# Harmonize 1.6 (September 09, 2022) Welcome to the 1.6 release of Harmonize. We hope you enjoyed your summer. On our side, we have prepared several updates while you were away and we hope you will appreciate them: - [Platform](#platform) - [Integration of five new ledgers](#integration-of-five-new-ledgers) - [Avalanche C-Chain](#avalanche-c-chain) - [Stellar](#stellar) - [Solana](#solana) - [Dash](#dash) - [Dogecoin](#dogecoin) - [Desktop application, new approval system](#desktop-application-new-approval-system) - [Delegate your Cardano staking from our web app](#delegate-your-cardano-staking-from-our-web-app) - [Additional enhancements](#additional-enhancements) - [Merge announcement (September 01, 2022)](#merge-announcement-september-01-2022) For information about distribution and deployment of this version, see [Distribution and deployment](#distribution-and-deployment). ## Platform ### Integration of five new ledgers Five new ledgers were added. #### Avalanche C-Chain Avalanche, also known as AVAX, provides a Contract Chain that allows you to deploy smart contracts and decentralized applications with ease, especially thanks to its compatibility with Ethereum. **Harmonize capabilities: AVAX native & ERC-20 compatible transfers, smart contract interactions.** #### Stellar This easily usable and **low-cost transaction network**, allows you to send any currency (fiat or crypto) to another person who may have a different currency, through their intermediary currency, the lumen (XLM). **Harmonize capabilities: XLM native transfers.** #### Solana The advantage of using this blockchain, newly available on Harmonize, is that it is **carbon neutral**. A single Solana transaction requires 0.51 Wh and 24 times less energy than charging a mobile phone. This cryptocurrency is one of the best environmental performers. **Harmonize capabilities: SOL native transfers.** *Please note that this first iteration doesn't support staking operations and air-gapped vault. Support for those features is in our backlog.* #### Dash Initially **based on a copy of Bitcoin**, Dash allows for **confidential and near-instantaneous transactions**. Dash is based on a two-tier system involving miners and master nodes. As in Bitcoin, miners use the computing power of their computer hardware to secure the network and add blocks of new transactions. However, Dash also uses the Proof-of-Stake system to avoid centralization of miners and to increase the resilience of the system. **Harmonize capabilities: DASH native transfers.** #### Dogecoin And no, this is not a joke contrary to the coins's origins, the Dogecoin chain is well and truly supported by the Harmonize platform. Much faster, this crypto-currency makes your payment processing more efficient. **Harmonize capabilities: DOGE native transfers.** ### Desktop application, new approval system As promised, we now offer an alternative to our mobile solution to sign your operations on Harmonize. Indeed, **connecting a Yubikey (previously set up)** to your computer makes it possible to sign operations the same way as on the mobile application. ### Delegate your Cardano staking from our web app We had released the API in the previous version and we want to offer the possibilities from our web application, it's done! Proof in pictures: ### Additional enhancements - **Ethereum ledger**: we have added the support of Goerli. - **API only**: Endpoints transfer are now resolved for senders/recipients in addition of addresses. - **Web app**: You can now find all the tools to set up your Harmonize in the Administration menu. - **Web app**: We have improved the intent list page. - **Mobile & Web app**: We have added a two-digit code to help you identify the operation you are signing. ## Distribution and deployment ### Metaco SaaS Like all new minor releases of Harmonize, this version 1.6 will be rolled out (outside local working hours) in different phases: - **Integration** environments: **13th september** - **UAT** environments: **15th september** - **Production** environments: **21th september** A downtime of less than 30 minutes should be expected. ### On-premise The artifacts will be made available on the day of **September 12th**. As our internal messaging system is updated in this minor version, we strongly recommend to apply the following steps: 1. Take the gateway component offline 2. Wait 5 minutes 3. Proceed with the update Our technical support is available to assist you in this process. ## Merge announcement (September 01, 2022) As you are probably aware, **Ethereum is finally moving to Proof-of-Stake in what is called The Merge**. The fork is happening in two steps: - **the Bellatrix upgrade**, scheduled on September 6, - and **the Paris upgrade**, scheduled when the TTD reaches the value of 58750000000000000000000, somewhere around the 15th of September (the actual date is variable and can be followed live [here](https://wenmerge.com/). For more information, please refer to the official Ethereum blog announcement, [here](https://blog.ethereum.org/2022/08/24/mainnet-merge-announcement). Metaco is taking all necessary measures to ensure that the transition to PoS is going to be seamless for our clients. After an extensive testing campaign, **we confirm that the current version of Harmonize is fully compatible with the Ethereum 2 network**. With the move to Proof-of-Stake, a new concept of deterministic finality will be introduced. For the moment, Metaco will maintain a finality definition based on the number of blocks. However, we need to review the default that we have been using so far. After extensive research, we believe the best practice is to use 96 blocks, which is equivalent to 3 Epochs for maximum security. For our SaaS customers, we will push a patch with the new configuration. On-prem customers are also invited to upgrade to this patch version. Alternatively, you can contact support for detailed instructions on how to modify this parameter yourself. There have been rumours of a possible continuation of a proof-of-work fork on Ethereum. At Metaco we will support the main, Proof-of-Stake chain. Support for the proof-of-work chain is not currently planned. For on-prem customers, we remind you that in preparation for the Merge, **you are required to perform upgrades to the Ethereum nodes**. Please check with your node provider for more information. Metaco is compatible with Geth for the execution layer. For the consensus layer, we recommend Prysm, although this is not a strict requirement. If you have additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact support.