In today’s article, we will explore the ins and outs of Ropsten and Ropsten faucets. However, since the Ropsten network is no longer operational, we’ll also cover a few testnet and faucet alternatives. Now, if you want to get free tokens for Ethereum’s active testnets right away, click on the green button below to check out Moralis’ curated list of pure faucets!
Overview
Ropsten was a prominent Ethereum testnet that allowed developers to experiment with and test protocol upgrades, decentralized applications (dapps), and smart contracts before deploying them to the mainnet. However, the Ropsten testnet was deprecated on October 5, 2022, and later sunsetted, rendering the network inoperative. Consequently, you can no longer use the network or tools like a Ropsten faucet to get free testnet tokens. So, how are developers currently testing Ethereum projects? And how are they getting free testnet ETH? If you’re looking for the answers to these questions, join us in this article as we explore some Ropsten testnet and faucet alternatives!
We’ll kickstart today’s article by exploring the Ropsten testnet. In doing so, we’ll cover what it was, when it launched, why developers needed it, and why it was eventually deprecated. From there, we’ll explain what a Ropsten faucet is and explore some alternatives for other Ethereum testnets. Lastly, to top things off, we’re also going to introduce you to Moralis – the ultimate tool for building and testing Ethereum projects.
Moralis offers an industry-leading suite of APIs, making Web3 development as seamless as Web2. In our toolbox, you’ll find premier interfaces such as the NFT API, Token API, etc. With these APIs, you can build faster and more efficiently, allowing you to save an abundance of development time and resources.
So, if you have ambitions to build Ethereum projects, sign up with Moralis straight away. You can set up an account entirely for free, and you’ll gain immediate access to all our industry-leading interfaces, allowing you to leverage the full power of blockchain technology!
So, what is the Ropsten testnet? Let’s jump straight into today’s topic by answering that question!
What is the Ropsten Testnet?
Ropsten was an Ethereum-based testnet that operated as a complete replica of the Ethereum mainnet. Consequently, it allowed developers to test protocol upgrades, decentralized applications (dapps), and smart contracts in a safe environment before committing to the Ethereum mainnet!
When the Ropsten testnet was initially launched, it was kept secure through a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism. However, during the advent of The Merge, Ropsten joined with Ropsten Beacon Chain, switching from PoW to proof-of-stake (PoS). Furthermore, this was an important step of The Merge, acting as a test run before the Ethereum mainnet made its own transition.
However, even though Ropsten long acted as one of the central testnets of Ethereum, it was deprecated in October 2022. This meant that the network was no longer being maintained by client developers, making it unfit for testing purposes. A few months later, in December, Ropsten was sunsetted, rendering the testnet no longer operational.
So, how are developers currently testing protocol upgrades, dapps, and smart contracts?
Well, there are currently three testnets operational: Sepolia, Goerli, and Holesky. Sepolia is presently the recommended network for testing dapps; meanwhile, Goerli has been the primary testnet for protocol upgrades for quite some time. However, Goerli has now also been deprecated and is set to be replaced by Holesky in 2023.
If you want to learn more about all this, check out our comprehensive Ethereum testnet guide!
When Did Ropsten Launch?
The Ropsten network officially launched on November 24, 2016, as the successor of Morden – Ethereum’s first PoW testnet. The name ”Ropsten” comes from a metro station in Stockholm, Sweden, adhering to the customary practice of naming Ethereum testnets after subway or metro stations, much like Sepolia, Goerli, etc.
Ropsten remained an Ethereum testnet between 2016 and 2022 when the network was eventually deprecated. Consequently, it played a central role in the Ethereum ecosystem for several years, providing developers with a secure and safe environment for testing protocol upgrades, dapps, and smart contracts!
Why Did People Need the Ropsten Testnet?
When interacting with any major blockchain, you need to pay gas fees. And on a network like Ethereum, they have – from a conventional perspective – always been relatively high. Consequently, it doesn’t make sense to build and test dapps, smart contracts, etc., directly on the Ethereum mainnet. Fortunately, this is where networks like Ropsten entered the equation!
The Ropsten testnet was a complete replica of the Ethereum mainnet; however, it featured its own native testnet token. As a result, developers could use Ropsten to test their projects without having to commit any real ETH.
Furthermore, Ropsten and other Ethereum testnets also allowed developers to try protocol upgrades, dapps, and smart contracts before pushing them onto the mainnet. As a result, it protected Ethereum and projects on the mainnet from bugs and potential downtime.
Historical Ropsten Testnet Usage
In the beginning, developers primarily used Ropsten as it best mimicked Ethereum when the mainnet was based on a PoW mechanism. At this time, it was used as a testing/staging environment for Ethereum development.
Back in May 2022, there were about 12.3 million blocks on Ropsten, and developers had executed 230 million transactions on the testnet. The network had a block time below 30 seconds, and there were 15 miners with governance power, with one possessing almost 95% hash power.
Also, the block gas limit was 50,000, which is the maximum amount of gas users are willing to spend on a transaction or smart contract execution. Moreover, the gas price was about 146,600 gwei, with an average burn of 23.66 per block. As of June 6, 2022, approximately 113,000 ETH had been burned on the Ropsten testnet.
In addition to providing a production-like environment for testing purposes, Ropsten was also an essential part of The Merge. Leading up to The Merge, Ropsten joined with Ropsten Beacon Chain, transitioning the network from a PoW to a PoS consensus mechanism. This transition was a test run in preparation for the Ethereum mainnet merge, ensuring everything would work as intended!
However, what happened to the Ropsten testnet? And why was it deprecated?
Why Was the Ropsten Testnet Deprecated?
The Ropsten testnet merged with the Beacon Chain in June 2022, when the terminal total difficulty (TTD) reached 50000000000000000. At this point, the Ethereum community decided to no longer maintain and update Ropsten, making it an unfit staging/testing environment for Ethereum applications!
But why was Ropsten deprecated?
Since testnets like Ropsten are full-featured blockchains themselves, they grow in state and history over time. And this makes it more difficult for developers to run and maintain the networks. As a result, testnets are periodically decommissioned, and Ropsten was deprecated to free up time and resources for maintaining other post-merge approved networks, including Goerli and the Sepolia testnet.
Also, it’s worth noting that the Ropsten testnet wasn’t without flaws. In 2017, the testnet experienced a denial-of-service (DoS) attack where malicious bots inserted spam blocks into the network. This attack on the network slowed it down significantly and increased the block gas limit, causing major problems for developers using Ropsten to test their Web3 projects.
This was an instance when the Ropsten testnet showed vulnerabilities to spam attacks. However, the network was shortly after revived with new security measures in place to avoid similar threats. From that point on, until the network was deprecated, no other serious incidents were reported on the testnet. As such, the network continued to run after the DoS attack, suggesting that this wasn’t one of the reasons for shutting it down.
Nevertheless, since the network is no longer working, Ethereum recommends that developers use either Sepolia, Goerli, or Holesky instead!
What Was a Ropsten Faucet?
When the Ropsten testnet was live, an essential part of most Ethereum developers’ toolboxes was a Ropsten faucet. But what exactly were Ropsten faucets? And how did they work?
A Ropsten faucet was typically a website or application allowing developers to get a small amount of Ropsten testnet tokens. They usually featured simple and straightforward user interfaces where you could input a wallet address, hit a button, and get a small set of tokens for free in return.
From there, developers could use the funds to pay for transactions on the Ropsten testnet when developing dapps, testing smart contracts, and implementing protocol upgrades!
However, as you now know, the Ropsten testnet is no longer operational. And the same goes for all Ropsten faucets. Consequently, you can no longer get free Ropsten testnet tokens!
Fortunately, there are many Ropsten faucet alternatives for Ethereum’s other testnets!
Ropsten Faucet Alternatives Today
Since the Ropsten testnet is no longer operational, you should use some of the other Ethereum testnets, such as Sepolia or Goerli. And just like Ropsten, these networks also feature faucets, allowing you to get free testnet tokens in a heartbeat!
But how do you find the best crypto faucets?
Well, the easiest way is to check out the Moralis crypto faucets page!
Our faucets page features a curated list of true crypto faucets requiring no account signups, no tweet verifications, and no BS!
What’s more, this page provides faucets for multiple networks, including Sepolia, Goerli, Arbitrum Goerli, Base Goerli, Mumbai, and many others. Consequently, it has never been easier to get testnet funds for multiple networks entirely for free when using Moralis!
If you’d like to explore these faucets and learn how they work, check out some alternatives in the list below:
Easiest Way to Build on Ethereum – Introducing Moralis
Moralis is an industry-leading Web3 API provider, supplying premier tools allowing you to build everything from decentralized exchanges (DEXs) to Web3 wallets without breaking a sweat. Thanks to the accessibility of our premier interfaces, Web3 development becomes as easy as Web2, enabling you to build blockchain-based projects both faster and smarter!
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So, what are some of our most prominent APIs?
- NFT API
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If you want to explore all of Moralis’ development tools, visit our Web3 API page!
Summary – Ropsten Faucet Guide
In today’s article, we kicked things off by exploring Ropsten. The Ropsten network was an Ethereum testnet that officially launched back in 2016, and it was the successor of Morden – Ethereum’s first PoW testnet. Ropsten was, for quite some time, one of Ethereum’s primary testnets, and developers were using it to test dapps, smart contracts, and protocol upgrades!
However, in 2022, the Ropsten testnet was deprecated, meaning client developers no longer maintained it. Consequently, you can no longer use the network for testing Ethereum projects. Instead, Ethereum suggests that developers use other networks, such as Goerli, Sepolia, and Holesky.
What’s more, in addition to exploring Ropsten, we also dove into the intricacies of what a Ropsten faucet was and how it worked. In doing so, we learned that there were straightforward websites or applications allowing anyone to acquire free Ropsten testnet tokens at the click of a button. Once developers got the tokens, they could use them to pay for transactions on the Ropsten testnet. However, since the Ropsten testnet is no longer operational, the same goes for all Ropsten faucets. As such, we also showed you the easiest way to find faucets for the other currently maintained testnets: Moralis’ crypto faucets page. This page contains a comprehensive list of pure faucets for multiple testnets, including Goerli, Sepolia, and others.
If you liked this Ropsten faucet guide, consider checking out more content here on the blog. For instance, explore the best Etherscan API alternative or read about the industry’s premier Chiliz API!
Also, don’t forget to create your Moralis account today so you can build dapps faster and smarter. You can sign up with Moralis for free, and you’ll gain immediate access to our industry-leading Web3 development tools!
