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Solana 101: How the Network Works

Solana is a high-performance Layer-1 blockchain designed to deliver fast, low-cost, and highly parallelized transaction processing. Below is a plain-language primer on the core components that make Solana unique and why they matter to validators, stakers, and app builders who use Moonlet.

1. Core Design Goals​

GoalHow Solana Achieves ItTypical Result
High ThroughputParallel execution engine (Sealevel) & pipelined validator architectureTens of thousands of TPS in production
Low LatencyDeterministic block times via Proof of History (PoH) clock400 ms block times on mainnet
Low FeesEfficient runtime + fee markets<$0.01 typical transaction fee
ScalabilityHorizontally scaled validator hardware & stateless parallelismPerformance improves as hardware improves

2. Consensus & Proof of History​

  1. Proof of History (PoH)

    • A verifiable delay function that produces a cryptographic “clock”—hashes chained in sequence.

    • Validators can agree on when events happened without exchanging timestamps, reducing overhead.

  2. Tower BFT

    • A customized Practical Byzantine Fault Tolerance (PBFT) layer that votes on PoH slots.

    • Validators commit votes; supermajority (≥ 66 %) finalizes a slot.

3. Data Flow Building Blocks​

ProtocolPurposeAnalogy
Gulf StreamPushes transactions to the next leader before they’re scheduled, reducing mempool pressure“Just-in-time” transaction forwarding
TurbineUDP-based block propagation—splits blocks into smaller packets and fans them out like BitTorrentDroplet sharding for quick arrival
SealevelParallel smart-contract runtime; transactions declare account read/write sets, enabling non-conflicting execution in parallelMulti-core CPU utilization
CloudbreakHorizontally scaled account database (key–value store) optimized for concurrent reads/writesRAID-like data spread across SSDs
ArchiversLightweight nodes store historical data; Proofs of Replication ensure integrityDecentralized “cold storage”

4. Accounts, Lamports & Programs​

  • Accounts

    • Storage objects that hold data + SOL balance; all program state lives inside accounts.

  • Lamport

    • Smallest unit of SOL (1 SOL = 1 billion Lamports).

  • Programs (Smart Contracts)

    • Compiled to Berkeley Packet Filter (BPF) bytecode; deployed once, then referenced by address.

    • Executed by Sealevel runtime with explicit account read/write lists to enable parallelism.

5. Fee Model & Inflation​

ParameterValue (2025 mainnet)
Base Fee5,000 Lamports ($0.0001)
Priority FeeOptional tip for faster inclusion
Inflation~6 % annual, decaying toward ~1.5 %
Staking RewardsPaid from inflation + fees to delegated stake

6. Staking & Validator Economics​

  1. Delegated Proof of Stake

    • SOL holders delegate to validators; stake weight influences leader-schedule probability.

  2. Rewards

    • Earned each epoch (~2 days) and auto-redelegated unless withdrawn.

  3. Commission

    • Validators set a fee (e.g., Moonlet Node = 5 %); deducted from rewards before distribution.

  4. Slashing

    • Currently limited (for downtime/double-vote), expected to expand with future upgrades.

7. Transaction Lifecycle (Simplified)​

  1. Client signs and sends TX to an RPC node.

  2. Gulf Stream forwards to upcoming leader.

  3. Leader packages TXs into a block; PoH timestamps.

  4. Turbine broadcasts packets; peers reconstruct block.

  5. Validators execute with Sealevel → vote via Tower BFT.

  6. Finality ~2–3 confirmations (~1-1.5 s).

8. Why This Matters for Moonlet Users​

  • Fast Finality → Wallet balance changes appear almost instantly.

  • Low Fees → Staking, transfers, and program interactions remain cost-effective.

  • Parallel Runtime → DApps built on Solana feel Web2-smooth.

  • Delegation Simplicity → From Moonlet Dashboard you delegate SOL in one click; the network auto-creates/maintains stake accounts.

Tip: Because Solana uses individual stake accounts, you may see multiple “accounts” per validator in the Moonlet UI—each is a separate delegation created by the network for precise reward tracking.

9. Resources & Next Steps​

You’re now ready to dive deeper into Solana or start staking SOL through Moonlet’s self-custodial dashboard.