Why We Built Our Own Solana Infrastructure and Network

We'd like to share the background and journey behind our decision to build our own Solana infrastructure and network.

Servers and networks are inherently invisible, making their differences difficult to perceive, especially for new users. Our aim is to maintain maximum transparency, clearly communicate the motivations behind our infrastructure choices, and explain our approach to creating high-performance, highly stable environments. Through this transparency, we hope to build and maintain your trust.

Our Solana development journey began with a project called Epics DAO.

Epics DAO is a Web3 platform designed to address the chronic resource shortages faced by open-source development. It combines entertainment, social contribution, and incentivization mechanisms, leveraging tools such as NFT-based card games to support open-source projects.

However, when we began developing the Epics DAO card game on Solana, we encountered a significant issue: even a simple "10-card packs gacha" mechanism proved unstable using standard Solana RPC providers. Solana’s exceptional speed is maintained by discarding transactions that cannot be processed within a set timeframe, rather than queuing them indefinitely. This means transactions frequently fail unless the infrastructure is optimized and stable.

Quality issues with cloud and bare-metal servers are difficult to assess since users usually have no way to physically inspect servers or data centers. Performance is typically judged through limited console interfaces, making it challenging for beginners to identify issues, often resulting in unnoticed losses.

Unfortunately, many data centers, bare-metal providers, and RPC endpoint providers intentionally limit performance to enhance their profit margins. We've personally encountered situations where both data center providers and RPC providers imposed CPU clock rate restrictions and network bandwidth limits, significantly constraining overall performance.

To meet Solana’s rigorous infrastructure requirements, we tested numerous bare-metal providers and data centers worldwide. Only a small number demonstrated a cooperative and proactive attitude toward improvement. We built strong partnerships with these select providers and leveraged these relationships to construct our global network infrastructure.

Delivering high-quality network infrastructure requires careful selection of data center locations, optimization of points-of-presence (PoPs), and a continuous commitment to improvement. Just like airports serve as essential hubs for air travel, key network hubs require strategic resource allocation.

Although the internet might seem instantaneous, in reality, network latency increases significantly with distance, causing instability. Shorter distances substantially enhance connection stability and reduce latency.

Our partners actively expand their use of Private Network Interconnects (PNIs), establishing direct connections with major networks to optimize communication paths and minimize latency. We work exclusively with partners committed to continuous improvement, ensuring we consistently provide top-tier network quality.

We believe that meticulous attention to detail, especially in areas invisible to users, is the key to building trust. Our unwavering commitment to rigorous quality management extends across server selection, network hardware, monitoring, and incident response. Our goal is stable operation and minimal latency through thorough oversight of every operational process.

Ironically, smaller projects—which require the most support—often face the greatest challenges in obtaining reliable infrastructure. We’re committed to changing this dynamic by enhancing the quality of every product we offer and providing comprehensive support, regardless of project size.

Historically, issues arose because Solana RPC endpoints and bare-metal servers were managed by separate providers.

By consulting with us, you can integrate your entire environment within a unified network, drastically reducing external network traffic and significantly boosting performance.

If you're facing performance challenges, please contact Validators DAO. We diligently research, test, and optimize infrastructures daily to help you achieve your goals.

We remain committed to your success and will continue dedicating our efforts to supporting your projects.