rocksdb-single-delete · shipping · also SingleDelete, single deletion (RocksDB)

RocksDB SingleDelete

RocksDB SingleDelete is a point-deletion operation whose restricted write-history contract permits paired removal of its marker and matching value during compaction.

The v9.7.3 API requires one Put per SingleDelete cycle, without overwrites; ordinary Delete and Merge must not be mixed into that key's history. A successful current lookup cannot establish this history. [1]

Pair removal still respects read snapshots and transaction conflict checking. Upstream tests separate a snapshot that needs the old value from conflict retention that keeps records while clearing the value. These are reviewed source expectations, not a Hesela engine run. [2]

The v9.7.3 enforce_single_del_contracts option defaults to true for the documented SD/Delete compaction mismatch. Disabling it does not validate the history. This check is not a complete audit of every caller precondition. [3]

Relations

related

LSM tombstone, RocksDB read snapshot, LSM compaction, Sorted string table

Citations

1. RocksDB v9.7.3. db.h: SingleDelete caller contract. (accessed 2026-10-20)
2. RocksDB v9.7.3. Compaction iterator tests: snapshot boundaries and write-conflict retention. (accessed 2026-10-20)
3. RocksDB v9.7.3. options.h: enforce_single_del_contracts. (accessed 2026-10-20)

Further reading

4. Hesela: SingleDelete history and compaction retention. (accessed 2026-10-20)

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