---
title: Kora Operators Documentation
description: Getting started as a Kora node operator
---

## What is a Kora Node Operator?

As a Kora node operator, you run a **paymaster service** that sponsors Solana
transaction fees for your users. Your node accepts SPL token payments and uses
your SOL to pay actual network fees, enabling gasless transactions for your
application.

## Why Run a Kora Node?

- **Better UX**: Your users transact without needing SOL (streamlined
  onboarding, better retention, etc.)
- **Revenue Stream**: Collect fees in tokens your business prefers (USDC, BONK,
  etc.)

## Contents

- [Quick Start](#quick-start)
- [Core Concepts](#core-concepts)
- [Kora CLI](#kora-cli)
- [Configuration](#configuration)
- [Deployment](#deployment)
- [Need Help?](#need-help)

## Quick Start

**Want to try locally first? Spin up a local Kora node in a few minutes:** →
**[Local Quick Start Guide](/docs/tools/kora/getting-started/quick-start)**

## Core Concepts

As a Kora node operator, you're responsible for running a secure paymaster
service that enables gasless transactions for your users. Your node has four key
responsibilities:

### 1. Validate Transactions

Configure your node to accept only transactions that meet your business
requirements via `kora.toml`:

- **Token allowlists**: Define which SPL tokens you accept as payment (supports
  both SPL and Token-2022)
- **Program allowlists**: Whitelist which Solana programs users can interact
  with
- **Transaction limits**: Set maximum fees you're willing to pay and signature
  limits
- **Account blocklists**: Prevent interactions with problematic addresses
- **Pricing oracles**: Configure Jupiter or mock pricing for fee calculations
- **Payment tokens**: Specify which type of tokens you will accept as payment
- **Feepayer policies**: Control what operations your feepayer can perform
  (transfers, burns, approvals, etc.)
- **Token-2022 extensions**: Block specific Token-2022 extensions for enhanced
  security
- **Caching**: Enable Redis caching to improve performance by reducing RPC calls
- **Usage limits**: Set per-wallet transaction limits to prevent abuse, ensure
  fair usage, or reward users with subsidized transactions up to a certain limit

**[→ Complete Kora.toml Configuration Reference](/docs/tools/kora/operators/configuration)**
**[→ Sample kora.toml](https://github.com/solana-foundation/kora/blob/v2.0.5/examples/deploy/kora.toml)**

### 2. Sign Transactions

Your node needs Solana keypair(s) to sign transactions as the fee payer. For
production deployments, Kora supports **multi-signer configurations** for
improved reliability and account-lock distribution. Consider implementing key
rotation, access controls, backups, and other strategies for signer security.
Signing options available:

- **Local Private Key**: Store private key directly in server environment (as
  base58, .json file, or u8 array)
- [**Turnkey**](https://www.turnkey.com/): Private key management made simple.
  Create wallets, sign transactions, and automate onchain actions.
- [**Privy**](https://www.privy.io/): Easy crypto infrastructure. Securely spin
  up whitelabel wallets and sign transactions.
- [**HashiCorp Vault**](https://developer.hashicorp.com/vault): Manage Secrets &
  Protect Sensitive Data

**[→ Complete Signers Configuration Guide](/docs/tools/kora/operators/signers)**

### 3. Pay Transaction Fees

Maintain sufficient SOL to cover network fees for your expected transaction
volume:

- **Balance monitoring**: Track SOL balance and set up low-balance alerts (Kora
  provides built-in Prometheus metrics - see
  [Monitoring](/docs/tools/kora/operators/monitoring))
- **Automation**: Implement automatic SOL top-up procedures for production
  environments
- **Capacity planning**: Plan for expected use case, user volume, etc.

It is important that you understand how Kora estimates fees and how to configure
your node to maximize your revenue. See the
[Fee Estimation Guide](/docs/tools/kora/operators/fees) for more details.

### 4. Monitor Operations

Continuously track your node's security, performance, and business metrics:

- **Security monitoring**: Unusual patterns, failed validations, and rate limit
  breaches
- **Operational alerts**: System health, balance warnings, and security events
- **Financial tracking**: SOL costs vs. token revenue, profitability analysis
- **Signer balance monitoring**: Track signer balance and set up low-balance
  alerts

Kora provides an optional `/metrics` endpoint that provides real-time
performance data in Prometheus format.

**[→ Kora Monitoring Reference Guide](/docs/tools/kora/operators/monitoring)**

### 5. Optimize Performance (Optional)

For high-traffic deployments, enable Redis caching to reduce RPC calls and
improve response times:

- **Account caching**: Cache Solana account data with configurable time to live
  (TTL)
- **Automatic fallback**: Gracefully falls back to direct RPC calls if Redis is
  unavailable
- **Cache management**: Automatic expiration and force-refresh capabilities for
  critical operations

## Kora CLI

The [kora-cli crate](https://crates.io/crates/kora-cli) is a production-ready
Rust binary that provides everything you need to run a Kora paymaster node. It's
distributed as a standalone executable that you can install globally or deploy
in containers.

### Installation Options

**Global Installation (recommended for development)**

```bash
cargo install kora-cli
```

**Or build from source (recommended for contributing)**

```bash
git clone https://github.com/solana-foundation/kora.git
cd kora
just install
```

### Basic Usage

The Kora RPC server exposes a JSON-RPC endpoint (default:
http://localhost:8080). Launch it with the `kora rpc` command:

```bash
# Run with specified kora.toml and signers.toml
kora --config path/to/kora.toml rpc start --signers-config path/to/signers.toml

# Help
kora rpc --help
```

For more information on the using the Kora CLI, see the
[CLI Guide](/docs/tools/kora/operators/cli).

Applications can access the Kora RPC Server via the
[Kora TS SDK](/docs/tools/kora/json-rpc-api)

## Configuration

Every Kora RPC node must be configured with at least:

- a Solana RPC endpoint (specified via the `--rpc-url` flag or `RPC_URL`
  environment variable) [default: http://127.0.0.1:8899]
- Solana signer(s) configuration (specified via the
  `--signers-config signers.toml` flag)
- a config file, `kora.toml` (specified via the `--config path/to/kora.toml`
  flag)

**kora.toml**

Before deploying, you'll need to create and configure a `kora.toml` to specify:

- Rate limiting and authentication
- Payment destination address
- RPC method availability
- Transaction validation rules
- Security policies (whitelist or blacklist of SPL tokens, programs, accounts,
  token extensions, etc.)
- Fee pricing models
- Enhanced fee payer policies (protect against unwanted signer behavior)
- Metrics collection
- Redis caching configuration (optional)

**signers.toml**

You will also need to create a `signers.toml` file to specify:

- Signer(s) for your node
- Signer selection strategy
- Each signer's configuration and applicable keys

## Deployment

### Local Deployment

Start up and test a local Kora Server in minutes:
[Quick Start Guide](/docs/tools/kora/getting-started/quick-start)

### Docker

Use the sample Dockerfile to deploy on any container platform. The
docker-compose.yml file includes Redis for caching support:

**[→ Sample Dockerfile](https://github.com/solana-foundation/kora/blob/v2.0.5/examples/deploy/Dockerfile)**
**[→ Docker Compose with Redis](https://github.com/solana-foundation/kora/blob/v2.0.5/docker-compose.yml)**

### Platform-Specific Guides

- **[Railway Deployment](/docs/tools/kora/operators/deployment/railway)**

_More integration guides coming soon_

## Need Help?

- **[Solana Stack Exchange](https://solana.stackexchange.com/)** - Ask
  questions/share learnings (make sure to use the `kora` tag)
- **[GitHub Issues](https://github.com/solana-foundation/kora/issues)** - Report
  bugs or get help
- Run `kora rpc --help` to see all available flags and configuration options