safe-solana-builder

🛡️ Safe Solana Builder

The first Claude skill for writing production-grade, security-first Solana programs.

Built by a Solana security researcher, for Solana developers — so your code arrives at audit already hardened.

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What Is This?

Safe Solana Builder is a security skill system you can load into AI coding workflows (Claude / Cursor) so Frank Castle's Solana security knowledge is applied before writing a single line of code.

This is not a prompt. It is a layered reference architecture that forces Claude to:

• Select the right framework (Anchor, Native Rust, or Pinocchio) and load the matching security ruleset
• Choose a testing approach (LiteSVM or framework default) and load the matching test patterns
• Assess the program's risk level (🟢 Low / 🟡 Medium / 🔴 Critical) before touching the keyboard
• Apply a curated set of security rules drawn from real audit findings — CPIs, PDAs, account validation, arithmetic, Token-2022, and more
• Deliver a full project scaffold — not just lib.rs
• Generate a test file skeleton with security edge cases pre-identified
• Output a security checklist documenting every rule applied and every known limitation

Every program this skill produces has a first layer of protection baked in before it reaches an auditor.

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Why It Exists

Most AI-generated Solana code is a liability.

Missing ownership checks. Non-canonical bumps. Stale data used after CPIs. No duplicate account guards. No checked arithmetic. It compiles, it looks right, and it fails on mainnet.

The Cyfrin team built a skill like this for Solidity. Nobody built one for Solana — until now.

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What It Produces

For every program request, the skill outputs:

Output	Description
Full project scaffold	Anchor.toml, Cargo.toml, proper folder structure — ready to anchor build or cargo build-sbf
lib.rs	Complete, compilable program with inline security comments
Test file	LiteSVM or framework-default — happy path tests implemented + security edge case tests scaffolded with TODO bodies
security-checklist.md	Every rule applied, every assumption made, every known limitation flagged

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Skill Structure

safe-solana-builder/
├── SKILL.md                        ← Orchestrator: workflow, risk assessment, output format
├── references/
│   ├── shared-base.md              ← Framework-agnostic rules (PDAs, CPIs, arithmetic, Token-2022...)
│   ├── anchor.md                   ← Anchor-specific: constraints, account types, reload(), close...
│   ├── native-rust.md              ← Native Rust: manual validation sequence, invoke, deserialization...
│   ├── pinocchio.md                ← Pinocchio: zero-copy patterns, bytemuck, wincode, CPI, Shank IDL...
│   └── litesvm.md                  ← LiteSVM: test setup, sysvar control, CU profiling, account injection...
└── examples/
    └── nft-whitelist-mint/
        ├── lib.rs                  ← Full Anchor NFT whitelist mint program
        └── security-checklist.md  ← 31-rule checklist for the example

Reference Coverage

The reference files cover:

Shared Base (framework-agnostic)

• Account & identity validation (signer, owner, discriminator, reinitialization)
• PDA security (canonical bumps, sharing prevention, seed collision)
• Arithmetic safety (checked math, multiply-before-divide, slippage)
• Duplicate mutable account attacks
• Full CPI safety surface (arbitrary CPI, stale reload, signer pass-through, SOL drain, post-CPI ownership)
• Account lifecycle (rent, closing, anti-revival, sysvar verification)
• Token-2022 compatibility
• Transaction model safety
• Safe Rust patterns

Anchor-specific

• Account type selection (Account<T> vs UncheckedAccount vs Interface)
• Constraint patterns (has_one, seeds+bump, init vs init_if_needed, close, realloc)
• reload() after CPI — non-negotiable
• token_interface::transfer_checked for Token-2022 compatibility
• CPI construction, signer seeds, program ID validation
• #[error_code] custom errors

Native Rust-specific

• The 6-step mandatory validation sequence (key → owner → signer → writable → discriminator → data)
• Borsh deserialization patterns and length pre-checks
• PDA derivation: find_program_address at init, create_program_address on reuse
• invoke vs invoke_signed patterns
• Manual post-CPI data refresh
• Account creation via System Program CPI
• Manual 3-step safe account close
• Custom error enum with ProgramError conversion

Pinocchio-specific (new)

• Zero-copy account definitions with bytemuck (Pod + Zeroable, explicit _padding, 8-byte alignment)
• Account validation via TryFrom pattern and validation macros
• wincode for instruction data serialization — SchemaWrite/SchemaRead derives, zero-copy deserialization for #[repr(C)] structs, Pod<T> foreign type adapter, compact-u16 / ShortVec length encoding
• bytemuck vs wincode decision rule: bytemuck for on-chain account state, wincode for instruction data
• CPI via pinocchio-system and pinocchio-token typed helpers
• IDL generation with Shank + Codama
• Entrypoint selection by CU cost (no_allocator!, lazy_entrypoint!, entrypoint!)
• Pinocchio-specific build errors and toolchain notes

LiteSVM testing (new)

• In-process VM — no validator, no async runtime, fastest test loop available
• setup() pattern, send_tx() helper with expire_blockhash(), TransactionMetadata fields
• Devnet account injection via svm.set_account() + RPC client
• Token setup with litesvm-token (CreateMint, CreateAssociatedTokenAccount, MintTo)
• Full sysvar control: time travel (Clock), slot warping, rent reads
• CU profiling with CU_RESULTS static and zz_cu_summary test
• Simulation (dry-run without state commit)
• Framework-specific patterns: Anchor (InstructionData/ToAccountMetas) and Native/Pinocchio (manual discriminator encoding)
• 12-item LiteSVM security test checklist
• Common errors table (GLIBC, BlockhashNotFound, missing SO, etc.)

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How to Install

Claude Setup

1. Download safe-solana-builder.skill from the Releases page
2. In Claude.ai, go to Settings → Skills
3. Upload the .skill file
4. The skill activates automatically whenever you ask Claude to write a Solana program

Cursor IDE Support

Cursor does not natively support .skill files, but the same system works by loading this repository as a context rule source.

1. Clone the repository into Cursor's skills directory:

mkdir -p ~/.cursor/skills
git clone https://github.com/Frankcastleauditor/safe-solana-builder.git ~/.cursor/skills/safe_solana_builder

2. Restart Cursor
3. Reference the skill in your prompt:

Use the safe_solana_builder skill.

Build a secure Solana program using Anchor.

Trigger Phrases

The skill fires on any of the following:

• "Write a Solana program that..."
• "Build an Anchor program for..."
• "Create a native Rust Solana contract..."
• "Scaffold a Solana program..."
• "Help me write a program that does X on Solana"

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Roadmap

This skill is under active development. Planned expansions:

• Native Rust example program (staking vault)
• Additional reference sources: SPL Token-2022 extension security, Metaplex deep-dive, oracle manipulation patterns
• Anchor v0.31+ specific patterns
• Invariant testing guidance (Trident, Fuzz)
• Common DeFi pattern references: AMM, lending, bonding curves

The reference files are the living core of this skill. Every new vulnerability source, audit finding, or best practice I encounter gets distilled and added. The skill grows with the threat landscape.

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About the Author

Hi there 👋 I'm Frank Castle

🛡️ Smart Contract Security Researcher specializing in Solana (Anchor) and Rust-based ecosystems.

I help protocols ship safer smart contracts by identifying critical vulnerabilities, validating everything related to DeFi and blockchain, and for Solana reviewing CPI / PDA / token-account security boundaries / and any custom logic.

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🔍 Focus Areas

• Solana Program Security: Anchor, PDAs, CPI, account validation, rent/DoS patterns
• SPL / Token-2022 Security: extensions, mint assumptions, transfer hooks, authority models
• DeFi Security: AMMs, vaults, staking, bonding curves, fee mechanisms
• Rust Security: state machines, invariants, edge cases, unsafe patterns

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🏆 Highlights

• 70+ Rust audits, 50+ Solana audits
• 250+ Critical/High severity vulnerabilities identified
• Top placements in competitive audits:
  • 🥈 2nd place — HydraDX Omnipool (Code4rena)
  • 🏅 4th place — Centrifuge (Cantina)

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📌 Featured Repositories

• 🔒 Public Audits: public-audits
• 🧪 Solana CTF / Practice: Solana_CTF

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🧾 Writeups & Content

• X (Twitter): @0xcastle_chain
• Medium: FrankCastleAudits

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📫 Contact

• Twitter: @castle_chain
• Discord: @castle_chain
• Telegram: castle_chain
• Email: castlechain99@gmail.com

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⭐ If you're building on Solana and want a security review, feel free to reach out.

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License

MIT — use it, fork it, build on it. If you add something valuable, consider contributing it back.

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Safe Solana Builder — first layer of protection, before the auditor ever sees your code.