ENS Proposes Major Upgrade to Launch ENSv2 on Ethereum

The Ethereum Name Service (ENS) has moved closer to launching its ENSv2 upgrade after founder Nick Johnson submitted a governance proposal seeking decentralized approval to activate the new naming system on the Ethereum mainnet. According to CryptoNews, the proposal outlines plans to pause new .eth registrations temporarily through the original registrar while transitioning operations to the upgraded protocol.

Under the proposed activation process, existing domain owners can retain and renew their names without migrating to the upgraded system. ENS Labs has already reserved existing eligible .eth names in the upgraded registry for their current owners, allowing them to migrate through the official ENS application at their convenience without a fixed deadline.

Upgrade Architecture and Permissions

ENSv2 replaces the original registry's flat structure with a system of connected registries, granting domain owners more control over names and subdomains. The new architecture enables individual domains to maintain their own registries for subdomains, allowing users to choose custom registry and resolver implementations with specific role-based permissions.

The upgrade also modifies domain expiration rules, reducing the grace period from 90 days under ENSv1 to 28 days under ENSv2. To maintain the same effective expiration timeline, the protocol would extend migrated domain expiration dates by 62 days.

Governance Voting Process

To secure approval, the proposal requires a quorum of 1% of the ENS voting supply, equivalent to one million affirmative votes, alongside majority support during a seven-day onchain voting period. Once fully operational, ENS Labs intends to transfer remaining privileged roles over the upgraded contracts to the ENS DAO and renounce those permissions.

Key facts

• Nick Johnson submitted a governance proposal on October 11 to activate ENSv2 on the Ethereum mainnet.
• New .eth registrations will pause temporarily during the transition between naming systems.
• Existing domain owners retain and renew their names without mandatory migration.
• DAO approval requires one million affirmative votes, majority support, and a seven-day onchain voting period.
• ENS Labs plans to surrender its remaining administrative control over the upgraded system to the ENS DAO after activation.