Quick Start Guide

Get up and running with arb-assist in minutes! This guide assumes you've completed the Installation steps.

Step 1: Basic Configuration

Minimal Configuration

Create a basic config.toml with essential settings:

# Connection settings
rpc_url = "https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com"  # Replace with your RPC
grpc_url = "https://your-grpc-endpoint"          # Your GRPC endpoint
grpc_token = "your-token"                         # If required
grpc_engine = "yellowstone"                       # or "thor"

# Bot mode
mode = "smb"  # or "na" or "both"

# Basic settings
update_interval = 10000    # Update every 10 seconds
mints_to_rank = 10        # Track top 10 mints
mints_to_arb = [2, 2]     # 2 mints per transaction, 2 groups

# Simple filter
filter_thresholds = [
  {
    min_profit = 1_000_000,
    min_roi = 1.5,
    min_txns = 2,
    min_total_volume = 100_000_000,
    max_cu_limit = 400_000,
    top_pool_num = 3
  }
]

# Output file
output = "bot-config"  # Will create bot-config.toml or .json

Step 2: Prepare Your Wallet

For SMB-Onchain

1. Create a temporary config file locally:

[wallet]
private_key = "your-base58-private-key"

[rpc]
url = "https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com"

1. Encrypt your private key:

./smb-onchain run temp-config.toml
# This creates an encrypted .key file

1. Transfer the .key file to your VPS

2. Delete the temporary config

For NotArb

1. Follow NotArb's keypair protection:

bash notarb.sh protect-keypair

1. Update the config to point to protected keypair

Step 3: Start arb-assist

First Run (Testing)

# Increase file limits
ulimit -n 65536

# Run arb-assist
./arb-assist

What You'll See

1. License Validation

[2024-01-26 10:00:00] License validated for IP: xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx

1. GRPC Connection

[2024-01-26 10:00:01] Connected to Yellowstone GRPC
[2024-01-26 10:00:01] Subscribing to transaction stream...

1. Data Analysis

[2024-01-26 10:00:10] Analyzing 1,234 transactions...
[2024-01-26 10:00:10] Found 56 arbitrage transactions
[2024-01-26 10:00:10] Tracking 23 unique mints

1. Ranking Output

Top Arbitrage Mints:
#1  PUMP...123 | Profit: 123.45 SOL | ROI: 245% | Txns: 89
#2  MEME...456 | Profit: 98.76 SOL  | ROI: 189% | Txns: 67
#3  COIN...789 | Profit: 76.54 SOL  | ROI: 156% | Txns: 45

1. Config Generation

[2024-01-26 10:00:20] Generated bot-config.toml with 3 mints
[2024-01-26 10:00:20] Next update in 10 seconds...

Step 4: Start Your Bot

For SMB-Onchain

In another terminal or tmux pane:

# Start SMB with PM2 watching config changes
pm2 start smb-onchain --watch bot-config.toml -- run bot-config.toml

# Monitor logs
pm2 logs smb-onchain

For NotArb

# Start NotArb with PM2
pm2 start ./notarb.sh --interpreter bash --name notarb-onchain \
  --watch onchain-bot/notarb-config.toml -- onchain-bot/notarb-config.toml

# Monitor logs
pm2 logs notarb-onchain

Step 5: Monitor Performance

arb-assist Metrics

Watch for:

• Number of mints being tracked

• Profit and ROI trends

• Transaction success rates

• Network fee estimates

Bot Performance

Monitor your bot's:

• Successful arbitrages

• Failed transactions

• Profit/loss

• Gas consumption

Using PM2 Monitoring

# View all processes
pm2 status

# Monitor in real-time
pm2 monit

# View specific logs
pm2 logs arb-assist --lines 100

Step 6: Basic Optimization

Adjust Filters

If no mints are found, lower requirements:

filter_thresholds = [
  {
    min_profit = 100_000,      # Lower from 1M
    min_roi = 1.2,            # Lower from 1.5
    min_txns = 1,             # Lower from 2
    min_total_volume = 10_000_000,  # Lower from 100M
    max_cu_limit = 400_000,
    top_pool_num = 3
  }
]

Add Fee Strategies

Enable dynamic fees:

# For Helius priority fees
helius_key = "your-helius-api-key"

# Spam configuration
spam_levels = [
  {
    filter_level = 0,
    bundle_groups = [1],
    min_cu_price = 1_000,
    max_cu_price = 10_000,
    tx_count = 1,
    fee_strategy = "Random"
  }
]

Enable Jito

For competitive markets:

# Jito configuration
jito_levels = [
  {
    filter_level = 0,
    bundle_groups = [1, 2],
    min_tip = 1_000,
    max_tip = 10_000,
    tip_strategy = "Random",
    no_failure_mode = true
  }
]

dynamic_jito_tip_mode = "parsed"  # Learn from successful bundles

Common Quick Start Issues

No Mints Found

Problem: Config generates with dummy values

mint = "11111111111111111111111111111111"

Solution:

• Lower filter thresholds

• Check GRPC connection

• Verify arbitrage programs in config

• Wait for market activity

High Failure Rate

Problem: Bot transactions failing frequently

Solution:

• Increase process_delay (try 600-800ms)

• Reduce mints_to_arb numbers

• Enable Jito for competitive mints

• Check RPC performance

Insufficient Funds

Problem: "Failed to create token account" errors

Solution:

• Add more SOL to wallet (0.1-0.5 SOL recommended)

• Enable flash loans

• Reduce concurrent transactions

Production Checklist

Before going live:

• Test configuration for 30+ minutes

• Verify profitable mints are being found

• Confirm bot is executing trades

• Set up monitoring alerts

• Document your configuration

• Create config backups

• Set up log rotation

• Configure auto-restart on failure

Next Steps

Fine-tune Your Setup

• Configuration Overview - Understand all options

• Trading Strategies - Optimize for profit

Advanced Features

• File Server Mode - Manage multiple bots

• Market Intelligence - Advanced analysis

Troubleshooting

• Common Errors - Quick fixes

• Performance Issues - Optimization tips

Getting Help

Need assistance?

• Join our Discord

• Check FAQ

• Review example configs

Remember: Start conservative, monitor closely, and gradually increase aggressiveness as you understand the system better!