Ethereum faces a blockchain engineering problem: processing more activity without increasing hardware and bandwidth requirements so dramatically that independent users can no longer operate nodes. Its scaling strategy combines Layer 2 rollups, blobs, data-availability sampling and measured increases in Layer 1 capacity.

Rollups Move Execution Away from Mainnet

Ethereum’s roadmap increasingly treats Layer 2 networks as execution environments. Rollups process transactions separately, then publish compressed data and commitments to Ethereum, allowing mainnet to focus on settlement, security and data availability.

The Dencun upgrade introduced EIP-4844 in March 2024, creating temporary data objects called blobs specifically for rollups. Each blob carries up to 128 KB of data, providing L2 networks with a more efficient alternative to conventional calldata.

Pectra, activated in May 2025, doubled Ethereum’s blob target from three to six per block and raised the maximum from six to nine. This increased rollup data capacity while preparing Ethereum for its next scaling step.

PeerDAS Changes Data Distribution

Ethereum’s Fusaka upgrade went live on December 3, 2025, introducing PeerDAS, or Peer Data Availability Sampling.

Before PeerDAS, full nodes needed to download every blob. PeerDAS divides extended blob data into 128 columns distributed across network subnets. Regular nodes custody only a fraction of the data, while cryptographic techniques allow missing information to be reconstructed when sufficient data remains available.

Ethereum says this architecture provides a theoretical eightfold increase over the previous ‘everyone downloads everything’ model while keeping node bandwidth requirements manageable.

Capacity is Increasing Gradually

Fusaka also introduced Blob-Parameter-Only forks, allowing Ethereum to raise blob targets between major upgrades. This helps developers expand data capacity gradually while monitoring network stability rather than immediately pushing nodes toward higher bandwidth requirements.

Ethereum’s 2026 scaling work is not limited to rollups. The Ethereum Foundation said in February that mainnet’s gas limit rose from 30 million to 60 million during 2025. Its 2026 Scale track is working toward and beyond 100 million gas, supported by client benchmarking and planned protocol improvements.

The next upgrade, Glamsterdam, is targeted for the fourth quarter of 2026 and is expected to include further scaling work, although Ethereum notes that roadmap timelines can change.

Why Decentralization is Required

Simply making blocks much larger could increase throughput, but it would also raise storage, bandwidth and hardware requirements. If running nodes becomes too expensive, fewer independent participants may be able to verify Ethereum.

PeerDAS instead distributes the data burden while rollups handle much of transaction execution.

Final Thoughts

Ethereum is scaling through both Layer 2 capacity and measured Layer 1 expansion. PeerDAS, blobs and higher gas limits increase throughput while controlling node requirements. The goal is greater capacity without making independent verification prohibitively expensive.

Also Read: Lido Starts 8.4M ETH Migration After Validator Consolidation

FAQs:

1. How is Ethereum increasing its transaction capacity?

Ethereum combines Layer 2 rollups with improvements to its base layer. Rollups handle many transaction executions, while blobs, PeerDAS and higher gas limits increase data and processing capacity.

2. What is PeerDAS on Ethereum?

PeerDAS, or Peer Data Availability Sampling, distributes blob data across network participants instead of requiring every node to download everything. It was introduced through Ethereum’s Fusaka upgrade in December 2025.

3. How do blobs help Ethereum Layer 2 networks?

Blobs provide temporary, dedicated data storage that rollups can use instead of more expensive conventional calldata. This allows Layer 2 networks to publish transaction data to Ethereum more efficiently.

4. Why doesn’t Ethereum simply increase block capacity dramatically?

Large increases could raise bandwidth, storage and hardware requirements for node operators. Instead, Ethereum aims to increase capacity gradually while preserving the ability of independent participants to verify the blockchain.

5. What is next for Ethereum scaling?

Ethereum is continuing to increase Layer 1 capacity while expanding its data-availability architecture. The Glamsterdam upgrade, currently targeted for late 2026, is expected to introduce additional scalability and protocol improvements.