{
  "status": "unknown",
  "advantages": [],
  "limitations": [],
  "supersedes": [],
  "supersededBy": [],
  "firstSeen": null,
  "lastSeen": null,
  "updated": "2026-11-11",
  "slug": "dotted-version-vector",
  "term": "Dotted version vector",
  "aliases": [
    "DVV",
    "Dotted version vectors"
  ],
  "definition": "A dotted version vector separates an update's unique actor-counter identifier from the version vector summarizing its causal past.",
  "note": "The separate identifier is the dot. It can lie beyond the contiguous prefix without including the intervening events. [dvv2010]\n\nThe 2012 manuscript's constant-time comparison assumes valid causal histories: including an event also includes its past. It is not validation of arbitrary imported metadata. [dvv2012]\n\nRiak KV 2.0.4 associates each value with its generating update to avoid false sibling duplication. Clients return the opaque context when updating; real conflicts still need resolution. [riak-dvv]\n\nDVVSet is a multi-value representation. The authors' DVVSetAck variant preserves gaps when acknowledging a write, avoiding a context that silently covers unread siblings. This variant is not a universal Riak API promise. [dvvset]",
  "related": [
    "version-vector",
    "causal-consistency",
    "read-repair"
  ],
  "citations": [
    {
      "id": "dvv2010",
      "title": "Preguica et al. Dotted Version Vectors: Logical Clocks for Optimistic Replication (2010), sections 3-5.",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/1011.5808",
      "accessed": "2026-11-11"
    },
    {
      "id": "dvv2012",
      "title": "Preguica et al. Dotted Version Vectors: Efficient Causality Tracking for Distributed Key-Value Stores. Author-hosted manuscript (2012), sections IV-A/B and V.",
      "url": "https://gsd.di.uminho.pt/members/vff/dotted-version-vectors-2012.pdf",
      "accessed": "2026-11-11"
    },
    {
      "id": "riak-dvv",
      "title": "Riak KV 2.0.4: Causal Context, DVVs Versus Vector Clocks and Usage.",
      "url": "https://docs.riak.com/riak/kv/2.0.4/learn/concepts/causal-context/",
      "accessed": "2026-11-11"
    },
    {
      "id": "dvvset",
      "title": "Ricardo Goncalves: Dotted Version Vector Sets, pinned author notes, including acknowledgement variants.",
      "url": "https://github.com/ricardobcl/Dotted-Version-Vectors/blob/27fd1225c10a7dc4890e5e55abddf6db2392f6cc/README.md",
      "accessed": "2026-11-11"
    },
    {
      "id": "hesela-dotted",
      "title": "Hesela: same server, concurrent versions",
      "url": "https://hesela.com/analyses/replica-repair-coverage/#dotted-history",
      "accessed": "2026-11-11"
    }
  ],
  "provenance": [
    "Reviewed against the 2010 preprint, separately identified 2012 author manuscript, versioned Riak documentation and commit-pinned author notes. No Riak execution or benchmark replication."
  ]
}