Report Details Execution Bug, Block Reorganization, and Steps to Prevent Future Disruptions
Ethereum layer-2 scaling network Starknet has published a detailed post-mortem report explaining the cause of a temporary mainnet outage that occurred earlier this week. The incident marks the second significant network disruption for Starknet in 2025, once again raising questions about the complexity of multi-layer blockchain systems.
According to the report, the outage was triggered by a state inconsistency between the execution layer and the proving layer, two core components responsible for processing and validating transactions. A rare edge case involving cross-function calls, state writes, and reverted executions caused the execution layer to retain a state change that should have been discarded.
This mismatch led to incorrect transaction execution, which was promptly detected by Starknet’s proving layer. Crucially, the flawed transactions were never finalized on Ethereum’s main chain, demonstrating that the network’s validation safeguards functioned as intended.
To resolve the issue, Starknet initiated a block reorganization, rolling back approximately 18 minutes of network activity. Normal operations were restored shortly afterward, with the team confirming that the network has since returned to full functionality.
The developers acknowledged the incident as a reminder of the engineering challenges involved in advanced layer-2 architectures, where multiple systems must remain perfectly synchronized. In response, Starknet committed to expanded testing, deeper code audits, and improved edge-case coverage.
This was not an isolated event. Earlier in 2025, Starknet experienced a more severe disruption following a major protocol upgrade, which halted block production for several hours and required rolling back over an hour of transactions. While such rollbacks are manageable for casual users, they pose significant risks for traders and time-sensitive applications, underscoring the importance of continued network reliability improvements.
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