The deep freeze on the Solana network continues, with validators preparing for a second restart attempt in hopes of restoring user service to the chain, CoinDesk reported. Validators currently running the Solana infrastructure have long since concluded that the best solution to the current problem is to restart synchronously and fork the chain. When validators realized they had chosen the wrong restart point, the first attempt was abandoned, further extending the delay.

Validators and developers say the problem has evolved from an initial slow transaction processing to an almost complete disruption of activity on Solana, such as blocks being stopped and transactions not being processed or validated. This means that users' on-chain encrypted assets cannot be moved and will continue to be frozen until the critical back-end infrastructure is back online.

Hours after the crisis, key players in the Solana ecosystem are still searching for the cause of the incident. A leading theory is that a "fat block" affected the mechanics of the blockchain. It's worth noting that the network was being upgraded shortly before the problems started.

As of now, validators have teamed up with Solana Labs developers to try again to restart the blockchain and have 70% staked support, an 80% supermajority required for the network to continue functioning.

In addition, Solana Status tweeted earlier that a coordinated restart is underway to address a significant slowdown in block finalization during the upgrade from 1.13 to 1.14.