Ethereum is one of the oldest blockchain in the crypto space, which is why it is considered to be the second generation blockchain after Bitcoin.
Luckily, even though it is old, the original core developers thought of almost everything including a testnet for developers which is very important.
This may come as a surprise, but not all blockchains have a testnet, even the newer generation ones.
Ethereum has shone through and been an inspiration to most newer generation blockchains because of its complete infrastructure, even providing two testnets.
But why does Ethereum have two testnets and why is a testnet so important? Let’s talk about it in this article!
What is an Ethereum Testnet?
A testnet is a blockchain network that is used by developers of that certain blockchain to test out their applications before launching it to users publicly.
Testnets are like private networks in the Web2 space, where developers usually launch their app privately before launching it publicly.
There are two types of testings in the Web2 space, which are local testing on the device of the developer, and then there is private testing on the local network but has already been attached to the hosting provider.
In the Web3 space, developers can also test their decentralized applications or DApp locally, but they cannot test their DApp privately as the hosting server equivalent itself is the blockchain.
To combat this problem, developers of blockchains, notably Ethereum, have created a network called the testnet to test DApps before launching it publicly.
This is why Ethereum is an inspiration to most blockchains as it is one of the first ones to introduce a testnet, since Bitcoin cannot be used to launch DApps with.
Sepolia Testnet
Ethereum itself has two testnet, originally called Sepolia and Goerli. The Sepolia testnet is still being used until today and it is more focused for developers.
Sepolia is more commonly used by developers who are building DApps on the Ethereum Blockchain.
This is because the main focus of Sepolia is for developers and the other one is for a different focus, which will be talked about later in this article.
The Sepolia Test has two main benefits, the first one is the ease of difficulties for developers when using it.
It was designed so developers can easily connect their DApps to validators on the testnet. This is because the testnet itself is run by a close set of validators, which is a bit centralized, making it easy to keep in line and easy to interact with.
Another benefit is that in the Sepolia Testnet, there are unlimited tokens and coins, including ETH itself.
This is different from the mainnet or the main network of Ethereum that is used for developers to launch their DApp publicly as the ETH in the mainnet is capped at its current circulating supply.
By having an unlimited supply, developers can test their DApps easily without having to take turns to adjust with the amount of ETH available on the testnet.
Holesky Testnet
The mechanism is different from the Holesky Testnet which was previously called the Goerli Testnet.
The Holesky testnet has an open set of validators so new validators are welcome to join in. The open validator mechanism is the main basis of the function of Holesky which is to be used as a testnet for validators and staking purposes.
This testnet can be used for developers who have staking functionality on its DApp or for validators that are new and still want to test their node before deploying it publicly in the mainnet.
Because of this, the amount of ETH on the testnet is capped so that the staking mechanism can represent the real condition of the Ethereum mainnet.
Conclusion
Overall both of these testnet have inspired most blockchains to implement a testnet so that their developers can test and launch their DApps easily.
Both of those testnet have different functionalities but it does not hinder the fact that developers still use it overlapping with its main purposes.
While it is different, it is worth noting that tokens and coins on both of the testnets are worth less, meaning testnet tokens and coins do not have any value so it can only be used for testing.
If you are a developer that wants to build on Ethereum, you should definitely consider trying these testnet before launching, so you don’t waste gas fees on the mainnet when testing out your DApps for the first time.
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