Orca

Orca Whirlpools Development Guide

Orca is the most trusted DEX on Solana and Eclipse, built on a concentrated liquidity automated market maker (CLMM) called Whirlpools. This guide covers the Whirlpools SDK for building trading, liquidity provision, and pool management applications.

Overview

Orca Whirlpools provides:

• Token Swaps - Efficient token exchanges with low slippage and competitive rates
• Concentrated Liquidity - Provide liquidity within custom price ranges for higher capital efficiency
• Splash Pools - Simple full-range liquidity provision for beginners
• Position Management - Open, increase, decrease, and close liquidity positions
• Fee Harvesting - Collect trading fees and rewards from positions
• Pool Creation - Permissionless creation of new liquidity pools

Program IDs

Quick Start

Installation

New SDK (Solana Web3.js v2):

npm install @orca-so/whirlpools @solana/kit

Legacy SDK (Solana Web3.js v1):

npm install @orca-so/whirlpools-sdk @orca-so/common-sdk @coral-xyz/anchor@0.29.0 @solana/web3.js @solana/spl-token decimal.js

Core Utilities (optional):

npm install @orca-so/whirlpools-core @orca-so/whirlpools-client

Basic Setup (New SDK)

import {
  setWhirlpoolsConfig,
  setRpc,
  setPayerFromBytes
} from "@orca-so/whirlpools";
import { createSolanaRpc, devnet } from "@solana/kit";
import fs from "fs";

// Configure for Solana Devnet
await setWhirlpoolsConfig("solanaDevnet");
await setRpc("https://api.devnet.solana.com");

// Load wallet from keypair file
const keyPairBytes = new Uint8Array(
  JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync("./keypair.json", "utf8"))
);
const wallet = await setPayerFromBytes(keyPairBytes);

// Create RPC connection
const rpc = createSolanaRpc(devnet("https://api.devnet.solana.com"));

console.log("Wallet:", wallet.address);

Basic Setup (Legacy SDK)

import { WhirlpoolContext, buildWhirlpoolClient, ORCA_WHIRLPOOL_PROGRAM_ID } from "@orca-so/whirlpools-sdk";
import { AnchorProvider, Wallet } from "@coral-xyz/anchor";
import { Connection, Keypair } from "@solana/web3.js";
import fs from "fs";

// Setup connection
const connection = new Connection("https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com", "confirmed");

// Load wallet
const secretKey = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync("./keypair.json", "utf8"));
const wallet = new Wallet(Keypair.fromSecretKey(new Uint8Array(secretKey)));

// Create provider and context
const provider = new AnchorProvider(connection, wallet, {});
const ctx = WhirlpoolContext.from(connection, wallet, ORCA_WHIRLPOOL_PROGRAM_ID);
const client = buildWhirlpoolClient(ctx);

console.log("Wallet:", wallet.publicKey.toString());

Token Swaps

Swap with New SDK

import { swap, swapInstructions, setWhirlpoolsConfig } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";
import { address } from "@solana/kit";

await setWhirlpoolsConfig("solanaMainnet");

const poolAddress = address("POOL_ADDRESS_HERE");
const inputMint = address("INPUT_TOKEN_MINT");
const amount = 1_000_000n; // Amount in smallest units
const slippageTolerance = 100; // 100 bps = 1%

// Option 1: Use the simple swap function (builds and sends)
const txId = await swap(
  rpc,
  { inputAmount: amount, mint: inputMint },
  poolAddress,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

console.log("Swap transaction:", txId);

// Option 2: Get instructions for custom transaction building
const { instructions, quote } = await swapInstructions(
  rpc,
  { inputAmount: amount, mint: inputMint },
  poolAddress,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

console.log("Expected output:", quote.tokenEstOut);
console.log("Minimum output:", quote.tokenMinOut);
console.log("Price impact:", quote.priceImpact);

Exact Output Swap

// Swap to get exact output amount
const { instructions, quote } = await swapInstructions(
  rpc,
  { outputAmount: 1_000_000n, mint: outputMint },
  poolAddress,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

console.log("Max input required:", quote.tokenMaxIn);

Swap with Legacy SDK

import { WhirlpoolContext, swapQuoteByInputToken, buildWhirlpoolClient } from "@orca-so/whirlpools-sdk";
import { DecimalUtil, Percentage } from "@orca-so/common-sdk";
import Decimal from "decimal.js";

// Get the pool
const whirlpool = await client.getPool(poolAddress);
const whirlpoolData = whirlpool.getData();

// Get swap quote
const inputAmount = new Decimal("1.0"); // 1 token
const quote = await swapQuoteByInputToken(
  whirlpool,
  whirlpoolData.tokenMintA,
  DecimalUtil.toBN(inputAmount, 9), // 9 decimals
  Percentage.fromFraction(1, 100), // 1% slippage
  ctx.program.programId,
  ctx.fetcher
);

console.log("Estimated output:", quote.estimatedAmountOut.toString());

// Execute swap
const tx = await whirlpool.swap(quote);
const signature = await tx.buildAndExecute();
console.log("Swap signature:", signature);

Liquidity Provision

Position Types

Concentrated Liquidity Position: Provide liquidity within a specific price range for higher capital efficiency.

Full Range Position (Splash Pool): Provide liquidity across the entire price range, similar to traditional AMMs.

Open Concentrated Liquidity Position

import { openPosition, openPositionInstructions } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";
import { address } from "@solana/kit";

const poolAddress = address("POOL_ADDRESS");
const lowerPrice = 0.001;  // Lower bound of price range
const upperPrice = 100.0;  // Upper bound of price range
const slippageTolerance = 100; // 1%

// Specify liquidity by token amount
const param = { tokenA: 1_000_000_000n }; // 1 token with 9 decimals

// Option 1: Simple function that builds and sends
const txId = await openPosition(
  rpc,
  poolAddress,
  param,
  lowerPrice,
  upperPrice,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

// Option 2: Get instructions for custom transaction
const {
  instructions,
  quote,
  positionMint,
  initializationCost
} = await openPositionInstructions(
  rpc,
  poolAddress,
  param,
  lowerPrice,
  upperPrice,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

console.log("Position mint:", positionMint);
console.log("Token A required:", quote.tokenEstA);
console.log("Token B required:", quote.tokenEstB);
console.log("Initialization cost:", initializationCost);

Open Full Range Position

import { openFullRangePosition, openFullRangePositionInstructions } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

const poolAddress = address("POOL_ADDRESS");
const param = { tokenA: 1_000_000_000n };
const slippageTolerance = 100;

const {
  instructions,
  quote,
  positionMint,
  callback: sendTx
} = await openFullRangePositionInstructions(
  rpc,
  poolAddress,
  param,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

console.log("Position mint:", positionMint);
console.log("Token max B:", quote.tokenMaxB);

// Send the transaction
const txId = await sendTx();
console.log("Transaction:", txId);

Increase Position Liquidity

import { increaseLiquidity, increaseLiquidityInstructions } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

const positionMint = address("POSITION_MINT");
const param = { tokenA: 500_000_000n }; // Add 0.5 tokens
const slippageTolerance = 100;

const { instructions, quote } = await increaseLiquidityInstructions(
  rpc,
  positionMint,
  param,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

console.log("Additional Token A:", quote.tokenEstA);
console.log("Additional Token B:", quote.tokenEstB);

Decrease Position Liquidity

import { decreaseLiquidity, decreaseLiquidityInstructions } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

const positionMint = address("POSITION_MINT");
const param = { liquidity: 1000000n }; // Or use tokenA/tokenB
const slippageTolerance = 100;

const { instructions, quote } = await decreaseLiquidityInstructions(
  rpc,
  positionMint,
  param,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

console.log("Token A received:", quote.tokenEstA);
console.log("Token B received:", quote.tokenEstB);

Harvest Fees and Rewards

import { harvestPosition, harvestPositionInstructions, harvestAllPositionFees } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

// Harvest single position
const positionMint = address("POSITION_MINT");

const { instructions, feesQuote, rewardsQuote } = await harvestPositionInstructions(
  rpc,
  positionMint,
  wallet
);

console.log("Fee Token A:", feesQuote.feeOwedA);
console.log("Fee Token B:", feesQuote.feeOwedB);
console.log("Rewards:", rewardsQuote);

// Harvest all positions at once
const { instructions: harvestAllIx, fees, rewards } = await harvestAllPositionFees(
  rpc,
  wallet.address
);

Close Position

import { closePosition, closePositionInstructions } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

const positionMint = address("POSITION_MINT");
const slippageTolerance = 100;

const { instructions, quote, feesQuote } = await closePositionInstructions(
  rpc,
  positionMint,
  slippageTolerance,
  wallet
);

console.log("Token A returned:", quote.tokenEstA);
console.log("Token B returned:", quote.tokenEstB);
console.log("Fees collected:", feesQuote);

Pool Management

Create Splash Pool (Full Range)

import { createSplashPool, createSplashPoolInstructions } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";
import { address } from "@solana/kit";

const tokenMintA = address("TOKEN_A_MINT");
const tokenMintB = address("TOKEN_B_MINT");
const initialPrice = 1.5; // Price of token B in terms of token A

const {
  instructions,
  poolAddress,
  initializationCost
} = await createSplashPoolInstructions(
  rpc,
  tokenMintA,
  tokenMintB,
  initialPrice,
  wallet
);

console.log("Pool address:", poolAddress);
console.log("Initialization cost:", initializationCost, "lamports");

Create Concentrated Liquidity Pool

import { createConcentratedLiquidityPool, createConcentratedLiquidityPoolInstructions } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

const tokenMintA = address("TOKEN_A_MINT");
const tokenMintB = address("TOKEN_B_MINT");
const tickSpacing = 64; // Common values: 1, 8, 64, 128
const initialPrice = 1.5;

const {
  instructions,
  poolAddress,
  initializationCost
} = await createConcentratedLiquidityPoolInstructions(
  rpc,
  tokenMintA,
  tokenMintB,
  tickSpacing,
  initialPrice,
  wallet
);

console.log("Pool address:", poolAddress);

Fetch Pool Data

import {
  fetchSplashPool,
  fetchConcentratedLiquidityPool,
  fetchWhirlpoolsByTokenPair
} from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

// Fetch specific pool
const pool = await fetchConcentratedLiquidityPool(rpc, poolAddress);
console.log("Current price:", pool.price);
console.log("Liquidity:", pool.liquidity);
console.log("Fee rate:", pool.feeRate);

// Fetch all pools for a token pair
const pools = await fetchWhirlpoolsByTokenPair(rpc, tokenMintA, tokenMintB);
for (const pool of pools) {
  console.log("Pool:", pool.address, "Tick spacing:", pool.tickSpacing);
}

Fetch Positions

import { fetchPositionsForOwner, fetchPositionsInWhirlpool } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

// Get all positions owned by a wallet
const positions = await fetchPositionsForOwner(rpc, wallet.address);
for (const position of positions) {
  console.log("Position:", position.positionMint);
  console.log("Liquidity:", position.liquidity);
  console.log("Lower tick:", position.tickLowerIndex);
  console.log("Upper tick:", position.tickUpperIndex);
}

// Get all positions in a specific pool
const poolPositions = await fetchPositionsInWhirlpool(rpc, poolAddress);

SDK Configuration

Network Configuration

import { setWhirlpoolsConfig } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

// Built-in presets
await setWhirlpoolsConfig("solanaMainnet");
await setWhirlpoolsConfig("solanaDevnet");
await setWhirlpoolsConfig("eclipseMainnet");
await setWhirlpoolsConfig("eclipseTestnet");

// Custom configuration
await setWhirlpoolsConfig({
  whirlpoolsConfigAddress: address("CUSTOM_CONFIG_ADDRESS"),
  // ... other custom settings
});

Transaction Settings

import {
  setRpc,
  setPriorityFeeSetting,
  setJitoTipSetting,
  setComputeUnitMarginMultiplier,
  setDefaultSlippageToleranceBps,
  setDefaultFunder,
  setNativeMintWrappingStrategy
} from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

// Set RPC endpoint
await setRpc("https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com");

// Configure priority fees
await setPriorityFeeSetting({
  type: "dynamic",
  percentile: 75, // Use 75th percentile of recent fees
});

// Or set fixed priority fee
await setPriorityFeeSetting({
  type: "fixed",
  microLamports: 10000,
});

// Configure Jito tips for MEV protection
await setJitoTipSetting({
  type: "dynamic",
  percentile: 50,
});

// Set compute unit margin (for larger transactions)
await setComputeUnitMarginMultiplier(1.2);

// Set default slippage tolerance (in bps)
await setDefaultSlippageToleranceBps(100); // 1%

// Set default funder for transactions
await setDefaultFunder(wallet);

// Configure SOL wrapping behavior
await setNativeMintWrappingStrategy("ata"); // or "none"

Reset Configuration

import { resetConfiguration } from "@orca-so/whirlpools";

// Reset all settings to defaults
await resetConfiguration();

Tick Spacing Reference

Tick spacing determines the granularity of price ranges:

Best Practices

Security

1. Never expose private keys - Use environment variables or secure key management
2. Verify pool addresses - Always confirm you're interacting with legitimate pools
3. Use slippage protection - Set appropriate slippage tolerance to prevent front-running
4. Test on devnet first - Validate all operations before mainnet deployment

Performance

1. Use priority fees - Essential for mainnet transactions during high congestion
2. Batch operations - Combine multiple instructions when possible
3. Pre-fetch data - Cache pool and position data to reduce RPC calls

Liquidity Provision

1. Monitor positions - Track when positions go out of range
2. Rebalance strategically - Consider gas costs when adjusting positions
3. Harvest regularly - Collect fees and rewards to compound returns
4. Understand impermanent loss - Concentrated positions have amplified IL risk

Error Handling

try {
  const txId = await swap(rpc, swapParams, poolAddress, slippage, wallet);
} catch (error) {
  if (error.message.includes("SlippageExceeded")) {
    console.error("Slippage tolerance exceeded, try increasing slippage");
  } else if (error.message.includes("InsufficientFunds")) {
    console.error("Not enough tokens in wallet");
  } else if (error.message.includes("TickArrayNotInitialized")) {
    console.error("Price range tick arrays not initialized");
  } else {
    throw error;
  }
}

Resources

Official Documentation

• Orca Developer Docs
• TypeScript SDK Reference
• Rust SDK Reference
• Legacy SDK Reference

GitHub Repositories

• Whirlpools Monorepo
• Legacy SDK
• Transaction Sender

NPM Packages

• @orca-so/whirlpools - New SDK
• @orca-so/whirlpools-sdk - Legacy SDK
• @orca-so/whirlpools-core - Core utilities
• @orca-so/whirlpools-client - Low-level client

Security Audits

• Kudelski Security audit
• Neodyme audit

Skill Structure

orca/
├── SKILL.md                              # This file
├── resources/
│   ├── api-reference.md                  # Complete SDK function reference
│   └── program-addresses.md              # Program IDs and common pool addresses
├── examples/
│   ├── swap/
│   │   └── token-swap.ts                 # Token swap examples
│   ├── liquidity/
│   │   ├── open-position.ts              # Open liquidity positions
│   │   ├── manage-position.ts            # Increase/decrease liquidity
│   │   └── harvest-fees.ts               # Collect fees and rewards
│   └── pools/
│       └── create-pool.ts                # Pool creation examples
├── templates/
│   └── setup.ts                          # Ready-to-use client template
└── docs/
    └── troubleshooting.md                # Common issues and solutions

Verify

• A real RPC/SDK call was issued (mainnet, devnet, or local validator) and the response payload is captured in the transcript, not just paraphrased
• Every transaction was simulated (simulateTransaction or equivalent) before any signing/sending step; simulation logs are attached
• For any signed/sent transaction, the resulting signature is recorded and confirmed on chain (status returned by getSignatureStatuses or an explorer URL)
• Slippage, priority-fee, and compute-unit limits were set explicitly with concrete numeric values, not left to library defaults
• Account addresses, mints, and program IDs used in the run match the documented orca-liquidity addresses for the targeted cluster (no mainnet/devnet mix-up)
• Failure path was exercised at least once (insufficient balance, stale oracle, expired blockhash, etc.) and the agent's error handling produced a human-readable message