papers/zip-0803-encrypted-sqlite-replication/sections/01-motivation.tex

\section{Motivation}


Zoo Network services are migrating from PostgreSQL to Hanzo Base
(per-org encrypted SQLite) following the Web5 local-first architecture
described in the Zoo research program~\cite{web5}.  SQLite provides
sub-microsecond read latency, per-tenant data isolation via
deterministic key derivation, and offline-first operation.

However, SQLite's single-writer model means each service instance
owns its database file.  Without replication:

\begin{enumerate}
\item A pod restart loses all data accumulated since the last
  PersistentVolumeClaim (PVC) snapshot.
\item Disaster recovery requires manual PVC restoration from
  cloud provider snapshots (minutes to hours).
\item Cross-region failover is impossible without an external
  replication mechanism.
\end{enumerate}

This proposal introduces continuous WAL streaming to S3 as the
replication primitive, providing:

\begin{itemize}
\item $\leq 1$\,s RPO via 1-second sync intervals
\item Seconds-scale RTO via init-container restore
\item At-rest encryption via \texttt{hanzoai/age}
\item Zero application code changes (sidecar pattern)
\end{itemize}