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Metrics Methodology

Optimum Gateway telemetry follows a two-layer design: gateways emit raw per-block events, and Bootstrap computes stable KPIs from those events.

Capture the Critical Path

The system sits in the hot path of validator rewards: blocks, attestations, and gossip messages passing between Ethereum CL clients and the Optimum network acceleration layer. We need visibility into three things:

  • Throughput → Are we carrying the expected traffic volume?
  • Latency → Are we delivering faster than vanilla libp2p?
  • Reliability → Are we dropping or mangling messages?

Hence metrics are anchored at the ingress (CL → Gateway) and egress (Gateway → Optimum) points, and mirrored on the reverse path.

Two-Layer Architecture

Gateway (raw events)

Gateways report raw timestamps per block:

  • t_eth_seen_ms – First time this gateway saw the block via libp2p
  • t_mum_seen_ms – First time this gateway saw the block via mump2p
  • t_mum_published_ms – Time this gateway published the block into mump2p (if publisher)

Plus:

  • Per-topic message counters (libp2p, mump2p)
  • Peer connectivity gauges
  • Block metadata (slot, proposer index, block size)

These are operational signals. Raw libp2p vs mump2p deltas are debug only—they are not stable KPIs for validator outcomes.

Bootstrap (computed KPIs)

Bootstrap aggregates raw events and computes stable baselines. It publishes histograms (p50/p95/p99) and coverage ratios.

Global first-seen: gap to best-in-population

For each block, Bootstrap defines:

  • t_any_seen(g) = earliest time gateway g saw the block (libp2p or mump2p)
  • t_global_first_seen = earliest time any gateway saw the block
  • gap_to_best_ms(g) = t_any_seen(g) - t_global_first_seen

Answers: How close is this gateway to best-in-population? Independent of proposer publish timing.

mump2p spread from first publisher (transport quality)

Once a block has entered mump2p, Bootstrap measures how fast other gateways see it:

  • t_mum_enter_first = time the first gateway published the block into mump2p
  • mum_spread_ms(g) = t_mum_seen(g) - t_mum_enter_first (only when gateway received via mump2p)

Answers: After the block enters Optimum, how quickly do other gateways receive it?

Measure Each Layer Separately

Message Counters

Counters per topic (libp2p, mump2p) to isolate heavy topics.

Latency KPIs (Bootstrap)

  • gap_to_best_ms – Delay vs best observed first-seen time in the gateway population (independent of proposer publish timing)
  • mum_spread_ms – Delay from first mump2p publish to receiver (Optimum transport quality)

Peer Connectivity

Gauges for peer counts, counters for connect/disconnect events (gateway-level).

Error Signals

Counters for bad messages (decode failures, failed publishes).

Enable Operations & Research

Metrics support uptime dashboards, validator ROI analysis, and protocol research.

See Metrics Reference.