{"record":{"id":"044d62396eb457b5","repo":"nautechsystems/nautilus_trader","slug":"the-latest-block-is-empty","errorCode":null,"errorMessage":"The latest block is empty","messagePattern":"The latest block is empty","errorType":"exception","errorClass":"anyhow::Error","httpStatus":null,"severity":"error","filePath":"crates/adapters/dydx/src/grpc/client.rs","lineNumber":387,"sourceCode":"        let req = GetNodeInfoRequest {};\n        let info = self.base.get_node_info(req).await?.into_inner();\n        Ok(info)\n    }\n\n    /// Query for the latest block.\n    ///\n    /// # Errors\n    ///\n    /// Returns an error if the query fails.\n    pub async fn latest_block(&mut self) -> Result<Block, anyhow::Error> {\n        let req = GetLatestBlockRequest::default();\n        let latest_block = self\n            .base\n            .get_latest_block(req)\n            .await?\n            .into_inner()\n            .sdk_block\n            .ok_or_else(|| anyhow::anyhow!(\"The latest block is empty\"))?;\n        Ok(latest_block)\n    }\n\n    /// Query for the latest block height.\n    ///\n    /// # Errors\n    ///\n    /// Returns an error if the query fails.\n    pub async fn latest_block_height(&mut self) -> Result<Height, anyhow::Error> {\n        let latest_block = self.latest_block().await?;\n        let header = latest_block\n            .header\n            .ok_or_else(|| anyhow::anyhow!(\"The block doesn't contain a header\"))?;\n        let height = Height(header.height.try_into()?);\n        Ok(height)\n    }\n\n    /// Query for all perpetual markets.","sourceCodeStart":369,"sourceCodeEnd":405,"githubUrl":"https://github.com/nautechsystems/nautilus_trader/blob/18893faf8b356be3320add8de2f861b0b647cf06/crates/adapters/dydx/src/grpc/client.rs#L369-L405","documentation":"latest_block calls the base tendermint service's GetLatestBlock; `sdk_block` is an optional proto field that can be None if the node returns an empty/unsupported block payload. The library refuses to return an empty block to callers relying on block metadata.","triggerScenarios":"Calling latest_block (or latest_block_height) against a node that returns a response without sdk_block — typically a node not fully synced, a proxy/CDN stripping fields, or a proto version mismatch (tendermint vs cometbone field naming).","commonSituations":"Hitting a load-balanced RPC that routes to a lagging/starting node; version skew between the comet/tendermint proto crate and the node's runtime so `sdk_block` is populated under a different field.","solutions":["Retry after a short delay; a starting node will usually populate sdk_block once synced.","Switch to a known-good, fully synced gRPC endpoint.","Check proto crate versions (cometbone/tendermint-proto) match the dydx chain's CometBFT version.","Fall back to polling latest_block_height from a different endpoint if this one repeatedly returns empty blocks."],"exampleFix":"// before\nlet block = client.latest_block().await?;\n// after: retry transient empty responses\nlet block = loop {\n    match client.latest_block().await {\n        Ok(b) => break b,\n        Err(e) if e.to_string().contains(\"latest block is empty\") => tokio::time::sleep(Duration::from_millis(500)).await,\n        Err(e) => return Err(e),\n    }\n};","handlingStrategy":"retry","validationCode":null,"typeGuard":null,"tryCatchPattern":"for _ in 0..3 {\n    match client.latest_block().await {\n        Ok(b) => return Ok(b),\n        Err(e) if e.to_string().contains(\"latest block is empty\") => tokio::time::sleep(Duration::from_millis(500)).await,\n        Err(e) => return Err(e),\n    }\n}\nErr(anyhow!(\"latest block empty after retries\"))","preventionTips":["Use low-latency, fully synced RPC endpoints","Configure retry with backoff around block queries","Keep comet/tendermint proto crates aligned with the chain release"],"tags":["grpc","cosmos","block","node"],"backgroundTag":"unexpected-response-shape","analyzedSha":"18893faf8b356be3320add8de2f861b0b647cf06","analyzedAt":"2026-09-08T20:49:34.690Z","contentChangedAt":"2026-09-08T20:49:34.690Z","schemaVersion":2},"datasetVersion":"2026-09-14T05:17:10.506Z"}