Upgrade frequency (per 90 days)
A post-deploy hygiene & change mgmt factor in the v1.7.0 rubric. Measured per protocol on a e cadence.
Methodology how we score #
**What this measures** This factor counts the number of distinct contract upgrades executed for the protocol's core contracts in the trailing 90-day window. The count is derived from on-chain Upgraded events emitted by UUPS or transparent proxy contracts, or equivalent upgrade-execution events for other proxy patterns. High upgrade frequency is a proxy for ongoing development activity on production contracts — an elevated surface area for post-audit code changes.
**Why it matters** Upgrade frequency is an operational hygiene indicator: protocols that upgrade frequently are making ongoing changes to live production code, each of which represents a potential introduction of unreviewed vulnerability. A protocol that upgrades its core lending contracts six times in 90 days has introduced six windows during which post-audit changes may be unreviewed (assessed separately under RD-F-139). High upgrade frequency also signals that the codebase is not in a stabilized state, which correlates with lower battle-test confidence. This factor is displayed as a count rather than a pass/fail to give context to the RD-F-139 assessment.
**Green / Yellow / Red** Green is assigned when the upgrade count is 0 or 1 in the trailing 90 days, indicating a stable deployed codebase. Yellow covers 2–4 upgrades in 90 days with all changes documented via release notes or governance proposals. Red is assigned when 5 or more upgrades have been executed in the trailing 90 days, or when upgrades are occurring without publicly documented justification.
**Common gray cases** This factor is grayed when the protocol uses immutable (non-upgradeable) contracts, where an upgrade count of zero is structural rather than behavioral.
**Notable historical examples** No cross-hacked incidents currently linked in database for this factor.
Measurement what to look for #
Count the number of contract upgrades in the trailing 90 days via on-chain upgrade events.