XRP Ledger, the layer 1 blockchain that uses the XRP token to facilitate multi-currency transactions, is expected to implement a major maintenance and bug fix upgrade on Wednesday.
If you are running a node, a computer that helps verify transactions on the network, you must update to the latest version before the deadline or you risk a complete disconnection from the network. For regular users who simply hold XRP in a wallet or on an exchange, you don’t need to do anything.
The upgrade, called fixCleanup3_1_3, fixes the following major bugs and inefficiencies that have accumulated over time. Here’s what everyone does.
Automatic removal of expired NFT deals
On the XRP Ledger, people create and trade non-fungible tokens, or digital collectibles and gaming items. When a user lists an NFT for sale, they create an “offer” on the network.
From now on, if an offer expires or sits there without anyone accepting it, it stays in the ledger forever, taking up storage space. The impending fix will automatically remove these expired offers. Think of it like a classified ad in a newspaper: once the ad expires, the system tears it up instead of letting it pile up in the archives.
Protect restricted settings from accidental changes
The XRP Ledger offers “authorized domains” or controlled environments in which only approved accounts can access specific assets, order books or services and change their special settings.
But there was a bug where even if a transaction failed, it could still accidentally change these restricted settings.
Apply limits to vault withdrawals
The XRP Ledger has “vaults,” which are secure storage containers for tokens. When you withdraw tokens from a vault to send them to another account, the receiving account has a limit on the number of tokens it can accept, called the “trustline limit.” Imagine a bank account that can only hold $10,000.
The bug: the system did not check this limit when processing withdrawals from the vault. You could therefore potentially send more tokens than the receiving account could hold. The fix ensures that the system now respects these limits, preventing overdrafts.
Correction of loan accounting that was not updated
Like Ethereum or other smart contract blockchains, the XRP Ledger supports decentralized lending, where people can borrow and lend cryptocurrencies without a bank.
When a loan is in default or impaired, the system is supposed to update all associated records: the loan itself, the lender’s records, and the vault containing the collateral. However, the process was sometimes buggy with records not updating properly and therefore balances becoming out of date.
The impending fix ensures that when the status of a loan changes, all connected accounting entries are correctly updated. It’s like making sure that when you pay off part of your credit card, your statement and the bank’s internal records reflect it immediately.
Loan Overpayment and Security Check for LoanBrokers
If someone attempts to overpay on a loan that does not allow overpayments, the system now returns a clear “no permission” error (tecNO_PERMISSION) instead of a generic invalid flag. This makes the rejection cleaner and easier to understand for applications and users.
Additionally, it adds a security check for LoanBrokers, special entities that manage loan pools, to ensure that the “CoverAvailable” amount they advertise exactly matches the actual assets present in their protected pseudo-account. This strengthens accounting accuracy and avoids any mismatches that could create confusion or risk in the lending system. CoverAvailable is first loss capital deposited to protect lenders in the event borrowers default.
Activation planned for Wednesday
These measures will be activated on the ledger on Wednesday.
Validators and node operators must upgrade their servers before activation, otherwise they will be blocked by changes and will no longer be in sync. Much of the network would have already been updated.
XRP continues to trade between $1.30 and $1.40 for the fourth day in a row, according to CoinDesk data.
