Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has proposed a new approach aimed at making it easier for individuals to operate a node on the network by reducing the hardware requirements. This initiative, termed “partially stateless nodes,” allows users to save only necessary parts of the Ethereum blockchain, alleviating the burden of having to maintain the entire data set that exceeds 1.3 TB.

Through a blog post shared last Sunday, Buterin’s plan intends to empower everyday users to run their nodes on personal devices rather than depending solely on organizations. A node functions as a device that connects to a blockchain network, verifying transactions and managing the ledger’s records.

Operating a full node currently demands significant storage capacity, typically over 1 TB, which poses practical challenges for most users. While certain third-party solutions provide access to blockchain resources, they often come with privacy concerns, as highlighted by Buterin.

His proposal aims to let nodes retain only the most pertinent data for users, while additional sections of the blockchain can be verified using cryptography upon request, thereby enhancing decentralization. The idea is likened to a library system where users keep frequently accessed materials at hand and borrow others as needed.

Buterin stated, “This type of node would offer the advantages of direct local access to the relevant state, coupled with maximum privacy of that access.”

Users will also have the ability to determine which data to store, such as specific smart contracts and tokens, using a straightforward on-chain setting, eliminating the need to keep complex cryptographic trees for verification.

This proposal builds on the ongoing EIP-4444 implementation, which limits node history storage to 36 days, facilitating a permanent chain without overburdening any single operator. While still in the initial stages, this design could significantly influence Ethereum’s path toward decentralization.