Fix alt-bn128 multiplication syscall length
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Decision brief
Why this proposal matters
The alt_bn128_multiplication syscall takes in a byte slice as input, interprets the bytes as a bn128 elliptic curve point/scalar pair, and applies point-scalar multiplication. If the byte slice input has improper length then the function terminates early. Specifically, if the byte slice has length greater than 128, then the function terminates early with an error. However, a bn128 curve point is 64 bytes and a scalar is 32 bytes. This means that the function should check if the byte slice is 96 bytes in length rather than 128 bytes. This document proposes to fix this length check by checking for the correct length.
Proposal at a glance
What changes
- The alt_bn128_multiplication syscall takes in a byte slice as input, interprets the bytes as a bn128 elliptic curve point/scalar pair, and applies point-scalar multiplication. If the byte slice input has improper length then the function terminates early.…
Stakeholder map
Who is affected
Builders & client teams Medium impact
This fix will prevent accidental misuse of the alt_bn128_multiplication syscall function and make programs easier to debug.
Action requirement unknownValidators & operators Impact unknown
No proposal-specific evidence was found for this group.
Action requirement unknownUsers & stakers Impact unknown
No proposal-specific evidence was found for this group.
Action requirement unknownGovernance & ecosystem Impact unknown
No proposal-specific evidence was found for this group.
Action requirement unknownExact source revision
Full proposal document
0616093b2952Summary
The alt_bn128_multiplication syscall takes in a byte slice as input,
interprets the bytes as a bn128 elliptic curve point/scalar pair, and applies
point-scalar multiplication. If the byte slice input has improper length then
the function terminates early. Specifically, if the byte slice has length
greater than 128, then the function terminates early with an error.
However, a bn128 curve point is 64 bytes and a scalar is 32 bytes. This means that the function should check if the byte slice is 96 bytes in length rather than 128 bytes.
This document proposes to fix this length check by checking for the correct length.
Motivation
The alt_bn128_multiplication function still works with the incorrect 128
length bound since a correct input of 96 bytes is still less than 128 bytes.
However, there could be successful inputs that are greater than 96 bytes and
smaller than 128 bytes in length. This could cause application logic harder to
debug.
Alternatives Considered
Leave as is.
New Terminology
N/A
Detailed Design
The fix is simple.
Currently, the constant ALT_BN128_MULTIPLICATION_INPUT_LEN, which is set to
128 is used to sanity check the length of the input.
pub fn alt_bn128_multiplication(input: &[u8]) -> Result<Vec<u8>, AltBn128Error> {
if input.len() > ALT_BN128_MULTIPLICATION_INPUT_LEN {
return Err(AltBn128Error::InvalidInputData);
// logic omitted...
}
A fix would entail updating the ALT_BN128_MULTIPLICATION_INPUT_LEN constant to
the correct length of 96.
Impact
This fix will prevent accidental misuse of the alt_bn128_multiplication
syscall function and make programs easier to debug.
Security Considerations
This does update the behavior of the syscall function and therefore, should be properly feature-gated.
Drawbacks (Optional)
None
Evidence graph
Related proposals and rollout
One or more sources are unavailable.
Upstream review record
Upstream discussion & review
GitHub review is editorial context, not evidence of on-chain support, voting, or outcome.
PR #222 · merged SIMD-0222: Fix alt-bn128-multiplication Syscall Length Check 1 comments and reviews · Jan 26, 2026Since this has approval from both Firedancer and Anza, I will give one more week for objections before merging.
GitHub ↗Provenance
Evidence & technical details
Rollout or chain data, source revisions, freshness and integrity. 1
Provenance
Evidence & technical details
Rollout or chain data, source revisions, freshness and integrity.SIMD
Deployment Status
bn2puAyxUx6JUabAxYdKdJ5QHbNNmKw8dCGuGCyRrFNExact source revision
Sources & integrity
- Proposal document pinned_commit_blob
0616093b2952ed6de52c4a27d66aadd11d48d4f9 - simd-document document · current · Sep 11, 2026
0616093b2952ed6de52c4a27d66aadd11d48d4f9
One or more sources are unavailable.
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