Why did the Kaspa Toccata upgrade increase node hardware requirements?

The Toccata upgrade increased node hardware requirements because it doubled the transient mass limit to accommodate ZK-STARK proofs. The transient mass limit controls how much data a node must hold and process at one time — doubling it means nodes need more CPU, RAM, and storage to keep up. This is a trade-off: ZK-STARK proofs enable new capabilities in Kaspa, but they are larger than standard block data, so the network asks more of the machines that run it. For anyone already running a node, this is the key reason to check your hardware against the new minimums before upgrading.