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Send a versioned transaction

Solana versioned transactions (v0) support Address Lookup Tables, which let you reference up to 256 addresses in a single transaction — useful for complex operations that would exceed the limits of legacy transactions.

This guide shows you how to create, sign, and send versioned transactions through MetaMask.

Prerequisites​

Set up a Solana client and connect to the user's wallet:

import { createSolanaClient } from '@metamask/connect-solana'
import {
  Connection,
  PublicKey,
  SystemProgram,
  TransactionMessage,
  VersionedTransaction,
  AddressLookupTableProgram,
} from '@solana/web3.js'

const solanaClient = await createSolanaClient({
  dapp: {
    name: 'My Solana DApp',
    url: window.location.origin,
  },
})

const wallet = solanaClient.getWallet()
const { accounts } = await wallet.features['standard:connect'].connect()
const account = accounts[0]
const publicKey = new PublicKey(account.address)
const connection = new Connection('https://api.devnet.solana.com')

Create a versioned transaction​

Solana versioned transactions are created in a similar way to legacy transactions. The only difference is to use the VersionedTransaction class instead of the Transaction class.

The following example shows how to create a simple transfer instruction, format the instruction into a v0-compatible transaction message, and create a versioned transaction that parses the message:

const { blockhash } = await connection.getLatestBlockhash()

const instructions = [
  SystemProgram.transfer({
    fromPubkey: publicKey,
    toPubkey: publicKey,
    lamports: 10,
  }),
]

const messageV0 = new TransactionMessage({
  payerKey: publicKey,
  recentBlockhash: blockhash,
  instructions,
}).compileToV0Message()

const transactionV0 = new VersionedTransaction(messageV0)

Sign and send a versioned transaction​

After creating an unsigned versioned transaction, use the wallet's solana:signAndSendTransaction feature to ask the user's MetaMask wallet to sign and send it.

The method returns a promise for an object containing the signature.

const [{ signature }] = await wallet.features['solana:signAndSendTransaction'].signAndSendTransaction({
  account,
  transaction: transactionV0.serialize(),
  chain: 'solana:EtWTRABZaYq6iMfeYKouRu166VU2xqa1',
})

await connection.getSignatureStatus(signature)

Create an Address Lookup Table​

Create an Address Lookup Table (ALT) to efficiently load addresses into tables, significantly increasing the number of addresses that can be used in a single transaction.

Use the createLookupTable method to create the instruction needed to create a new ALT and determine its address. With this instruction, create a transaction, sign it, and send it to create an ALT onchain. For example:

const slot = await connection.getSlot()
const { blockhash } = await connection.getLatestBlockhash()

const [lookupTableInst, lookupTableAddress] = AddressLookupTableProgram.createLookupTable({
  authority: publicKey,
  payer: publicKey,
  recentSlot: slot,
})

const lookupMessage = new TransactionMessage({
  payerKey: publicKey,
  recentBlockhash: blockhash,
  instructions: [lookupTableInst],
}).compileToV0Message()

const lookupTransaction = new VersionedTransaction(lookupMessage)

const [{ signature: lookupSignature }] = await wallet.features['solana:signAndSendTransaction'].signAndSendTransaction({
  account,
  transaction: lookupTransaction.serialize(),
  chain: 'solana:EtWTRABZaYq6iMfeYKouRu166VU2xqa1',
})

Extend an Address Lookup Table​

After creating an ALT, extend it by appending addresses to the table. Use the extendLookupTable method to create a new extend instruction, and send it in a transaction. For example:

const extendInstruction = AddressLookupTableProgram.extendLookupTable({
  payer: publicKey,
  authority: publicKey,
  lookupTable: lookupTableAddress,
  addresses: [
    publicKey,
    SystemProgram.programId,
  ],
})

const { blockhash: extensionBlockhash } = await connection.getLatestBlockhash()

const extensionMessageV0 = new TransactionMessage({
  payerKey: publicKey,
  recentBlockhash: extensionBlockhash,
  instructions: [extendInstruction],
}).compileToV0Message()

const extensionTransactionV0 = new VersionedTransaction(extensionMessageV0)

const [{ signature: extensionSignature }] = await wallet.features['solana:signAndSendTransaction'].signAndSendTransaction({
  account,
  transaction: extensionTransactionV0.serialize(),
  chain: 'solana:EtWTRABZaYq6iMfeYKouRu166VU2xqa1',
})

Create, sign, and send a versioned transaction with an ALT​

After creating an ALT, create a versioned transaction with the ALT and ask the user's MetaMask wallet to sign and send it.

First, use the getAddressLookupTable method to fetch the account of the created ALT:

const lookupTableAccount = await connection.getAddressLookupTable(lookupTableAddress).then((res) => res.value)
console.log('Table address from cluster:', lookupTableAccount.key.toBase58())

Then, parse and read all the addresses currently stored in the fetched ALT:

for (let i = 0; i < lookupTableAccount.state.addresses.length; i++) {
  const address = lookupTableAccount.state.addresses[i]
  console.log(i, address.toBase58())
}

The following example creates a simple transfer instruction, formats the instruction into a v0-compatible transaction message using the ALT's account, and creates a versioned transaction that parses the message. Sign and send the transaction using the wallet's solana:signAndSendTransaction feature.

const { blockhash: altBlockhash } = await connection.getLatestBlockhash()

const instructions = [
  SystemProgram.transfer({
    fromPubkey: publicKey,
    toPubkey: publicKey,
    lamports: minRent,
  }),
]

const messageV0 = new TransactionMessage({
  payerKey: publicKey,
  recentBlockhash: altBlockhash,
  instructions,
}).compileToV0Message([lookupTableAccount])

const transactionV0 = new VersionedTransaction(messageV0)

const [{ signature }] = await wallet.features['solana:signAndSendTransaction'].signAndSendTransaction({
  account,
  transaction: transactionV0.serialize(),
  chain: 'solana:EtWTRABZaYq6iMfeYKouRu166VU2xqa1',
})
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