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ethexe: merklize MB schedule storage, remove temporary schedule pruning hot fix #5585

Description

@grishasobol

Context

The per-MB Schedule is currently persisted as a single SCALE-encoded blob under Key::MbSchedule(mb_hash), a full copy per computed MB. On testnet the schedule grew large enough that these copies bloat the database severely.

A hot fix was applied to stop the bleeding (see branch gsobol/ethexe/db-cleanup-hot-fix):

  • ComputeSubService::cleanup_computed_mb walks the parent chain after each computed head and prunes schedules deeper than SAFE_DEPTH = 100 blocks via unsafe Database::remove_mb_schedule.
  • DatabaseIterator::iter_mb had to start tolerating a missing schedule for a computed MB, weakening the integrity invariant that all post-execution rows exist once mb_meta.computed is set.

This is explicitly an unsafe, temporary solution: it hard-deletes consensus data by depth heuristic, makes historical replay/RPC of schedules older than SAFE_DEPTH impossible, and pokes a hole in DB integrity verification.

Proposal

Rework MB schedule storage into a merkle tree (CAS-backed, with structural sharing between consecutive MBs — same approach as program states):

  • The per-MB row under Key::MbSchedule becomes just the root hash; unchanged subtrees are shared between MBs instead of being copied wholesale.
  • Old roots become garbage automatically once nothing references them, enabling safe, reference-aware GC instead of depth-based hard deletion.
  • DB integrity verification can check the schedule tree by hash without requiring a full per-MB copy.

Tasks

  • Design the merklized schedule layout (keyed by expiry height; reuse existing CAS HashOf<T> plumbing)
  • Migrate set_mb_schedule / mb_schedule to root-hash storage + DB migration
  • Remove unsafe Database::remove_mb_schedule, Database::contains_mb_schedule, and ComputeSubService::cleanup_computed_mb
  • Restore the strict invariant in DatabaseIterator::iter_mb (computed MB ⇒ schedule present)
  • Drop the TODO markers referencing this issue

Activity

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    scope: vara.ethVara Ethereum application layer (L2)type: refactorInternal improvements without changing behavior

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