Solana Explorers: Frontrunners of transparency in a decentralised Ecosystem

How the SolanaFM Explorer is shaping the future of transparency in a decentralised transaction infrastructure like Solana.

Introduction

Leading Block Explorers like SolanaFM are designed to help users understand the inner workings of the Solana blockchain and keep track of their transactions. Moreover, these explorers provide detailed information about the activity on the platform, allowing users to stay informed within the Solana ecosystem.

This article will provide an overview of selected features of the SolanaFM Explorer and explain how users can optimise the analysis of their transactions. By understanding these features, users can more effectively navigate the Solana ecosystem and make informed decisions when using applications on Solana.

Dynamic Dashboard Metrics

One of the key features of the SolanaFM Explorer is the Dynamic Dashboard, which provides users with a real-time view of the latest on-chain activity and key network metrics such as the SOL price and transactions per second (TPS). The Dashboard also allows users to see the nearest RPC nodes and switch between different network providers, such as Quicknode, Blockdaemon, or Solana Testnet.

Solana’s high TPS has been the subject of much debate and is also a recurring target by people in the space to spread FUD. To enable a better understanding of Solana’s transaction capacity, SolanaFM wants to give users an accurate overview of TPS versus true TPS. True TPS refers to the number of transactions made directly by users and Solana dApps. It is a measure of the number of non-vote transactions being processed on the Solana network, as opposed to TPS, which includes all types of transactions, including vote transactions involving validator vote programs, i.e. the networks consensus mechanism. For more details, users can access the block page on SolanaFM and pull up any created block.

Block Compute Unit

The Block Compute Unit allows users to easily view and understand the specifics of each block on the network. On the Block Page, users can obtain both a breakdown of the rewards that were earned for creating the block and a measure of retail efficiency. Retail efficiency is an important factor to consider in a blockchain system because it displays the efficiency of block utilisation i.e. the amount of space used in every single Solana block. In addition to the dashboard, the Block Page provides users with detailed information regarding block creators, transactions, and the number of programs invoked on the platform.

For example, consider a user who is interested in understanding the activity and performance of a specific program on Solana. By navigating to the Block Page and using the search function to find blocks that contain transactions involving that program, the user can get a sense of its usage and interactions with other programs on the network. The user can also view the breakdown of vote and non-vote transactions within the block to understand the context of the program's involvement. Users can use these metrics to make informed decisions about program or protocol usage or to obtain a better structure of different program interactions.

Overall, the Block Page on SolanaFM is a valuable resource for users looking to gain a deeper understanding of the transactions and programs occurring on the Solana network. Whether for tracking the activity of a specific program or getting a high-level view of network performance, the Block Page offers users a wealth of information and insights.

On-Chain Tracking

SolanaFM continuously monitors accounts that are suspected of engaging in malicious activity.

The Explorer’s search bar is a powerful tool that allows users to easily locate any program, account, or transaction on the platform. This feature can be especially useful in the event of a hack or exploit, as users can use the search function to track suspicious fund flows between the perpetrator's wallet and other wallets. Since users can retrieve records of every transaction by looking up the transaction hash, they can monitor the fund movements via SolanaFM’s transaction flow feature.

Once an account is flagged, users can easily track the account's fund flows and movements. This information can be useful for on-chain security and audit firms in identifying and tracing accounts that have interacted with a flagged wallet and identify exchanges it may have interacted with, potentially leading to the identification of an exploiter or hacker.

Flagging Bad Actor accounts is crucial for safety and transparency in a blockchain network.

In the past, SolanaFM has worked closely with ecosystem partners to uncover the traces of exploiters such as in the cases of Crema Finance, Mango Markets and Raydium exploit. Next to keeping an oversight on bad actors, SolanaFM’s on-chain tracking comes in handy for a variety of other use cases to ensure the security and transparency of the Solana ecosystem.

Centralised exchanges are tagged on the SolanaFM Explorer.

The SolanaFM Explorer has a team of On-chain Detectives that ensure accounts are labeled efficiently and quickly. This makes it easier to track fund movements and identify linkages to prominent exchanges, such as centralised exchanges (CEXs). SolanaFM’s On-chain Detective community keep track of major centralized exchanges (CEXs) including Coinbase, Binance, KuCoin, and Bitfinex, and provide regular updates on any additional exchanges that are added to its list.

Like Whale accounts, CEXs often handle high levels of traffic and transaction volumes. By labelling them, users can easily track their involvement in various transactions and get a better overview of their funds and token holdings.

Conclusion

In this article, we have highlighted some of the use cases of the SolanaFM Explorer and how it helps users to track wallets, accounts and transactions on the Solana blockchain. In the future, users can expect to see additional updates on the Dashboard Metrics and improved UI Features that make it easier to build and retrieve program as well as data files. There are also many additional use cases of block explorers that we will highlight in future articles. As block explorers like SolanaFM will continue to serve as a reliable source of information and transparency for the ecosystem, it is important for users to understand and utilise its capabilities to their full potential.