BIPs for miners
Every soft fork miners switched on, how each activated, and the proposals that would change mining work next.
Every Bitcoin soft fork so far needed miners to signal for it, and several of today's proposals change what pools and ASICs do. This page keeps the miner's view of the BIPs in one place: what was activated, how, and what is on the table now.
Every soft fork miners activated
| Active | Soft fork | BIPs | Block | How it activated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 1, 2012 | P2SH | BIP 16 | 173,805 | Miner vote in the coinbase (BIP 16 flag day) |
| Mar 2013 | Block height in coinbase | BIP 34 | 227,931 | Supermajority of version 2 blocks (750, then 950 of 1,000) |
| Jul 4, 2015 | Strict DER signatures | BIP 66 | 363,725 | IsSuperMajority, version 3 blocks |
| Dec 2015 | CHECKLOCKTIMEVERIFY | BIP 65 | 388,381 | IsSuperMajority, version 4 blocks |
| Jul 4, 2016 | CSV relative timelocks | BIP 68, 112, 113 | 419,328 | First BIP 9 version-bits deployment |
| Aug 24, 2017 | SegWit | BIP 141, 143, 147 | 481,824 | BIP 9 at 95%, after the BIP 148 and BIP 91 pressure |
| Nov 14, 2021 | Taproot | BIP 340, 341, 342 | 709,632 | Speedy Trial: 90% in one period |
On the table now
Proposals that would change mining work or the rules miners enforce. Status is the repository's own, read Nov 7, 2026.
| BIP | Title | Status | Assigned |
|---|---|---|---|
| BIP 54 | Consensus Cleanup | Complete | 2025-04-11 |
| BIP 323 | 24 nVersion bits for general purpose use | Draft | 2026-04-22 |
| BIP 332 | Stale Tip Relay | Draft | 2026-08-21 |
| BIP 110 | Reduced Data Temporary Softfork | Closed | 2025-12-03 |
| BIP 360 | Pay-to-Merkle-Root (P2MR) | Draft | 2024-12-18 |
| BIP 361 | Post Quantum Migration and Legacy Signature Sunset | Draft | 2026-02-11 |
How a soft fork activates
Early soft forks used flag days or a supermajority of block versions (IsSuperMajority: 950 of the last 1,000 blocks). BIP 9 (2016) replaced that with version bits: 29 bits a soft fork can claim, a start and timeout time, and a threshold in each 2,016-block retarget period. SegWit stalled under BIP 9 until users threatened a user-activated soft fork (BIP 148) and miners locked it in through BIP 91. Taproot then used Speedy Trial: a three-month window at 90%.
Version bits are now also a mining resource. ASICs roll some of them as extra nonce space, which BIP 323 proposes to widen to 24 bits.
Questions
- Do miners decide Bitcoin's rules?
- No. Miners signal readiness for a soft fork in block headers, but full nodes enforce the rules. A change sticks only if the economy runs software that includes it, as the 2017 SegWit fight and BIP 110's 2026 split both showed.
- How do miners signal for a soft fork?
- Since BIP 9 (2016), by setting a version bit in the block header. Once a set share of the blocks in one 2,016-block period signal (95% for SegWit, 90% for Taproot's Speedy Trial), the change locks in.
- Which proposals would change mining work today?
- BIP 54 (Consensus Cleanup) changes how pools build the coinbase and stamp block times at period edges. BIP 323 gives ASICs 24 version bits of extra nonce space. BIP 332 would relay stale blocks between nodes.
- What was the last soft fork?
- Taproot, active at block 709,632 on November 14, 2021. BIP 110, a 2026 data-limit soft fork, split off a minority chain and failed.
Sources
Meet the people who mine and build Bitcoin
Soft forks only happen when miners, node operators and developers line up. Mining Disrupt 2027 puts them in one room, March 22–24 at the Irving Convention Center, Dallas. Get a pass or exhibit.
More: All BIPs · BIP 54 · BIP 323 · Quantum BIPs · Covenant BIPs · Taproot · BIP 110
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