests last month.
Several running clients, including Geth, Nethermind, and Besu, used the incorrect deposit contract address to cause bugs in the running layer. This splits the chain and reduces the stability of the network.
Seporia, another Ethereum testnet, faced similar issues with a custom deposit agreement. But it recovered quickly.
In contrast, Holesky struggled with the inactive leaks of complex validators.
The network has since been confirmed, but it will take nearly a year to remove the emitted variator. Due to this delay, testing the full validator lifecycle within a reasonable time frame was not practical.
The foundation noted that Holesky still allows stakers to test deposits and other Pectra features, but that exit queues limit the broader testing. As a result, Ethereum decided to shift the Pectra test to the hoodie test net.
Despite this change, Holesky will be available in selected tests, including increased gas limits, until support officially ends in September 2025.
Moving to Hoodie
Hoodi TestNet will be activated at 7:37 UTC on Epoch 2048 on March 26th, 2025, taking over the Pectra upgrade test.
Staking operators and infrastructure providers are expected to migrate validator testing into this new environment.
Additionally, Ethereum announced in March 2026 that Sepolia’s testnet would be replaced by September 2026.
Hoodie is expected to remain active until September 2028, after which Ethereum will cease support.
These updates illustrate Ethereum’s continued efforts to improve our test infrastructure and ensure smoother protocol upgrades.
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