returning a fixed size 2D array to web3.js

Question

I would like to return a 2D array from solidity code and look at it with web3.js

this is the solidity function:

uint8 [10][10][100][100] public blocks;
function getBlock(uint x, uint y) returns (uint8[10][10]) {
    if (x < blockStoreSide && y < blockStoreSide) {
        return blocks[x][y];
    }
}

but what I get back from getBlock in web3.js is this number:

0xf5027db1aeac4c95acf2c3c32651cfd3f5561906399e19bd14818a6c7cc2d9cb

My assumption is this is an address?

I tried web3.eth.getStorageAt for that address but I just get zeros, not what I actually set the value to.

the ABI looks okay to me:

{ constant: false,
  inputs: 
   [ { name: 'x', type: 'uint256' },
     { name: 'y', type: 'uint256' } ],
  name: 'getBlock',
  outputs: [ { name: '', type: 'uint8[10][10]' } ],
  type: 'function' }

So how do I actually read the storage? More general question, how can I efficiently read large amounts of storage?

Answer 1

The hex number you got back was a transaction hash. If you want to read from storage, you should add the constant keyword to your function:

uint8 [10][10][100][100] public blocks;     
function getBlock(uint x, uint y) constant returns (uint8[10][10]) {
    if (x < blockStoreSide && y < blockStoreSide) {
        return blocks[x][y]; 
    } 
}

Alternatively, you can use the call method.

myContract.getBlock.call(3,4)