

Bitcoin Network Capacity Analysis – Part 5: Stress Test Analysis - dsri
https://tradeblock.com/blog/bitcoin-network-capacity-analysis-part-5-stress-test-analysis

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timboslice
TL;DR (lifted verbatim from their conclusion)

While the stress test had its limitations, the 7.5 hours of data revealed a
number interesting takeaways:

> When the network is at or near capacity, transaction confirmation times
> increases for all categories of fees and transaction values.

> In a scenario where transactions are competing to be included in an upcoming
> block, it appears a higher fee results in comparably faster confirmation
> times (as per normal situations).

> Despite significant transaction volume awaiting confirmation, some blocks
> can go unfilled, highlighting the immense discretionary power of miners. >
> Five of the top ten miners currently have limits at 750kb, while the
> remaining five are now in the 900-1,000kb range.

> Lastly, given the lower-than-expected number of blocks generated (30 over
> 7.5 hour period) and the discrepancies in miners’ hash rates, it appears
> plausible that one or more miners face an adverse impact on its hashing
> abilities during periods of network congestion.

