Hi all, wish you a Happy and Healthy New Year 2024!

Lately I've been contemplating the rapid growth of the Bitcoin blockchain and its potential impact on full-node operators. With the current blockchain size surpassing 500GB (538.09 GB on Jan/01/2024) there's a concern that some of us may be approaching capacity limits to continue hosting such large amounts of data.

Therefore, I'd like to take this opportunity to initiate an open discussion on this matter and find out what solutions or considerations might already be in place. Here are some thoughts that have crossed my mind:

    - Block Size Limit: What is the community's stance on potentially adjusting the block size limit to manage growth? Are there ongoing discussions on this topic?

    - Second-Layer Solutions: How effective are second-layer solutions like the Lightning Network in relieving the main blockchain? Are there experiences or concerns that we can share?

    - Pruning: For those already implementing pruning, how has this impacted your node's resource usage? Any insights or recommendations for others considering this approach?

    - Optimizations: Are there any ongoing efforts or developments within the Bitcoin protocol to optimize resource usage and improve scalability?

Here are some current stats as of today:

Last Value from Jan 1 2024, 22:03 EST:
538.09 GB

Value from 1 Year Ago:
446.05 GB

Change from 1 Year Ago:
20.63%

Average Growth Rate:
118.8%

I believe that by pooling our collective knowledge and experiences, we can better understand the current landscape and potentially contribute to the ongoing evolution of the Bitcoin ecosystem. Please share your thoughts, insights, or any information you may have on this topic. Looking forward to a fruitful discussion!

Cheers,
citb0in