Using Reth Execution Extensions (ExEx)

Reth Execution Extensions (ExEx) is a powerful framework introduced by Reth for building high-performance off-chain infrastructure as post-execution hooks. rindexer leverages ExEx to provide superior indexing performance and native reorg handling.

What is ExEx?

ExEx provides a reorg-aware stream called ExExNotification which includes:

Blocks with full transaction data
Receipts with logs and state changes
Native reorg notifications
Trie updates for state verification

This allows rindexer to:

Process blocks at native speed without RPC overhead
Handle reorganizations automatically
Maintain consistency during chain splits
Access pending transactions and state

Architecture

When running in Reth mode, rindexer operates as an execution extension within the Reth node:

┌─────────────┐     ┌──────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐
│  Reth Node  │────▶│ rindexer ExEx│────▶│ PostgreSQL  │
│             │     │              │     │             │
│             │◀────│   Indexing   │     │   Storage   │
└─────────────┘     └──────────────┘     └─────────────┘
     ExEx              Process              Write
  Notifications         Events              Data

Chain State Notifications

rindexer processes three types of chain state notifications:

1. Committed

Emitted when new blocks are added to the canonical chain:

Committed {
    from_block: 19000000,
    to_block: 19000100,
    tip_hash: 0x123...
}

2. Reorged

Emitted during reorganizations:

Reorged {
    // Blocks to revert
    revert_from_block: 19000098,
    revert_to_block: 19000100,
    // New canonical blocks
    new_from_block: 19000098,
    new_to_block: 19000101,
    new_tip_hash: 0x456...
}

3. Reverted

Emitted when blocks are reverted (chain rollback):

Reverted {
    from_block: 19000099,
    to_block: 19000100
}

Configuration

Basic Configuration

rindexer.yaml

name: HighPerformanceIndexer
networks:
- name: ethereum
  chain_id: 1
  rpc: https://eth.llamarpc.com  # Fallback RPC
  reth:
    enabled: true
    logging: true  # Enable Reth logs
    cli_args:
      - "--datadir /data/reth"
      - "--authrpc.jwtsecret /secrets/jwt.hex"
      - "--authrpc.port 8551"
      - "--chain mainnet"

Advanced Configuration

rindexer.yaml

networks:
- name: ethereum
  chain_id: 1
  reth:
    enabled: true
    logging: false  # Disable for production
    cli_args:
      # Core settings
      - "--datadir /nvme/reth"  # Fast NVMe storage
      - "--authrpc.jwtsecret /secrets/jwt.hex"
      - "--authrpc.addr 127.0.0.1"
      - "--authrpc.port 8551"
      
      # Archive node (required)
      - "--full false"
      
      # Performance tuning
      - "--db.log-level error"
      - "--max-outbound-peers 100"
      - "--max-inbound-peers 50"
      
      # Metrics
      - "--metrics 127.0.0.1:9001"
      
      # HTTP RPC (optional)
      - "--http"
      - "--http.addr 0.0.0.0"
      - "--http.port 8545"
      - "--http.api eth,net,web3,debug,trace"

Performance Considerations

Hardware Requirements

For optimal ExEx performance:

CPU: 8+ cores recommended
RAM: 32GB minimum, 64GB recommended
Storage: NVMe SSD with 2TB+ for mainnet archive
Network: Stable connection for peer synchronization

Best Practices

Use Archive Node: Run Reth in archive mode for ExEx.
Monitor Resources: Set up alerts for disk, CPU, and memory

Migration from Standard Mode

To migrate an existing project to ExEx:

Sync Reth Node: Ensure fully synced archive node
Update Config: Add reth section to networks
Reindex: Consider full reindex for consistency