The TON Foundation, a non-profit association working to advance The Open Network (TON), is introducing an update to the TON virtual machine (TVM).
The new update aims to enable developers with a wider array of smart contracts, services, and products.
Extending cryptography
In the current state of the TVM (TON virtual machine), there are certain limitations and features that can impact its functionality and usage.
One limitation is that the value of incoming messages is only presented on the stack after TVM initiation, requiring it to be stored in global variables or passed through local variables during execution. This behavior is similar to the contract balance, which is also presented on both the stack and in c7.
Another limitation is the difficulty in calculating storage fees. Currently, the only way to calculate storage fees is by storing the balance in the previous transaction, calculating gas usage in the previous transaction, and then comparing it to the current balance minus the message value.
The update aims to allow developers to create a wider array of smart contracts, services, and products. This enhancement will provide developers with more robust cryptographic capabilities.
Additionally, the update will incorporate features such as arbitrary-precision arithmetic and the inclusion of new instructions to simplify the process of writing smart contracts on TON. These improvements are designed to enhance both the functionality and security of the platform.
“These new features can be used for powerful cross-chain solutions because TVM now also supports the cryptography that many other blockchains use. For example, in the near future we will share the progress in building a Rainbow or Trustless Bridge, which allows you to transfer values from ethereum to TON and back in a completely decentralized way on smart contracts, without the use of oracles or relayers. Also, TON can become available on many devices, in particular hardware wallets, which previously expressed a desire to support TON, but lacked compatibility on their hardware.
In fact, this big update opens up a huge opportunity for developers, so we even announced a competition for the best usage. I am sure that the participants will present such interesting applications that we did not even think about.”
Anatloy Makasov, core developer at TON Foundation.
The upgrade is expected to be shipped in testnet by the end of the May and in mainnet by the end of June.
New solutions
The TON Foundation also announced a programming contest, encouraging its expanding community to demonstrate their skills and creativity by utilizing the latest features of the TVM.
Participants have the chance to compete for a share of the $30,000 prize pool, which will be awarded in toncoin (TON). This initiative serves as a platform for developers to showcase their innovative applications and solutions within the TON ecosystem.
