Solana Documentation
Solana is a blockchain built for mass adoption. It's a high performance network that is utilized for a range of use cases, including finance, NFTs, payments, and gaming. Solana operates as a single global state machine, and is open, interoperable and decentralized.
Getting started
Dive right into Solana to start building or setup your tooling.
- Setup local environment - Install the Solana CLI to get your local development environment setup
- Hello World in your browser - Build and deploy your first on-chain Solana program, directly in your browser using Solana Playground
Start learning
Build a strong understanding of the core concepts that make Solana different from other blockchains.
- Transactions - Collection of instructions for the blockchain to execute
- Accounts - Data and state storage mechanism for Solana
- Programs - The executable code used to perform actions on the blockchain
- Cross-Program Invocation - Core of the "composability" of Solana, this is how programs can "call" each other.
Understanding the architecture
Get to know the underlying architecture of how the proof-of-stake blockchain works.
- Validators - the individual nodes that are the backbone of the network
- Clusters - a collection of validators that work together for consensus
Running a validator
Explore what it takes to operate a Solana validator and help secure the network.
- System requirements - Recommended hardware requirements and expected SOL needed to operate a validator
- Quick start guide - Setup a validator and get connected to a cluster for the first time