Solana Academy

Advanced Topics

Master cutting-edge blockchain technologies and advanced development patterns.

Course Navigation

MEV and Arbitrage Strategies

2 lessons

Understanding MEV

25 min

Maximal Extractable Value (MEV)

MEV refers to the maximum value that can be extracted from block production in excess of the standard block reward and gas fees.

Types of MEV:

  • Arbitrage: Price differences across exchanges
  • Liquidations: Liquidating undercollateralized positions
  • Sandwich Attacks: Front-running and back-running trades
  • Just-in-Time (JIT) Liquidity: Providing liquidity for specific trades

MEV on Solana:

  • Lower MEV due to parallel processing
  • Jito MEV marketplace for fair extraction
  • Leader rotation reduces centralization
  • Priority fees for transaction ordering

Arbitrage Implementation:

pub fn arbitrage_swap(
    ctx: Context,
    amount_in: u64,
    min_profit: u64,
) -> Result<()> {
    let initial_balance = get_token_balance(&ctx.accounts.trader_account)?;
    
    // Execute swap on DEX A
    swap_on_dex_a(ctx, amount_in)?;
    
    // Execute reverse swap on DEX B
    swap_on_dex_b(ctx, amount_in)?;
    
    let final_balance = get_token_balance(&ctx.accounts.trader_account)?;
    let profit = final_balance.checked_sub(initial_balance)?;
    
    require!(profit >= min_profit, ErrorCode::InsufficientProfit);
    
    Ok(())
}

MEV Protection Strategies:

  • Private mempools
  • Commit-reveal schemes
  • Time-weighted average prices
  • Batch auctions
theory

Flash Loans and Atomic Transactions

35 min

Flash Loan Implementation

Flash loans allow borrowing assets without collateral, provided the loan is repaid within the same transaction.

Flash Loan Mechanics:

  1. Borrow assets from lending pool
  2. Execute arbitrary logic with borrowed funds
  3. Repay loan plus fee
  4. Transaction reverts if repayment fails

Flash Loan Program:

#[program]
pub mod flash_loan {
    use super::*;
    
    pub fn flash_loan(
        ctx: Context,
        amount: u64,
        callback_data: Vec,
    ) -> Result<()> {
        let pool = &mut ctx.accounts.pool;
        let initial_balance = pool.total_liquidity;
        
        // Transfer tokens to borrower
        transfer_tokens(
            &ctx.accounts.pool_vault,
            &ctx.accounts.borrower_account,
            amount,
        )?;
        
        // Execute callback (borrower's logic)
        invoke_callback(ctx, callback_data)?;
        
        // Verify repayment
        let final_balance = get_pool_balance(&ctx.accounts.pool_vault)?;
        let fee = amount.checked_mul(pool.flash_loan_fee)? / 10000;
        let required_balance = initial_balance.checked_add(fee)?;
        
        require!(
            final_balance >= required_balance,
            ErrorCode::FlashLoanNotRepaid
        );
        
        pool.total_liquidity = final_balance;
        Ok(())
    }
}

Use Cases:

  • Arbitrage without initial capital
  • Collateral swapping
  • Liquidation assistance
  • Debt refinancing

Security Considerations:

Reentrancy Risk: Ensure callback functions cannot manipulate pool state before repayment verification.

interactive

Oracles and External Data

2 lessons

Price Oracles and Data Feeds

30 min

Oracle Integration

Oracles provide external data to smart contracts, enabling real-world connectivity.

Popular Solana Oracles:

  • Pyth Network: High-frequency financial data
  • Chainlink: Decentralized oracle network
  • Switchboard: Community-driven oracles
  • Flux: First-party oracle protocol

Pyth Integration Example:

use pyth_solana_receiver_sdk::price_update::{get_feed_id_from_hex, PriceUpdateV2};

#[derive(Accounts)]
pub struct GetPrice<'info> {
    pub price_update: Account<'info, PriceUpdateV2>,
}

pub fn get_sol_price(ctx: Context) -> Result<()> {
    let price_update = &ctx.accounts.price_update;
    let feed_id = get_feed_id_from_hex(
        "0xef0d8b6fda2ceba41da15d4095d1da392a0d2f8ed0c6c7bc0f4cfac8c280b56d"
    )?;
    
    let price = price_update.get_price_no_older_than(
        &Clock::get()?,
        60, // Max age in seconds
        &feed_id,
    )?;
    
    msg!("SOL price: ${}.{}", price.price / 100000000, price.price % 100000000);
    Ok(())
}

Oracle Security:

  • Price staleness checks
  • Multiple oracle aggregation
  • Circuit breakers for extreme prices
  • Confidence interval validation

Custom Oracle Implementation:

#[account]
pub struct PriceOracle {
    pub authority: Pubkey,
    pub price: u64,
    pub confidence: u64,
    pub last_updated: i64,
    pub min_publishers: u8,
    pub publishers: Vec,
}

pub fn update_price(
    ctx: Context,
    price: u64,
    confidence: u64,
) -> Result<()> {
    let oracle = &mut ctx.accounts.oracle;
    let clock = Clock::get()?;
    
    // Verify publisher authority
    require!(
        oracle.publishers.contains(&ctx.accounts.publisher.key()),
        ErrorCode::UnauthorizedPublisher
    );
    
    // Update price data
    oracle.price = price;
    oracle.confidence = confidence;
    oracle.last_updated = clock.unix_timestamp;
    
    Ok(())
}
interactive

Cross-Chain Bridges and Interoperability

40 min

Cross-Chain Bridge Architecture

Enable asset transfers and communication between Solana and other blockchains.

Bridge Types:

  • Lock and Mint: Lock assets on source, mint on destination
  • Burn and Mint: Burn on source, mint on destination
  • Atomic Swaps: Direct peer-to-peer exchanges
  • Liquidity Networks: Shared liquidity pools

Wormhole Integration:

use wormhole_anchor_sdk::wormhole;

#[derive(Accounts)]
pub struct TransferOut<'info> {
    #[account(mut)]
    pub payer: Signer<'info>,
    
    #[account(mut)]
    pub config: Account<'info, Config>,
    
    #[account(mut)]
    pub wormhole_bridge: Account<'info, BridgeData>,
    
    #[account(mut)]
    pub wormhole_message: Signer<'info>,
    
    pub wormhole_program: Program<'info, wormhole::program::Wormhole>,
}

pub fn transfer_out(
    ctx: Context,
    amount: u64,
    target_chain: u16,
    target_address: [u8; 32],
) -> Result<()> {
    // Lock tokens in escrow
    lock_tokens(&ctx.accounts.token_account, amount)?;
    
    // Create Wormhole message
    let message = TokenTransferMessage {
        amount,
        token_address: ctx.accounts.mint.key().to_bytes(),
        target_chain,
        target_address,
    };
    
    // Post message to Wormhole
    wormhole::post_message(
        CpiContext::new(
            ctx.accounts.wormhole_program.to_account_info(),
            wormhole::PostMessage {
                config: ctx.accounts.wormhole_bridge.to_account_info(),
                message: ctx.accounts.wormhole_message.to_account_info(),
                emitter: ctx.accounts.config.to_account_info(),
                sequence: ctx.accounts.sequence.to_account_info(),
                payer: ctx.accounts.payer.to_account_info(),
                fee_collector: ctx.accounts.fee_collector.to_account_info(),
                clock: ctx.accounts.clock.to_account_info(),
                rent: ctx.accounts.rent.to_account_info(),
                system_program: ctx.accounts.system_program.to_account_info(),
            },
        ),
        0, // Nonce
        message.try_to_vec()?,
        wormhole::Finality::Confirmed,
    )?;
    
    Ok(())
}

Security Considerations:

  • Guardian signature verification
  • Replay attack prevention
  • Rate limiting and caps
  • Emergency pause mechanisms

Popular Solana Bridges:

  • Wormhole (Multi-chain)
  • Allbridge (Cross-chain DeFi)
  • Portal Bridge (Token transfers)
  • Neon EVM (Ethereum compatibility)
theory

Governance and DAO Development

2 lessons

DAO Architecture and Governance

45 min

Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO)

Build governance systems that enable decentralized decision-making and treasury management.

DAO Components:

  • Governance Token: Voting power representation
  • Proposal System: Submit and vote on proposals
  • Treasury Management: Manage DAO funds
  • Execution Engine: Implement approved proposals

Governance Token Structure:

#[account]
pub struct GovernanceToken {
    pub mint: Pubkey,
    pub total_supply: u64,
    pub voting_power_multiplier: u64,
    pub lock_period: i64,
    pub delegation_enabled: bool,
}

#[account]
pub struct VotingEscrow {
    pub owner: Pubkey,
    pub amount: u64,
    pub lock_end: i64,
    pub voting_power: u64,
    pub delegate: Option,
}

Proposal Lifecycle:

#[account]
pub struct Proposal {
    pub id: u64,
    pub proposer: Pubkey,
    pub title: String,
    pub description: String,
    pub start_time: i64,
    pub end_time: i64,
    pub yes_votes: u64,
    pub no_votes: u64,
    pub abstain_votes: u64,
    pub quorum_threshold: u64,
    pub approval_threshold: u64,
    pub status: ProposalStatus,
    pub executable_instructions: Vec,
}

#[derive(AnchorSerialize, AnchorDeserialize, Clone, PartialEq, Eq)]
pub enum ProposalStatus {
    Draft,
    Active,
    Succeeded,
    Defeated,
    Executed,
    Cancelled,
}

Voting Implementation:

pub fn cast_vote(
    ctx: Context,
    vote: VoteChoice,
) -> Result<()> {
    let proposal = &mut ctx.accounts.proposal;
    let voter_escrow = &ctx.accounts.voter_escrow;
    let clock = Clock::get()?;
    
    // Validate voting period
    require!(
        clock.unix_timestamp >= proposal.start_time &&
        clock.unix_timestamp <= proposal.end_time,
        ErrorCode::VotingPeriodInactive
    );
    
    // Calculate voting power
    let voting_power = calculate_voting_power(voter_escrow, &clock)?;
    
    // Record vote
    match vote {
        VoteChoice::Yes => proposal.yes_votes += voting_power,
        VoteChoice::No => proposal.no_votes += voting_power,
        VoteChoice::Abstain => proposal.abstain_votes += voting_power,
    }
    
    // Create vote record to prevent double voting
    let vote_record = &mut ctx.accounts.vote_record;
    vote_record.voter = ctx.accounts.voter.key();
    vote_record.proposal = proposal.key();
    vote_record.vote = vote;
    vote_record.voting_power = voting_power;
    
    Ok(())
}

Treasury Management:

  • Multi-signature treasury accounts
  • Spending proposals and limits
  • Automated fund distribution
  • Investment strategy execution
interactive

Advanced Governance Mechanisms

35 min

Sophisticated Governance Models

Explore advanced governance mechanisms for complex organizational structures.

Quadratic Voting:

Voting system where the cost of votes increases quadratically.

pub fn calculate_quadratic_cost(votes: u64) -> u64 {
    votes.checked_mul(votes).unwrap_or(u64::MAX)
}

pub fn cast_quadratic_vote(
    ctx: Context,
    votes: u64,
) -> Result<()> {
    let cost = calculate_quadratic_cost(votes);
    let voter = &mut ctx.accounts.voter;
    
    require!(voter.credits >= cost, ErrorCode::InsufficientCredits);
    
    voter.credits -= cost;
    ctx.accounts.proposal.votes += votes;
    
    Ok(())
}

Conviction Voting:

Voting power increases over time based on conviction strength.

Futarchy:

Prediction market-based governance where policies are chosen based on predicted outcomes.

Liquid Democracy:

  • Delegate voting power to experts
  • Revoke delegation at any time
  • Transitive delegation chains
  • Topic-specific delegation

Multi-Tier Governance:

#[account]
pub struct GovernanceRealm {
    pub council: Pubkey,           // Technical council
    pub community: Pubkey,         // Community governance
    pub council_weight: u64,       // Council voting weight
    pub community_weight: u64,     // Community voting weight
    pub min_council_tokens: u64,   // Min tokens for council proposals
    pub min_community_tokens: u64, // Min tokens for community proposals
}

Governance Attacks and Defenses:

  • Flash Loan Governance: Prevent with time locks
  • Whale Manipulation: Quadratic voting, delegation caps
  • Proposal Spam: Minimum token requirements
  • Execution Delays: Timelock for critical changes
theory

Performance and Scalability

2 lessons

Parallel Transaction Processing

35 min

Solana's Parallel Execution Model

Understanding how Solana achieves high throughput through parallel transaction processing.

Sealevel Runtime:

  • Parallel execution of non-conflicting transactions
  • Account-based conflict detection
  • Optimistic execution with rollback
  • Multi-core CPU utilization

Transaction Conflicts:

// Conflicting transactions (sequential execution)
Transaction A: Modifies Account X
Transaction B: Modifies Account X
// These must execute sequentially

// Non-conflicting transactions (parallel execution)
Transaction A: Modifies Account X
Transaction B: Modifies Account Y
// These can execute in parallel

Optimizing for Parallelism:

  • Minimize shared state between transactions
  • Use separate accounts for different users
  • Avoid global state modifications
  • Design for account-level isolation

Batching Strategies:

// Efficient batching pattern
pub fn batch_process_users(
    ctx: Context,
    user_data: Vec,
) -> Result<()> {
    // Each user update operates on separate accounts
    // Enables parallel processing across different users
    for (i, update) in user_data.iter().enumerate() {
        let user_account = &mut ctx.remaining_accounts[i];
        process_user_update(user_account, update)?;
    }
    Ok(())
}

Memory Pool Optimization:

  • Gulf Stream mempool-less forwarding
  • Transaction prioritization
  • Leader schedule optimization
  • Network propagation efficiency
interactive

State Compression and Merkle Trees

40 min

Solana State Compression

Revolutionary approach to storing large amounts of data efficiently using Merkle trees.

Compression Benefits:

  • Dramatically reduced storage costs
  • Scalable to millions of items
  • Maintains cryptographic security
  • Enables new use cases (large NFT collections)

Merkle Tree Implementation:

use spl_account_compression::{
    program::SplAccountCompression,
    cpi::{accounts::Modify, modify},
    Noop,
};

#[derive(Accounts)]
pub struct CreateCompressedNFT<'info> {
    #[account(mut)]
    pub tree_authority: Account<'info, TreeConfig>,
    
    #[account(mut)]
    pub merkle_tree: UncheckedAccount<'info>,
    
    pub leaf_owner: UncheckedAccount<'info>,
    pub leaf_delegate: UncheckedAccount<'info>,
    
    pub compression_program: Program<'info, SplAccountCompression>,
    pub log_wrapper: Program<'info, Noop>,
}

pub fn create_compressed_nft(
    ctx: Context,
    metadata: MetadataArgs,
) -> Result<()> {
    let leaf_hash = hash_metadata(&metadata)?;
    
    // Add leaf to Merkle tree
    modify(
        CpiContext::new(
            ctx.accounts.compression_program.to_account_info(),
            Modify {
                authority: ctx.accounts.tree_authority.to_account_info(),
                merkle_tree: ctx.accounts.merkle_tree.to_account_info(),
                noop: ctx.accounts.log_wrapper.to_account_info(),
            },
        ),
        0, // Root
        leaf_hash,
        0, // Index
    )?;
    
    Ok(())
}

Proof Generation and Verification:

// Generate Merkle proof for ownership verification
pub fn verify_compressed_nft_ownership(
    ctx: Context,
    proof: Vec<[u8; 32]>,
    leaf_index: u32,
) -> Result<()> {
    let merkle_tree = &ctx.accounts.merkle_tree;
    let leaf_hash = hash_nft_data(&ctx.accounts.nft_data)?;
    
    // Verify Merkle proof
    let computed_root = compute_merkle_root(leaf_hash, &proof, leaf_index)?;
    let stored_root = get_merkle_tree_root(merkle_tree)?;
    
    require!(computed_root == stored_root, ErrorCode::InvalidProof);
    
    Ok(())
}

Use Cases:

  • Compressed NFT collections (millions of NFTs)
  • Efficient airdrop mechanisms
  • Scalable loyalty programs
  • Large-scale gaming assets

Trade-offs:

Consideration: Compressed data requires proof generation for access, adding complexity but enabling massive scale.

interactive

Enterprise Development Patterns

2 lessons

Microservices and Program Composition

35 min

Microservices on Solana

Design modular, composable programs that work together to create complex systems.

Program Composition Patterns:

  • Core-Plugin Architecture: Base program with extensible plugins
  • Service-Oriented: Specialized programs for specific functions
  • Layered Architecture: Infrastructure, business logic, and presentation layers

Inter-Program Communication:

// Program A calls Program B
use program_b::cpi::accounts::ProcessData;
use program_b::cpi::process_data;
use program_b::program::ProgramB;

pub fn orchestrate_workflow(
    ctx: Context,
    data: WorkflowData,
) -> Result<()> {
    // Step 1: Validate input
    validate_workflow_data(&data)?;
    
    // Step 2: Call Program B for processing
    let cpi_accounts = ProcessData {
        data_account: ctx.accounts.shared_data.to_account_info(),
        authority: ctx.accounts.authority.to_account_info(),
    };
    
    let cpi_ctx = CpiContext::new(
        ctx.accounts.program_b.to_account_info(),
        cpi_accounts,
    );
    
    process_data(cpi_ctx, data.processing_params)?;
    
    // Step 3: Update local state
    ctx.accounts.workflow_state.status = WorkflowStatus::Completed;
    
    Ok(())
}

Event-Driven Architecture:

// Event emission for cross-program coordination
#[event]
pub struct WorkflowCompleted {
    pub workflow_id: u64,
    pub result_hash: [u8; 32],
    pub timestamp: i64,
}

// Listening program can react to events
pub fn handle_workflow_completion(
    ctx: Context,
    workflow_id: u64,
) -> Result<()> {
    // React to workflow completion
    let handler = &mut ctx.accounts.event_handler;
    handler.process_completion(workflow_id)?;
    Ok(())
}

Upgrade Coordination:

  • Version compatibility matrices
  • Backward compatibility guarantees
  • Coordinated upgrade schedules
  • Rollback procedures

Monitoring and Observability:

  • Program metrics collection
  • Cross-program tracing
  • Performance monitoring
  • Error aggregation and alerting
theory

Enterprise Security Patterns

40 min

Enterprise-Grade Security

Implement robust security patterns suitable for enterprise blockchain applications.

Multi-Signature Governance:

#[account]
pub struct MultiSigWallet {
    pub owners: Vec,
    pub threshold: u8,
    pub nonce: u64,
    pub pending_transactions: Vec,
}

#[derive(AnchorSerialize, AnchorDeserialize, Clone)]
pub struct PendingTransaction {
    pub id: u64,
    pub to: Pubkey,
    pub data: Vec,
    pub value: u64,
    pub confirmations: Vec,
    pub executed: bool,
}

pub fn confirm_transaction(
    ctx: Context,
    transaction_id: u64,
) -> Result<()> {
    let wallet = &mut ctx.accounts.multisig_wallet;
    let signer = ctx.accounts.signer.key();
    
    // Verify signer is owner
    require!(wallet.owners.contains(&signer), ErrorCode::NotOwner);
    
    // Find transaction
    let tx = wallet.pending_transactions
        .iter_mut()
        .find(|tx| tx.id == transaction_id)
        .ok_or(ErrorCode::TransactionNotFound)?;
    
    // Add confirmation if not already confirmed
    if !tx.confirmations.contains(&signer) {
        tx.confirmations.push(signer);
    }
    
    // Execute if threshold reached
    if tx.confirmations.len() >= wallet.threshold as usize && !tx.executed {
        execute_transaction(ctx, tx)?;
        tx.executed = true;
    }
    
    Ok(())
}

Role-Based Access Control:

#[account]
pub struct AccessControl {
    pub admin: Pubkey,
    pub roles: HashMap,
    pub permissions: HashMap>,
}

#[derive(AnchorSerialize, AnchorDeserialize, Clone, PartialEq, Eq, Hash)]
pub enum Role {
    Admin,
    Operator,
    Auditor,
    User,
}

#[derive(AnchorSerialize, AnchorDeserialize, Clone, PartialEq, Eq)]
pub enum Permission {
    CreateAccount,
    ModifySettings,
    ViewData,
    ExecuteTransaction,
}

pub fn check_permission(
    access_control: &AccessControl,
    user: &Pubkey,
    required_permission: Permission,
) -> Result<()> {
    let user_role = access_control.roles.get(user)
        .ok_or(ErrorCode::NoRole)?;
    
    let permissions = access_control.permissions.get(user_role)
        .ok_or(ErrorCode::RoleNotConfigured)?;
    
    require!(
        permissions.contains(&required_permission),
        ErrorCode::InsufficientPermissions
    );
    
    Ok(())
}

Audit Trail Implementation:

#[account]
pub struct AuditLog {
    pub entries: Vec,
    pub max_entries: u32,
}

#[derive(AnchorSerialize, AnchorDeserialize, Clone)]
pub struct AuditEntry {
    pub timestamp: i64,
    pub actor: Pubkey,
    pub action: String,
    pub resource: Pubkey,
    pub details: String,
    pub success: bool,
}

pub fn log_action(
    audit_log: &mut AuditLog,
    actor: Pubkey,
    action: &str,
    resource: Pubkey,
    success: bool,
) -> Result<()> {
    let entry = AuditEntry {
        timestamp: Clock::get()?.unix_timestamp,
        actor,
        action: action.to_string(),
        resource,
        details: "".to_string(),
        success,
    };
    
    // Maintain circular buffer
    if audit_log.entries.len() >= audit_log.max_entries as usize {
        audit_log.entries.remove(0);
    }
    
    audit_log.entries.push(entry);
    Ok(())
}

Compliance Features:

  • Immutable audit trails
  • Data retention policies
  • Privacy controls (GDPR compliance)
  • Regulatory reporting capabilities
theory