Installation

Install Rust #

Solana programs are written in the Rust programming language.

The recommended installation method for Rust is rustup.

Run the following command to install Rust:

curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh -s -- -y

You should see the following message after the installation completes:

Run the following command to reload your PATH environment variable to include Cargo's bin directory:

. "$HOME/.cargo/env"

To verify that the installation was successful, check the Rust version:

rustc --version

You should see output similar to the following:

rustc 1.80.1 (3f5fd8dd4 2024-08-06)

Install the Solana CLI #

The Solana CLI provides all the tools required to build and deploy Solana programs.

Install the Solana CLI tool suite using the official install command:

sh -c "$(curl -sSfL https://release.anza.xyz/stable/install)"

You can replace stable with the release tag matching the software version of your desired release (i.e. v2.0.3), or use one of the three symbolic channel names: stable, beta, or edge.

If it is your first time installing the Solana CLI, you may see the following message prompting you to add a PATH environment variable:

Close and reopen your terminal to apply the PATH changes or run the following in your existing shell:
 
export PATH="/Users/test/.local/share/solana/install/active_release/bin:$PATH"

export PATH="$HOME/.local/share/solana/install/active_release/bin:$PATH"

To verify that the installation was successful, check the Solana CLI version:

solana --version

You should see output similar to the following:

solana-cli 1.18.22 (src:9efdd74b; feat:4215500110, client:Agave)

You can view all available versions on the Agave Github repo.

To later update the Solana CLI to the latest version, you can use the following command:

agave-install update

Install Anchor CLI #

Anchor is a framework for developing Solana programs. The Anchor framework leverages Rust macros to simplify the process of writing Solana programs.

There are two ways to install the Anchor CLI and tooling:

1. Using Anchor Version Manager (AVM) - the is the recommended installation method since it simplifies updating Anchor versions in the future
2. Without AVM - this requires more a manual process to update Anchor versions later

cargo install --git https://github.com/coral-xyz/anchor avm --force

avm --version

avm install latest
avm use latest

avm install 0.30.1
avm use 0.30.1

You may see the following warning during installation. However, it does not affect the installation process.

To verify that the installation was successful, check the Ancor CLI version:

anchor --version

You should see output similar to the following:

anchor-cli 0.30.1

If you encounter the error type annotations needed for Box<_> when installing the Anchor CLI, try changing your Rust version to 1.79.0 and attempt the installation again.

Run the following command to install Rust 1.79.0:

rustup default 1.79.0

When installing the Anchor CLI on Linux or WSL, you may encounter this error:

error: could not exec the linker cc = note: Permission denied (os error 13)

If you see this error message, follow these steps:

1. Install the dependencies listed in the Linux section at the top of this page.
2. Retry installing the Anchor CLI.

Node.js and Yarn #

Node.js and Yarn are required to run the default Anchor project test file (TypeScript) created with the anchor init command. (Rust test template is also available using anchor init --test-template rust)

When running anchor build, if you encounter error: not a directory similar following:

error: not a directory: '.../solana-release/bin/sdk/sbf/dependencies/platform-tools/rust/lib'

Try these solutions:

1. Force install using the following command:

cargo build-sbf --force-tools-install

2. If the above doesn't work, clear the Solana cache:

rm -rf ~/.cache/solana/*

After applying either solution, attempt to run anchor build again.

If you are on Linux or WSL and encounter the following errors when running anchor test after creating a new Anchor project, it's may be due to missing Node.js or Yarn:

Permission denied (os error 13)

No such file or directory (os error 2)

Solana Config #

To see your current config:

solana config get

You should see output similar to the following:

Config File: /Users/test/.config/solana/cli/config.yml
RPC URL: https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com
WebSocket URL: wss://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com/ (computed)
Keypair Path: /Users/test/.config/solana/id.json
Commitment: confirmed

The RPC URL and Websocket URL specific the Solana cluster the CLI will make requests to. By default this will be mainnet-beta.

You can update the Solana CLI cluster using the following commands:

solana config set --url mainnet-beta
solana config set --url devnet
solana config set --url localhost
solana config set --url testnet

You can also use the following short options:

solana config set -um    # For mainnet-beta
solana config set -ud    # For devnet
solana config set -ul    # For localhost
solana config set -ut    # For testnet

The Keypair Path specifies the location of the default wallet used by the Solana CLI (to pay transaction fees and deploy programs). The default path is ~/.config/solana/id.json. The next step walks through how to generate a keypair at the default location.

Create Wallet #

To interact with the Solana network using the Solana CLI, you need a Solana wallet funded with SOL.

To generate a keypair at the default Keypair Path, run the following command:

solana-keygen new

You should see output similar to the following:

Generating a new keypair
 
For added security, enter a BIP39 passphrase
 
NOTE! This passphrase improves security of the recovery seed phrae NOT the
keypair file itself, which is stored as insecure plain text
 
BIP39 Passphrase (empty for none):
 
Wrote new keypair to /Users/test/.config/solana/id.json
===========================================================================
pubkey: 8dBTPrjnkXyuQK3KDt9wrZBfizEZijmmUQXVHpFbVwGT
===========================================================================
Save this seed phrase and your BIP39 passphrase to recover your new keypair:
cream bleak tortoise ocean nasty game gift forget fancy salon mimic amazing
===========================================================================

Once a keypair is generated, you can get the address (public key) of the keypair with the following command:

solana address

Airdrop SOL #

Once you've set up your local wallet, request an airdrop of SOL to fund your wallet. You need SOL to pay for transaction fees and to deploy programs.

Set your cluster to the devnet:

solana config set -ud

Then request an airdrop of devnet SOL:

solana airdrop 2

To check your wallet's SOL balance, run the following command:

solana balance

Run Local Validator #

The Solana CLI comes with the test validator built-in. Running a local validator will allow you to deploy and test your programs locally.

In a separate terminal, run the following command to start a local validator:

solana-test-validator

cd ~
mkdir validator
cd validator
solana-test-validator

Make sure to update the Solana CLI config to localhost before commands.

solana config set -ul