@@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ ss-backend = "pebbledb"
 evm-ss-split = true
 ```
 
-<Warning>Keep `ss-backend = "pebbledb"` during this migration. RocksDB support for the state store will be deprecated and removed in upcoming Sei releases.</Warning>
+<Warning>Keep `ss-backend = "pebbledb"` during this migration. RocksDB support for the state store will be removed. No target release has been published.</Warning>
 
 ### Step 2: State sync into the new layout
 
 
@@ -89,6 +89,7 @@ sc-enable = true
 [state-store]
 # Historical SS layer for queries. Required for any node serving RPC.
 ss-enable = true
+# State-store backend. Use PebbleDB; RocksDB support will be removed.
 ss-backend = "pebbledb"
 # 0 = keep everything; 100,000 is roughly 28 hours of pacific-1 history.
 ss-keep-recent = 100000
@@ -104,7 +105,7 @@ The full unmodified `app.toml`, `config.toml`, and `client.toml` produced by
 `seid init` against the latest tagged `seid` release. Use these as the
 canonical reference for every available knob and its default value.
 
-<Warning>The generated `app.toml` below mirrors the latest tagged release and may still list RocksDB as a state-store option. Do not use RocksDB for new or resynced nodes. RocksDB support for the SeiDB state store will be deprecated and removed in upcoming Sei releases.</Warning>
+<Warning>The generated `app.toml` below mirrors the latest tagged release and may still list RocksDB as a state-store option. Do not use RocksDB for new or resynced nodes. RocksDB support for the SeiDB state store will be removed. No target release has been published.</Warning>
 
 <Tabs>
   <Tab title="app.toml">
@@ -1369,10 +1370,12 @@ legacy single-database IAVL store with separate hot- and historical-data tiers:
    modes is set to a non-default value.
 2. **State Store (SS)** — versioned raw key/value pairs used for historical
    queries. Required for any node that serves RPC. The default backend is
-   **PebbleDB**. RocksDB support for this layer will be deprecated and removed
-   in upcoming Sei releases. Use PebbleDB for new nodes. Before upgrading,
-   resync any node that uses RocksDB onto PebbleDB through
-   [state sync](/node/statesync) or a [PebbleDB snapshot](/node/snapshot).
+   **PebbleDB**. RocksDB support for this layer will be removed. No target
+   release has been published. Check the
+   [Sei release notes](https://github.com/sei-protocol/sei-chain/releases)
+   before each upgrade. Use PebbleDB for new nodes. Before upgrading, resync
+   any node that uses RocksDB onto PebbleDB through [state sync](/node/statesync)
+   or a [PebbleDB snapshot](/node/snapshot).
 
 The legacy IAVL backend is still selectable via `sc-enable = false` but is
 deprecated and slated for removal — new deployments and existing nodes
@@ -1424,7 +1427,7 @@ snapshot-keep-recent = 2
 # serving RPC must keep it on.
 ss-enable = true
 
-# Use the default PebbleDB backend.
+# Use PebbleDB. RocksDB support will be removed.
 ss-backend = "pebbledb"
 
 ss-async-write-buffer = 100
@@ -1448,6 +1451,21 @@ async-write-buffer = 100
 prune-interval-seconds = 600
 ```
 
+#### PebbleDB version encoding
+
+Fresh PebbleDB state stores use descending-version MVCC encoding. Sei includes
+the version in each key and sorts newer versions first. This lets
+latest-version reads reach the newest visible value without scanning older
+versions. The store records this format with the `s/_mvcc_descending` sentinel
+key, which `seid` detects automatically when it opens the database.
+
+PebbleDB state stores created by older builds use ascending-version encoding.
+`seid` detects these stores and opens them in compatibility mode without an
+error. They remain on the slower ascending read path. Rebuild the state store
+through [state sync](/node/statesync) with a current `seid` release to adopt
+descending encoding. A filesystem snapshot preserves the source store's
+encoding, so confirm its encoding with the snapshot provider.
+
 Setting small (more frequent) pruning intervals may collide with
 snapshot creation. Too-large (less frequent) intervals mean pruning takes
 longer overall, which can cause missed blocks and excessive resync time.
 
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ Follow this guide to join an existing network through **snapshot sync**. To quic
 
 Snapshot sync allows a new node to join a network by downloading a recent, compressed copy of the entire application state and extracting it directly into the data directory. This reduces the initial sync time from days to minutes.
 
-<Warning>RocksDB support for the SeiDB state store will be deprecated and removed in upcoming Sei releases. Use a PebbleDB snapshot for new or resynced nodes, and keep `ss-backend = "pebbledb"` in `app.toml`. If your node currently uses RocksDB, resync it onto PebbleDB before upgrading to a release without RocksDB support.</Warning>
+<Warning>RocksDB support for the SeiDB state store will be removed. No target release has been published. For new or resynced nodes, use a snapshot only after confirming that its state store uses PebbleDB. Keep `ss-backend = "pebbledb"` in `app.toml`.</Warning>
 
 ## Snapshot Providers
 
@@ -25,6 +25,10 @@ You can select from various providers for downloading snapshots:
 
 <iframe src="https://seistream.app/labs?page=snapshots" width="100%" height="600" style={{ border: 'none', borderRadius: '8px' }} title="Sei Snapshot Providers" />
 
+Snapshot providers do not consistently label the state-store backend. Follow
+the verification step below before you extract a snapshot. If you cannot
+identify the backend from the archive, ask the provider to confirm it.
+
 ## Clean Up & Preparation
 
 If you are **not** starting a node from fresh, perform the following backups and clean‑ups first.
@@ -81,21 +85,37 @@ sudo apt install curl lz4 wget aria2 pv -y
    SNAPSHOT_URL="<PASTE_SNAPSHOT_URL_HERE>"
    ```
 
-2. **Download and Extract**
-   Most providers compress the `data` and `wasm` directory directly. The following command streams the download and extracts it into `$HOME/.sei`.
+2. **Download, verify, and extract**
+   Most providers compress the `data` and `wasm` directories directly. Download the archive so you can inspect its state-store path before extraction:
+
+   ```bash
+   curl -L "$SNAPSHOT_URL" -o snapshot.tar.lz4
+
+   lz4 -c -d snapshot.tar.lz4 | tar -tf - | \
+     awk '/(^|\/)data\/(state_store\/cosmos\/)?(pebbledb|rocksdb)\// { print; exit }'
+   ```
+
+   The printed path must contain either `data/pebbledb/` or
+   `data/state_store/cosmos/pebbledb/`. Do not extract the archive if the path
+   contains `rocksdb` or the command prints no state-store path.
+
+   Extract the verified archive, then remove it:
 
    ```bash
-   curl -L $SNAPSHOT_URL | lz4 -c -d | tar -x -C $HOME/.sei
+   lz4 -c -d snapshot.tar.lz4 | tar -x -C $HOME/.sei
+   rm snapshot.tar.lz4
    ```
 
-   **Alternative: Parallel Download with aria2**
+   **Alternative: parallel download with aria2**
 
    For faster downloads, especially with large snapshots, you can use `aria2c` which supports parallel connections:
 
    ```bash
    # Download with 16 parallel connections
    aria2c -x 16 -s 16 -o snapshot.tar.lz4 $SNAPSHOT_URL
 
+   # Run the backend verification command above before extraction
+
    # Extract after download completes
    lz4 -c -d snapshot.tar.lz4 | tar -x -C $HOME/.sei
 
@@ -123,9 +143,14 @@ sudo apt install curl lz4 wget aria2 pv -y
    Make sure SeiDB is enabled and the state-store backend is PebbleDB:
 
    ```bash
-   sed -i.bak -E "/^\[state-commit\]/,/^\[.*\]/ s|^(sc-enable[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*).*$|\1true| ; /^\[state-store\]/,/^\[.*\]/ s|^(ss-enable[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*).*$|\1true| ; /^\[state-store\]/,/^\[.*\]/ s|^(ss-backend[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*).*$|\1\"pebbledb\"|" $HOME/.sei/config/app.toml
+   sed -i.bak -E "/^\[state-commit\]/,/^\[.*\]/ s|^[#[:space:]]*(sc-enable[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*).*$|\1true| ; /^\[state-store\]/,/^\[.*\]/ s|^[#[:space:]]*(ss-enable[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*).*$|\1true| ; /^\[state-store\]/,/^\[.*\]/ s|^[#[:space:]]*(ss-backend[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*).*$|\1\"pebbledb\"|" $HOME/.sei/config/app.toml
+
+   sed -n '/^\[state-store\]/,/^\[.*\]/p' $HOME/.sei/config/app.toml
    ```
 
+   Confirm that the output includes `ss-backend = "pebbledb"`. If the key is
+   absent, add it directly below `[state-store]` before you restart the node.
+
 5. **Restart the Node**
 
    ```bash
 
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ Follow this guide to join an existing network through statesync. To quickly spin
 
 State sync allows a new node to join a network by fetching a snapshot of the application state at a recent height instead of fetching and replaying all historical blocks. This can reduce the time needed to sync with the network from days to minutes.
 
-<Warning>RocksDB support for the SeiDB state store will be deprecated and removed in upcoming Sei releases. Set `ss-backend = "pebbledb"` before you start state sync, especially when rebuilding a node that previously used RocksDB.</Warning>
+<Warning>RocksDB support for the SeiDB state store will be removed. No target release has been published. Set `ss-backend = "pebbledb"` before you start state sync, especially when rebuilding a node that previously used RocksDB.</Warning>
 
 ## Clean Up
 
@@ -116,10 +116,16 @@ sed -i.bak -e "s|^persistent-peers *=.*|persistent-peers = \"$STATE_SYNC_PEER\"|
   $HOME/.sei/config/config.toml
 
 # Use PebbleDB for the SeiDB state store
-sed -i.bak -E '/^\[state-store\]/,/^\[.*\]/ s|^(ss-backend[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*).*$|\1"pebbledb"|' \
+sed -i.bak -E '/^\[state-store\]/,/^\[.*\]/ s|^[#[:space:]]*(ss-backend[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*).*$|\1"pebbledb"|' \
   $HOME/.sei/config/app.toml
+
+# Print the state-store section so you can verify the backend
+sed -n '/^\[state-store\]/,/^\[.*\]/p' $HOME/.sei/config/app.toml
 ```
 
+Confirm that the script output includes `ss-backend = "pebbledb"`. If the key
+is absent, add it directly below `[state-store]` before you start `seid`.
+
 Finally start the daemon:
 
 ```bash