Bandwidth Error Code Bug Explained! Fix Coming!
This is definitely going to be an ultra-short post! You can read about the whole bandwidth error saga here, here and here!
The current thinking is that this sudden spike in bandwidth caused by an experiment triggered the algorithm for the current_reserve_ratio (CRR) that is designed to respond to a spam or DDoS attack. The consequences of this CRR algorithm are to immediately halve the network bandwidth.
But as users carried on doing their normal behaviour, completely oblivious that this was happening in the background, they triggered the CRR to continue to fall. Remember, the CRR is designed to protect the network from overloading. In this case, it was not a real overload but a temporary spike.
However, this experiment also triggered an error in the Steemit code. One of the parameters known as max_virtual_bandwidth was overflowing its 64-bit values. My understanding is that if such a calculation overflows its integer limit, then that parameter becomes disabled. I'm not sure of the exact cascade of events within the algorithms, but the upshot was that the system was unable to tell a temporary spike from a concerted spam attack. One of the things being fixed at the moment is to increase the max_virtual_bandwidth calculations to 128-bit.
All of this means that, if the final analysis is correct, the cause of all our bandwidth woes was not an increase in overall activity or the rise of the bots, but a simple bug exposed by a short experiment. The code for how CRR is triggered and how it increases back up to 100% still needs to be worked on; the increase of the above integer limit is in itself very quick to fix.
So, we await the eventual fix, but in the knowledge there is, for now, no attack on Steemit and no real issue about the bandwidth used by members - it's just a bug fix! Welcome to beta testing!
Thanks for reading.
PS This was as short as I could make it!
I am under the same bandwidth restrictions as everybody else, so would love to reply to everybody individually but am doing so with an eye on my remaining bandwidth.
Remember to check yours at steemd.com/@yourusername
Votes and comments are low-bandwidth activities, but if you are posting an article, cut down on the huge images and videos as those will cost you! Words are cheap. ;-)
Resteeming also cheap I suppose? Only with voting, commenting and resteeming I was through my bandwidth with an hour or so. Might have embedded a couple of YouTube videos in some of my comments, 1 or 2 per session that was limited to an hour by the bug.
Well you summed that up in very short clear words. A very concise lovely layman's terms explanation on why this error occurs , what is causing it and what has to be done to remedy it.
And I'm still like...
source
But I do feel comforted by the fact that many other Steemians do understand the technical analysis and that this problem will be over as soon as possible.
Upvoted!
Thanks. Just think of the glitches in the Matrix - they are codes being changed.
Good to know what the problem is.
You've done a lot of research into this. Thanks for your efforts here!
Thanks. Although it has meant I haven't completed the short proposal for a new minnows support initiative I had promised you and @gmuxx - I'll do it today.
this article has been referenced in: down the rabit hole -
the case of the bandwidth bug
Thanks for writing!
And thanks for the reference!
Thanks! I was concerned, and seeking to understand the issue that impacted several accounts I have been discussing it with.
I think the best strategy for everybody is to keep steemd.com open in a browser tab and check the effect every action takes on your personal bandwidth.
Doing that now, thanks!
There was a lot of speculation about the cause of this error leading to assumptions that steemit was unstable. Thanks for clearing that up with this post.
Steemit is still in beta, so bug fixes are not uncommon. In a sense, it is good to sort this bug out now under an "accidental simulation" event rather than it failing under real stress. Thanks for your comment.
So This A bug in Steemit Code I have faces this error yesterday...Thank For Information
Glad I could help.
This explains this annoying pop up. It got me pissed 😈 Resteemed this post :)
Thanks very much - upvoted your comment.
I hope this gets fixed fairly soon so I can write about something else!
What shall I write about next?.........
Thanks a lot :)
Great news, I was a bit worried, but hey this is still BETA phase, so some hiccups are expected ;)
That's the spirit - just a speed-trap. Hopefully nobody damaged their suspension.