Core Developers Postpone Glamsterdam Upgrade on Hoodi Testnet Amid EIP-8037 Evaluation

The highly anticipated Glamsterdam network upgrade on the Hoodi testnet, which had been officially scheduled to roll out on October 26, 2026, at 17:42:48 UTC at epoch 132,352, has been officially postponed. Core developers made the decision to delay the implementation during the All Core Developers Execution (ACDE) #248 meeting. At present, a new activation date has not been set by the development teams, leaving the timeline for the testnet upgrade open as technical evaluations continue.

This unexpected change supersedes all previous scheduling details and activation instructions that were laid out in the initial Hoodi testnet announcement published on October 16, 2026. Developers, node operators, and ecosystem participants who had prepared for the late-October deployment must now adjust their plans and await further guidance from core coordination channels.

What Has Changed?

The decision to hit the pause button on the Glamsterdam upgrade came after core developers identified a need for additional time to thoroughly investigate the real-world interactions of EIP-8037 with mainnet smart contracts. Ensuring compatibility and safeguarding the ecosystem against unintended consequences remain paramount priorities for the development community, prompting the precautionary delay.

With the postponement of the upgrade, several significant configuration changes have been introduced to the testnet roadmap. The delay entirely removes the scheduled Amsterdam execution layer activation and the Gloas consensus layer activation from the immediate horizon. Furthermore, the adjustment strips out the planned gas-limit schedule that would have elevated the Hoodi testnet’s block gas limit to 200 million at the exact same epoch.

Developers have emphasized that this adjustment simply rolls back the configuration settings for the upcoming upgrade; it does not in any way revert the historical chain data of Hoodi. The October 26 activation target is officially canceled, and the updated configuration currently contains no replacement activation epoch or timestamp. The rescheduling of the replacement upgrade will be determined through ongoing coordination and announced at a later date once developers are fully satisfied with the performance and safety metrics of the proposed changes.

Hoodi Node and Validator Operators

Individuals and organizations operating a Hoodi node or validator are urged to take immediate note of the revised timeline. Operators must check both their execution layer and consensus layer clients to ensure their software instructions reflect the postponed activation well ahead of the original October 26 target.

Any software versions, custom network configurations, or local setups that still actively schedule the Glamsterdam upgrade at the previous activation timestamp must be updated and reconfigured to align with the revised Hoodi parameters. Client release tables and documentation published in earlier announcements should not be treated as confirmation that those specific software builds incorporate the postponement. Instead, operators are advised to follow their respective client teams’ updated release notes and specific instructions regarding the new Hoodi schedule.

Validator operators must also pay close attention to any supplementary instructions issued for their validator clients and builder infrastructure. Ensuring that external dependencies and local setups are synchronized with the postponed state is critical to avoiding unintended client behavior or consensus splits on the testnet.

Client Releases and Coordination

As client development teams work to integrate the postponed Hoodi activation into their software packages, updated releases will be made available. Node and validator operators should update both their execution layer and consensus layer clients exclusively to software versions whose official release notes explicitly confirm that the October 26 Glamsterdam activation on Hoodi has been removed or modified.

Because validation requires strict synchronization, operators running a validator must ensure that both their consensus layer beacon node and their validator client are updated in tandem. Builder and validator tooling guidance will similarly be updated as soon as details are finalized for the postponed Hoodi activation path. Operators who rely on external block-building infrastructure should closely monitor announcements from their specific tooling providers and follow their recommended operational guidelines. Ecosystem participants are encouraged to check back periodically for direct links to verified client releases as they become available.

Application Developers and Mainnet Users

Application developers who have been utilizing the Hoodi testnet for staging, integration, or smart contract testing should immediately adjust their workflows. Testing schedules should no longer be planned around an October 26 Glamsterdam activation, as a revised activation timeline will be communicated through official channels at a future date.

It is important for the broader community to note that this announcement pertains strictly to the Hoodi testnet environment. The postponement does not set or alter any Glamsterdam mainnet activation date. Consequently, no action, technical preparation, or manual intervention is required from Ethereum mainnet users, application end-users, or ETH holders as a result of this latest development update.