Back
Ethereum Foundation to Shut Down Holešky Testnet After Lifecycle Completion

Ethereum Foundation to Shut Down Holešky Testnet After Lifecycle Completion

The Ethereum Foundation confirmed that Holešky will close after the Fusaka upgrade in November, consolidating support onto Sepolia, Hoodi, and Ephemery to streamline developer and validator testing environments.

ETH

Fact Check
The statement is strongly confirmed by the evidence. A direct announcement from the Ethereum Foundation Blog (Source 9) confirms the shutdown. This is corroborated by multiple news outlets (Sources 1, 2, 5, 10) and a key community member (Source 4). The context provided (Sources 7, 8) shows this shutdown is part of a planned, predictable testnet lifecycle, which aligns with the statement's claim of 'After Lifecycle Completion'.
    Reference: 123
Summary

The Ethereum Foundation announced that the Holešky testnet will be shut down two weeks after the Fusaka upgrade concludes in November 2025. Holešky, launched in 2023, served as a large-scale environment for staking and validator performance testing, supporting upgrades such as Dencun and Pectra. However, it faced challenges in early 2025, including inactivity leaks and extended validator exit queues. The Foundation will now consolidate its testing ecosystem to three networks: Sepolia for application developers, Hoodi for staking operators and infrastructure teams, and Ephemery for lightweight validator lifecycle testing. Support from client developers, testing groups, and infrastructure providers will formally end with Holešky’s closure.

Terms & Concepts
  • Testnet: A blockchain used for testing and experimentation, allowing developers to trial features without risking real assets.
  • Validator Node: A server in a proof-of-stake blockchain responsible for validating transactions and securing the network.
  • Ethereum Upgrade: Network improvements or protocol changes implemented on Ethereum testnets or mainnet, such as Dencun, Pectra, or Fusaka.