Cardano is advancing toward its next major network upgrade, the van Rossem hard fork (Protocol Version 11), as the ecosystem prepares for the imminent pre-release of the critical Cardano Node 10.7.0. According to Intersect, a member-based organization within the Cardano ecosystem, this key software release is expected within days and represents a pivotal step in the upgrade process.
The Node 10.7.0 release is more significant than routine maintenance; it is designed to enable the hard fork and push the entire ecosystem into broader readiness and testing. This version follows the earlier Node 10.6.2 rollout in February but carries greater importance as it sets the stage for ecosystem-wide integration. Developers, infrastructure providers, and stake pool operators are now preparing to incorporate the new version into their systems.
Supporting infrastructure is advancing in parallel. DBSync, which enables access to blockchain data, is expected to launch a compatible version shortly after Node 10.7.0 becomes available. A crucial detail for users is that this upgrade does not include serialization changes, which preserves compatibility with hardware wallets and reduces disruption during the transition.
The rollout will follow a staged testing process. The pre-release version of Node 10.7.0 is already positioned for early testing. The Preview and PreProd testnets will adopt the updated protocol before any move to mainnet. Notably, SanchoNet has already moved to Protocol 11, allowing developers to test new Plutus built-in functions in advance.
These new functions introduce capabilities such as array handling, modular exponentiation, and improved cryptographic operations, giving developers more efficient tools for building and optimizing smart contracts. Smart contract tooling like Scalus has also been updated to support these enhancements. The van Rossem upgrade is an intra-era change, meaning it does not alter transaction structures.
The immediate focus is on execution: whether ecosystem participants can complete the readiness phase smoothly enough to keep the hard fork on track for a controlled and stable Protocol 11 rollout.
