From 0578da79904f9d31390ac4c78772624ad72d792d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: "codeflash-ai[bot]"
 <148906541+codeflash-ai[bot]@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Fri, 30 Jan 2026 09:03:21 +0000
Subject: [PATCH] Optimize list_get_by_index
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The optimized code achieves an **8% runtime improvement** by eliminating conditional dictionary mutation in favor of separate return paths based on the `ctx` parameter.

**Key Optimization:**

In the original code, a dictionary is always created with 4 keys, then conditionally mutated to add a 5th key (`CTX_KEY`) when `ctx` is truthy:
```python
op_dict = {OP_KEY: ..., BIN_KEY: ..., RETURN_TYPE_KEY: ..., INDEX_KEY: ...}
if ctx:
    op_dict[CTX_KEY] = ctx
return op_dict
```

The optimized version creates the dictionary once with the exact keys needed, avoiding the mutation step:
```python
if ctx:
    return {OP_KEY: ..., BIN_KEY: ..., RETURN_TYPE_KEY: ..., INDEX_KEY: ..., CTX_KEY: ctx}
return {OP_KEY: ..., BIN_KEY: ..., RETURN_TYPE_KEY: ..., INDEX_KEY: ...}
```

**Why This is Faster:**

1. **Eliminates dictionary mutation overhead**: The original code incurs the cost of `op_dict[CTX_KEY] = ctx` as a separate dictionary insertion operation, which requires rehashing and potential dictionary resizing checks.

2. **Predictable dictionary size**: Python can optimize dictionary creation when the final size is known upfront (literal dictionary construction), as opposed to incremental growth.

3. **Reduced bytecode operations**: The optimized version has fewer bytecode instructions—no intermediate variable assignment, no post-creation mutation.

**Performance Characteristics:**

Looking at the annotated tests, the optimization shows consistent improvements:
- **With ctx provided** (minority case, ~2% of calls): 8-18% faster (e.g., 2.79μs → 2.36μs)
- **Without ctx** (majority case, ~98% of calls): 2-18% faster (e.g., 2.43μs → 2.17μs)

The speedup is most pronounced when `ctx` is provided because the original code performed both dictionary creation AND mutation, while the optimized version only performs creation. For the no-ctx case, the benefit comes from avoiding the intermediate variable and having a more direct return path.

This optimization is particularly effective for this function since it appears to be a lightweight operation builder, likely called frequently when constructing Aerospike database operations. The 8% aggregate improvement scales well across all test scenarios.
---
 aerospike_helpers/operations/list_operations.py | 16 ++++++++++------
 1 file changed, 10 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)
 mode change 100755 => 100644 aerospike_helpers/operations/list_operations.py

diff --git a/aerospike_helpers/operations/list_operations.py b/aerospike_helpers/operations/list_operations.py
old mode 100755
new mode 100644
index 238929bd4a..ef3ff78a85
--- a/aerospike_helpers/operations/list_operations.py
+++ b/aerospike_helpers/operations/list_operations.py
@@ -489,18 +489,22 @@ def list_get_by_index(bin_name: str, index, return_type, ctx: Optional[list] = N
         A dictionary usable in :meth:`~aerospike.Client.operate` and :meth:`~aerospike.Client.operate_ordered`. The
         format of the dictionary should be considered an internal detail, and subject to change.
     """
-    op_dict = {
+    if ctx:
+        return {
+            OP_KEY: aerospike.OP_LIST_GET_BY_INDEX,
+            BIN_KEY: bin_name,
+            RETURN_TYPE_KEY: return_type,
+            INDEX_KEY: index,
+            CTX_KEY: ctx,
+        }
+    
+    return {
         OP_KEY: aerospike.OP_LIST_GET_BY_INDEX,
         BIN_KEY: bin_name,
         RETURN_TYPE_KEY: return_type,
         INDEX_KEY: index,
     }
 
-    if ctx:
-        op_dict[CTX_KEY] = ctx
-
-    return op_dict
-
 
 def list_get_by_index_range(bin_name: str, index, return_type, count=None, inverted=False, ctx: Optional[list] = None):
     """Create a list get index range operation.