IOTA Rebased: Public Testnet and DevNet Guide

TL;DR: IOTA introduces two new testing environments to explore IOTA Rebased: a Public Testnet for stable, long-term application testing with persistent data and increasing decentralization, and a DevNet for rapid, experimental feature testing managed by the IOTA Foundation. These environments allow developers to thoroughly test applications, explore protocol upgrades, and experiment with cutting-edge features before potential mainnet implementation.

Alongside the IOTA Rebased vote proposal are two environments to help IOTA developers and users get to know the potential IOTA Rebased protocol: a public testnet and a DevNet. These networks play a vital role in ensuring the robustness, security, and functionality of IOTA Rebased before any potential rollout on the mainnet. In this short blog post, we'll walk you through the purposes, features, and use of both environments.

Public Testnet: Your Sandbox for Real-World Testing

The Public Testnet provides a stable, long-term environment for developers, validators, and users to test their applications and interactions with the rebased IOTA protocol. Furthermore, it acts as a staging environment for potential protocol upgrades before they hit Mainnet. Unlike previous iterations of testnets deployed by the IOTA Foundation, we will emphasize keeping the network running indefinitely while ensuring that there are no data resets. Over time, we also intend to decentralize the Public Testnet by delegating tokens to validators through a validator onboarding program (to be announced at a later stage).

The Public Testnet will exhibit an initial supply of 4.6B IOTA tokens controlled by the IOTA Foundation with a portion allocated to the faucet.

To start interacting with the Public Testnet, simply download the IOTA Wallet browser extension from the Chrome Store and use it to request tokens from the faucet (check out our guide to getting started with the wallet here). Then head over to the new IOTA Explorer to see network activity on the Public Testnet.

If you're a developer or validator operator, head over to our new docs site to access information about how to set up an IOTA full node and start getting familiar with building on IOTA Rebased.

DevNet: The Cutting Edge of IOTA Development

The DevNet is less stable than the Public Testnet as it serves as the first testing environment for potential protocol upgrades. We will reset this network periodically when necessary to test new features and protocol changes. The DevNet will also contain the IOTA mainnet ledger data to enable proper testing of protocol changes with a larger dataset (note that this is done in a replay-attack safe way).

The IOTA Foundation will retain full control over the DevNet and does not intend to decentralize it, allowing for expedited network resets and protocol upgrades. Application developers should only deploy their dApps on the DevNet if they intend to test out a new protocol feature relevant to their application.

Check out the docs site regarding our networks to see how to access DevNet as an application developer.

Stepping into the Future of IOTA

The Public Testnet and DevNet are designed to familiarize you with the potential benefits of IOTA Rebased. As we move forward, developers, validators, and enthusiasts are invited to explore these environments, test their applications, and provide valuable feedback. Your participation is crucial in refining and perfecting IOTA Rebased before a potential mainnet launch.