Frequently Asked Questions¶

Common questions about Switchboard.

General¶

What is Switchboard?¶

Switchboard is a unified cross-chain state synchronization platform that enables developers to deploy once and sync everywhere across 50+ blockchains with sub-400ms coordination latency.

How does cross-chain coordination work?¶

Switchboard uses Solana as a high-performance coordination layer. When you deploy contracts or update state:

Changes are recorded on Solana
Solana coordinates state across target chains
All chains receive updates within 400ms

What chains are supported?¶

Switchboard supports 50+ chains including:

EVM: Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, BSC, Avalanche, Base
Layer 2: zkSync Era, Polygon zkEVM, Linea, Mantle
Alternative L1: NEAR, Cosmos, Sui, Aptos
Emerging: Celestia, StarkNet, Flow

See Supported Chains for the full list.

Is Switchboard open source?¶

Yes, Switchboard is open source under the MIT license. Contributions are welcome!

Pricing¶

How much does Switchboard cost?¶

Switchboard offers:

Free tier: 10 deployments/month, 5 chains
Pro tier: $49/month, 100 deployments, unlimited chains
Enterprise: Custom pricing

What are the gas costs?¶

Gas costs depend on the target chains. Switchboard helps optimize gas through:

Batched transactions
Optimal gas price selection
Multi-chain parallelization

Use switchboard estimate to calculate costs before deployment.

Technical¶

What database should I use?¶

Both MongoDB and PostgreSQL are supported:

MongoDB: Faster development, flexible schema
PostgreSQL: Better for complex queries, ACID compliance

Choose based on your team's expertise and requirements.

How do I handle private keys?¶

Best practices:

Use environment variables
Use secrets managers (AWS Secrets Manager, Vault)
Never commit keys to version control
Use different keys for testnet and mainnet

Can I use my own RPC providers?¶

Yes, configure any RPC provider:

ETHEREUM_RPC_URL=https://your-provider.com/rpc

Recommended providers: Alchemy, Infura, QuickNode.

What's the maximum latency?¶

Switchboard targets sub-400ms coordination latency. Actual latency depends on:

Network conditions
Target chain block times
Geographic location
RPC provider performance

How do I monitor deployments?¶

Multiple options:

CLI: switchboard status --watch
SDK: Subscribe to deployment events
API: Poll deployment status endpoint
Dashboard: Real-time web interface

Development¶

How do I run tests?¶

# All tests
npm run test

# Integration tests
npm run test:integration

# Specific package
npm run test --workspace=packages/sdk

How do I debug issues?¶

Enable debug logging:

DEBUG=switchboard:* switchboard deploy

Or use the diagnostics tool:

switchboard doctor

Can I contribute?¶

Yes! See the Contributing Guide.

Deployment¶

Can I deploy to mainnets?¶

Yes, use production mode:

switchboard deploy --prod-mode

Always test on testnets first.

How do I verify contracts?¶

switchboard verify --contract MyContract --network ethereum

Or enable auto-verification:

// switchboard.config.js
module.exports = {
  deployment: {
    verification: true,
  },
};

What if deployment fails on one chain?¶

Switchboard handles partial failures:

Successful chains are recorded
Failed chains can be retried
State remains consistent

switchboard deploy:retry --deployment-id abc123

Security¶

Is Switchboard secure?¶

Security measures include:

JWT authentication
API key management
Rate limiting
Input validation
Encrypted connections

How are private keys handled?¶

Private keys are:

Never stored by Switchboard
Used only for transaction signing
Kept in your environment

How do I report vulnerabilities?¶

Email: security@switchboard.dev

Do NOT open public issues for security vulnerabilities.

Support¶

Where can I get help?¶

Documentation: You're reading it!
GitHub Issues: For bugs and features
Discord: Real-time community help
Stack Overflow: Technical questions

Is there enterprise support?¶

Yes, contact enterprise@switchboard.dev for:

Priority support
Custom integrations
SLA guarantees
Dedicated resources