Can we run our Ethereum nodes at home?

Abstract

Scalability is a common issue among the most used permissionless blockchains, and several approaches have been proposed to solve this issue. Tackling scalability while preserving the security and decentralization of the network is a significant challenge. To deliver effective scaling solutions, Ethereum achieved a major protocol improvement, including a change in the consensus mechanism towards Proof of Stake. This improvement aimed a vast reduction of the hardware requirements to run a node, leading to significant sustainability benefits with a lower network energy consumption. This work analyzes the resource usage behavior of different clients running as Ethereum consensus nodes, comparing their performance under different configurations and analyzing their differences. Our results show higher requirements than claimed initially and how different clients react to network perturbations. Furthermore, we discuss the differences between the consensus clients, including their strong points and limitations.