Solana is one of the most rapidly growing and developing crypto ecosystems. It already became among the most popular ones, being second only to Ethereum and its L2 solutions. Running a mainnet Solana RPC node may be beneficial for Web3 developers creating apps and tokens on this chain. Using node providers like GetBlock saves them the time and money needed to set up the node.
What is a Solana node?
A Solana node is a server with its client and the current blockchain’s state, connected with other servers in the unified network. Each node is responsible for validating transactions and maintaining a copy of the blockchain ledger. They ensure network integrity and security by verifying transactions, following the consensus rules established by the Solana protocol.
There are three primary types of Solana nodes, similar to other chains: light nodes, full nodes, and archive nodes.
Light node
Light nodes are designed to download only essential information, such as block headers, rather than the entire blockchain. This makes them suitable for devices with limited resources, as they require less storage and bandwidth. While light nodes can validate transactions, they depend on full nodes for complete data verification. Their primary function is to facilitate faster transaction processing while contributing to network security through partial verification.
Full node
Full nodes maintain a complete copy of the blockchain and independently validate all transactions and blocks. These nodes play a crucial role in supporting the network’s integrity and decentralization by ensuring that all transactions conform to protocol rules. Only full nodes may become validators.
Full nodes require significant computational resources and storage capacity, as they must store the entire history of transactions from the genesis block onward. They also participate in consensus mechanisms, which involve proposing and voting on new blocks.
Archive node
Archive nodes are specialized full nodes that retain all historical data from the genesis block, including every transaction and state change. This extensive data storage allows archive nodes to serve specific use cases, such as providing data for block explorers and analytics platforms. Due to their large storage requirements, archive nodes aren’t widely used for general purposes.
Running a Solana node
Let’s look at Solana RPC node requirements to understand what we need for that.
Hardware requirements
The hardware specifications for running a Solana node vary depending on the type of node being deployed. Among blockchain nodes, Solana doesn’t need a lot of disk space due to its specific consensus mechanism, but it needs large RAM and high Internet bandwidth, as it’s highly computation-demanding.
So, let’s look at the full node requirements, according to its official docs.
- Multi-core CPU: Intel i7 or equivalent.
- Minimum 256 GB RAM, 512 GB is recommended.
- SSD with at least 1 TB of storage.
- Stable internet connection with a bandwidth of 50–100 Mbps.
Light nodes need much lower requirements, while archive nodes, needed for research purposes, require tens of TB of disk storage to store all of Solana’s history.
Software requirements
The software environment for running a Solana node includes the next list.
- Operating System: Linux (Ubuntu is commonly used).
- Solana CLI tools for managing node operations.
- Docker (optional) for containerized deployments.
- Additional dependencies as specified in Solana’s documentation.
All links and explanations can be found in Solana’s official documentation.
Running an RPC node
An RPC (Remote Procedure Call) node serves as an interface for decentralized applications (dApps) built on Solana. While RPC nodes do not participate in consensus like validators, they verify blocks and provide blockchain access for developers.
To run a Solana RPC node, one needs to set up a server and install the required packages for RPC communication, using Solana’s command line interface (CLI). After configuring the server according to the documentation, the RPC node starts synchronization and its API endpoint URL can be used to connect it with dApps.
Potential benefits of Solana node
Running a Solana node offers advantages, like low-fee transactions and much easier development. The Solana network is known for its low transaction fees compared to other blockchains, making it cost-effective for users.
Node operators can also participate in Solana validation and earn rewards in SOL tokens through transaction fees and staking, contributing actively to network security. However, it requires a large initial investment.
Solana node providers
For developers looking to streamline their operations, utilizing a Solana RPC node provider can be highly beneficial. These providers offer managed services that allow developers to access blockchain data without the overhead of maintaining their own infrastructure.
For example, GetBlock, one of such services, provides a Solana API endpoint that can be used in dApp development to call blockchain methods and realize required functionalities.
With that, developers can focus on building applications instead of managing complex node setups. Also, outsourcing RPC services decreases operational costs associated with hardware maintenance and server management. Therefore, leveraging external providers enhances productivity and reduces costs.
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