Key Points
- Three consecutive mainnet failures struck Sui network during May 28 and May 29 due to a gas processing error.
- The Sui Foundation traced the problem to a newly implemented feature in version 1.72.
- Validator nodes crashed when specific transaction types triggered underflow errors in gas payment calculations.
- After resolving the gas issue, a randomness protocol malfunction prompted a third network interruption.
- The Sui Foundation confirmed all user assets remained secure and finalized transactions stayed intact throughout the disruptions.
The Sui blockchain encountered three separate mainnet disruptions stemming from a gas-related defect in its v1.72 upgrade, according to a detailed post-mortem report published by the Sui Foundation on Sunday.
The Sui Foundation’s analysis revealed that trouble began on May 28 when an uncommon transaction scenario exceeded the network’s gas parameters. The initial outage commenced around 7 a.m. Pacific Time and persisted for nearly seven hours.
Gas Processing Error Causes Initial Network Shutdown
The foundation explained that the malfunction occurred when transactions combined the newly introduced address-balance functionality with legacy coin objects. Validators experienced crashes when transactions with insufficient funds attempted to process gas payments through the compromised pathway.
Network operations resumed approximately 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time after engineers deployed a temporary solution. The foundation noted that while the emergency patch addressed the primary failure scenario, a small probability remained for additional disruptions.
That residual risk materialized on May 29. The foundation reported that a different transaction activated an alternate cancellation route that circumvented the initial fix. Engineers deployed a comprehensive solution, bringing validators back online around 9:40 a.m. Pacific Time.
A third disruption emerged when validators reinitialized. The foundation stated that validator engagement in Sui’s randomness protocol fell beneath threshold requirements, triggering an automatic system shutdown per design specifications.
Randomness Protocol Issue Creates Additional Delay
The foundation identified a previously undetected defect that prevented the deactivated randomness state from persisting to storage. Following subsequent restarts, validators could not detect that the randomness feature had been disabled.
The following epoch transition stalled for approximately six hours while randomness-dependent transactions remained queued. Applications requiring probabilistic functions, such as gaming platforms or randomized NFT minting, rely on this protocol.
The Sui Foundation emphasized that user assets remained protected throughout all outages and confirmed that completed transactions maintained their finality.
These recent disruptions contribute to Sui’s operational history following its 2023 mainnet deployment. Previous incidents include a two-hour transaction scheduling malfunction in November 2024 and a six-hour consensus protocol divergence in January 2026.
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