The full version of Firedancer — a very-performant re-write of Solana’s validator software authored by Jump Crypto — may still be a ways away. In the interim, validators of Solana can still use the limited version named Frankendancer.
Frankendancer is the result of Jump replacing pieces of the Agave software (which descends from the original Solana Labs) to produce a client similar to Frankenstein’s monster. Frankendancer went to Solana mainnet in September during Solana’s Breakpoint conference — but since then, it’s seen limited uptake.
Validatorbase reports that so far 12 validators who are in control of roughly 5.4 Million staked SOL have been running Frankendancer. Solana Compass reports that there are currently 392,000,000 staked SOL.
It is important to note that the word “you” means “you”. “main reason most validators aren’t running [Frankendancer] yet is because it doesn’t capture MEV efficiently,” Ben Coverston, my temporary engineering partner, told me.
The MEV is the process of adding, removing or reordering transaction blocks to get extra value. The Jito-Solana, a modified version of Agave’s client that includes MEV enhancements, is used by many validators to capture MEV.
Validators of Solana can make a lot of money with MEV. Around 25% of validator staking rewards — which can be thought of like the revenue a validator creates by running Solana — currently come from MEV, according to a Dune dashboard. Around 65% of rewards are derived from SOLs, while 10% is a result of fees.
Coverston said that it’s possible to capture MEV even without Jito. However, the process is more challenging. Validators running Frankendancer will likely see a smaller return on investment.
It’s still worth running Frankendancer. Phase Labs has announced that the Frankendancer Client is now available for its Validator. “the next leap forward” Solana is a good example.
Phase’s Aeropool share pool specifically stated that their stake delegation strategy was to empower Solana contributors who are positive, rather than just chase after the highest APY.
Most validators don’t share this strategy — over 93% of Solana validators currently use Jito-Solana. They may start to feel some pressure on the testnet to use Frankendancer. Anza, a Solana developer company has spoken about pushing for Frankendancer to have a supermajority stake next week.
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