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aelf Playground

1. Introduction​

aelf Playground is a sandbox for new developers who want to experience smart contract development with aelf without installing any tools on their local computer.

2. Setting up​

No setup is needed. Simply visit aelf Playground in your browser.

3. Using aelf Playground​

Create a New Project on aelf-playground​

  • Click on one of the templates:

    playground-templates

  • Enter a project name and click Submit.

    create-workspace

  • After a short while, the workspace will load:

    load-project

The interaction with the workspace project code inside src and test folders will be demonstated in the next steps. The next steps will cover writing and building the smart contract.

  • An existing template can also be used. Use the drag and drop feature to upload the local files. Upload files button can also be used select files from the local system.

    drag-and-drop-1

  • Enter the workspace name.

    drag-and-drop-2

  • The new workspace will have src and test folders with the following file tree structure.

    drag-and-drop-3

  • Alternatively, the existing workspace can also be chosen

    drag-and-drop-3

  • Also, you can choose to import the project directly from the github.

    1. Click on enter a GitHub repo url.
    2. Enter the github URL.
    3. Choose the required .csproj file.
    4. Enter the workspace name and click Submit.

    drag-and-drop-3

Features of the aelf-playground​

Now as the workspace setup is done and project is setup inside aelf's playground. The user can now edit the smart contract logic according to the user needs. The changes will majorly takes place inside the below files:

  • src/Protobuf/contract/contract_proto_file_name.proto file
  • src/ContractName.cs
  • src/ContractNameState.cs

Once all the changes are done in the above files and all other required files (whereever nacessary). Then below operations can be performed on the selected workspace project:

  1. AI Audit: Complete the AI audit of the writtwn smart contract. Result similar to below image will be visible once the AI audit completes. The interpretation of the AI audit results will be shown when you hover over the smart contract code once the audit finishes.

AI-Audit

  1. Save Gas Fee: Optimise the smart contract to save gas fee. It will suggest to make changes to the smart contract if the smart contract is not optimised. If the smart contract is already optimed then result like below will appear.

Save-Gas-Fee

  1. Build: Build the smart contract code. It will show building status when the user clicks the Build button and will output below result including whether build was successful or failed once the build process ends.

Build

  1. Test: Test the smart contract code. It will show Running Tests status when the user clicks the Test button and will output below result including how many tests have passed and failed once the test process ends.

Test

  1. Deploy: Deploy the smart contract code on the aelf blockchain. It will show Deploying status when the user clicks the Deploy button and will output below result including transactionId, proposal status and contract address once the build process ends. You can verify the contract address by visiting aelf testnet explorer.

Deploy

  1. Export: Export the project in a local directory. It will open an alert to save the workspace in the local directory. Users can rename the local directory.

Export

  1. Share: Share the project with a sharable link. It will show Generating share link status when the user clicks the Share button and will output below result including the sharable link.

Share

  1. Command Line Options: Command line additionally provides options to check txID and clear terminal including above options. Use the help command to see all the options inside terminal. check txID helps in checking the transaction details.

Upload Files

  1. Upload Files: Upload more files to the project when necessary. It will show a drag and drop files section to drop files from the local directory.

Upload Files

  1. Add a New File: Manually add a new file in the playground project structure. It will allow users to add a new file in the workspace project structure add smart contract code, new proto files, etc.

Add a New File

  1. Rename & Delete File: Renames & Deletes the chosen file or folders in the project directory structure.

Add a New File

  1. Tutorials: Some pre-compiled tutorials are curated under Tutorials section of aelf-playground. It provides an option to filter the tutorials based on the difficulty level (Beginner, Intermediate & Advanced) and smart contracts languages (C# & Solidity).

Add a New File

  1. Deployments: Deployments section provides a list of all deployed tutorials along with the wallet address used to deploy smart contracts on the aelf blockchain. You can click on the wallet address to view wallet details on the aelf explorer.

Add a New File

  1. Themes: Users can also choose to toggle between dark and light themes.

Add a New File

Conclusion​

The aelf Playground offers a seamless and accessible platform for developers to build, test, and deploy smart contracts without the need for any local setup. With built-in features like AI audit, gas fee optimization, and GitHub integration, it simplifies the entire smart contract development process. Whether you're writing new code or modifying existing templates, the aelf Playground provides all the essential tools in one place, making it an ideal sandbox for both beginners and experienced developers.