Learn to build on Solana with Figment Learn

Solana 101

Solana

1 hour

Beginner

JS/TS

React

Rust

Next.js

Time Commitment

Difficulty

Programming Language

Technology

We no longer host the Pathway pages on this website, the content has moved to the `learn-web3-dapp` repository at <https://github.com/figment-networks/learn-web3-dapp#-get-started>.

The workflow for Pathways is easy to follow:

- Using the `learn-web3-dapp` code repository, you will be running a local development server (`yarn dev`)
- Each Pathway is accessible from the main page displayed when the development server is running
- Once you begin a Pathway, your completion progress is saved in the local storage of your web browser
- Each Pathway has a similar goal: To guide you through using various code libraries to work with different parts of the web3 stack
- Many of the individual steps of a Pathway provide you with coding challenges, so that you can learn by doing
- You will need to complete the code as explained in the instructions before moving on to the next step
- All of the coding challenges have solutions which are blurred until you click on them, to prevent you from being stuck
- Once you have completed a Pathway, you should have a working knowledge of that protocol which will help you tackle larger projects

For less experienced developers or for anybody who wants to dive in without needing to set up a development environment, **[we recommend using Gitpod](https://gitpod.io/#https://github.com/figment-networks/learn-web3-dapp)** to work with the `learn-web3-dapp` project (this requires you to have a GitHub account to sign in). Gitpod can save you a considerable amount of time, as you don't have to install dependencies or set up any software - everything just works! Gitpod provides you with a fully functional Visual Studio Code editor running in your browser, so you can jump right in. This is what it looks like: 

![Gitpod UI](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/figment-networks/learn-tutorials/master/assets/gitpod-firstlook.png?raw=true)

If you are an experienced developer, or if you prefer to use a different code editor, [cloning the repo locally](https://github.com/figment-networks/learn-web3-dapp#-clone-locally) is still possible, however you might encounter various system configuration issues depending on how your local environment is set up. It will be more difficult to develop on a Windows system than on Linux or MacOS, and there are also some known issues with developing Solana programs on Windows. It is strongly recommended to use the [Windows Subsystem for Linux](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install#manual-installation-steps) (WSL) if you are running Windows 10. 

If you are cloning the repo locally, a minimum of **NodeJS version 14.17 is required**. Some of the Pathways will require use of the [Rust toolchain](https://rustup.rs/). If you are developing on Linux, you will want to make sure you have the [build-essential](https://itsfoss.com/build-essential-ubuntu/) package installed, as the `cc` linker is required for compiling Solana programs.

Deploy a program

Create storage for the program

# What is Solana?

Solana is an open-source project implementing a new, high-performance, permissionless blockchain. The Solana Foundation is based in Geneva, Switzerland and maintains the open-source project. Its goal is to provide a platform that enables developers to create DApps without needing to design around performance bottlenecks. Solana features a new timestamp system called Proof-of-History (PoH) that enables automatically ordered transactions. It also uses a Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus algorithm to help secure the network. Additional design goals include sub-second settlement times, low transaction costs, and support for all LLVM compatible smart contract languages.

# **What can you build on Solana?**

Solana offers a highly scalable platform for Web 3 applications which can now unlock mainstream usage. There are already over 150 projects live on Solana, with a majority of DeFi projects, although NFTs, social apps, and games are starting to launch on the network.

# **The Solana network**

* **Transaction Fees** The network Cluster sets transaction fees based on recent processing history. Transaction fees on Solana are estimated at $10 for 1 million transactions.
* **Transaction Speed & Finality** : Solana can manage up to 65,000 transactions per second and block times at 400ms. This makes Solana one of the fastest production blockchain available, and 4,000 times faster than Ethereum.
* **Languages supported** : Solana applications are built on Rust, but also support C and C++.
* **EVM compatibility** : Solana is not EVM compatible but it offers [a bidirectional token bridge](https://solana.com/wormhole) between Solana and Ethereum so projects can move tokenized assets across blockchains.
* **Role of the SOL token** : The token is used to pay for the transaction fees in the network and to reward participant in the Proof of Stake consensus 


# Gentle introduction to Solanas

{% embed url="https://youtu.be/xiJEESddB5A" caption="Say Hello to Solana" %}

{% embed url="https://youtu.be/4dNuMXBjpr0" caption="Solana Core Concepts (Community Video)" %}



What is Solana?

Connect to Solana

Get the balance

🎓 Pathway complete!

Setup the project

Transfer some SOL

Get data from the program

We no longer host the Pathway pages on this website, the content has moved to the `learn-web3-dapp` repository at <https://github.com/figment-networks/learn-web3-dapp#-get-started>.

For less experienced developers or for anyone who wants to dive in without complicated setup, **[we recommend using Gitpod](https://gitpod.io/#https://github.com/figment-networks/learn-web3-dapp)** to work with the `learn-web3-dapp` project (this requires you to have a GitHub account to sign in). Gitpod can save you a considerable amount of time, as you don't have to install dependencies or set up a development environment - everything just works!

If you are an experienced developer, [cloning the repo locally](https://github.com/figment-networks/learn-web3-dapp#-clone-locally) is still possible, however you might encounter various system configuration issues depending on how your local environment is set up. A minimum of NodeJS version 14.17 is recommended, and you'll want to make sure you have the `build-essential` package installed. You'll also want to make sure your Rust toolchain is up to date and that you have the `wasm32-unknown-unknown` target triple set up and installed.


You can now access the Solana 101 Pathway on our GitHub repo.

The Solana Pathway has moved to learn-web3-dapp

Fund the account with SOL

Send data to the program