CurrentSlot

Storage Plain v101 → current

The current slot number for block production.

Queried by: validatorsdevelopersanalytics

The Big Picture

In Aura consensus, time is divided into slots. Each slot has a designated authority who should produce a block. CurrentSlot tells you which slot the chain is currently in. Combined with Authorities and SlotDuration, you can determine who should be producing blocks now.

Why This Matters

Which authority should produce the next block? (CurrentSlot % len(Authorities)) gives you the index. This is how Aura coordinates block production without explicit communication.

Example Scenario

Query CurrentSlot() returns 7891234. If there are 4 authorities, authority at index (7891234 % 4) = 2 should produce this slot's block.

Common Questions

How fast do slots advance?: One slot per SlotDuration milliseconds. At 12000ms (12 seconds), that's one slot per 12 seconds.
What if the expected authority doesn't produce?: The slot passes empty and the next slot begins. The chain continues with the next authority.
Is slot number the same as block number?: Not necessarily. If blocks are missed (empty slots), slot number advances faster than block number. Slot is time-based; block number counts actual blocks.

Use Cases

Determine which authority should produce the current block
Monitor block production timing
Debug consensus synchronization issues
Build block production monitoring tools
Research consensus behavior

From Chain Metadata

The current slot of this block. This will be set in `on_initialize`.

Purpose & Usage

Purpose

Track which slot we're in for Aura consensus - determines which authority should produce the current block.

Common Query Patterns

Query current slot
Calculate expected block producer
Monitor slot progression

Stored Value

Slot

Current slot number for Aura consensus

Code Examples

import { ApiPromise, WsProvider } from "@polkadot/api";
import { stringCamelCase } from "@polkadot/util";

const provider = new WsProvider("wss://entrypoint-finney.opentensor.ai:443");
const api = await ApiPromise.create({ provider });

// Query CurrentSlot storage (no keys - plain value)
const result = await api.query
  [stringCamelCase("Aura")]
  [stringCamelCase("CurrentSlot")]();
console.log("CurrentSlot:", result.toHuman());

Runtime Info

Pallet: Aura
Storage Kind: Plain
First Version: v101
Current Version: v393

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