The team behind ethereum’s most popular user client have released a new update that includes support for alternative consensus systems.

Late last week, the developers behind Geth unveiled version 1.6, featuring support for a "plugable consensus model" in anticipation of ethereum’s shift from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake.

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In the past year and a half, the project has been laying the groundwork to move away from proof-of-work – also utilized in other public blockchains like bitcoin – as part of a broader evolution of ethereum. In recent days, developers have also hinted at momentum towards Metropolis, the next version of ethereum.

The goal, according to the post, is to create the conditions for developers who are looking to stand up ethereum networks that utilize different consensus models, such as proof-of-stake.

The team explained:

"The result is that Geth 1.6 features a plugable consensus model where developers, wanting to roll their own fork of ethereum with wildly different ways of agreeing on block validity, can now do so by implementing a simple Go consensus engine interface. The current ethash backed proof-of-work consensus model is also “just” another implementation of this interface."

The release also notably includes a tool called 'Puppeth', which, according to the post, allows a more streamlined process for standing up new ethereum networks. While not applicable in every instance, the team said the tool can help take out some of the heavier lifting involved.

"Puppeth is not a magic bullet. If you have large in-house ethereum deployments based on your own orchestration tools, it’s always better to use existing infrastructure," the blog post explained, concluding:

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"However, if you need to create your own ethereum network without the fuss, Puppeth might actually help you do that… fast."

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