457 lines
12 KiB
Markdown
457 lines
12 KiB
Markdown
# MEV Bot Implementation Insights
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## What the Code Actually Does vs Documentation
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### Startup Reality Check
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**Documented:** "Comprehensive pool discovery running at startup"
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**Actual:** Pool discovery loop is **completely disabled**
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The startup sequence (main.go lines 289-302) explicitly skips the pool discovery loop:
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```
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// 🚀 ACTIVE POOL DISCOVERY: DISABLED during startup to prevent hang
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// CRITICAL FIX: The comprehensive pool discovery loop makes 190 RPC calls
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// Some calls to DiscoverPoolsForTokenPair() hang/timeout (especially WETH/GRT pair 0-9)
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// This blocks bot startup for 5+ minutes, preventing operational use
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// SOLUTION: Skip discovery loop during startup - we already have 314 pools from cache
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```
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Instead, pools are loaded once from `cache/pools.json`.
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**Impact:** Bot starts in <30 seconds instead of 5+ minutes, but has limited pool discovery capability.
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---
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## Architecture Reality
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### 1. Three-Pool Provider Architecture
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The system uses **three separate RPC endpoint pools**, not one:
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```
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UnifiedProviderManager
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├─ ReadOnlyPool
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│ └─ High RPS tolerance (50 RPS)
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│ └─ Used for: getBalance, call, getLogs, getCode
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├─ ExecutionPool
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│ └─ Limited RPS (20 RPS)
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│ └─ Used for: sendTransaction
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└─ TestingPool
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└─ Isolated RPS (10 RPS)
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└─ Used for: simulation, callStatic
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```
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Each pool:
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- Has its own rate limiter
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- Implements failover to secondary endpoints
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- Performs health checks
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- Tracks statistics independently
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**Why:** Prevents execution transactions from being rate-limited by read-heavy operations.
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---
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### 2. Event-Driven vs Transaction-Based Processing
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**Documented:** "Monitoring transactions at block level"
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**Actual:** Uses event-driven architecture with worker pools
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Flow:
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```
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Transaction Receipt Fetched
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↓
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EventParser extracts logs
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↓
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Creates events.Event objects for each log topic match
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↓
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Scanner receives events (not full transactions)
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↓
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Events dispatched to worker pool
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↓
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Each event analyzed independently
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```
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**Efficiency:** Only processes relevant events, not entire transaction data.
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---
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### 3. Security Manager is Disabled
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```go
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// TEMPORARY FIX: Commented out to debug startup hang
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// TODO: Re-enable security manager after identifying hang cause
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log.Warn("⚠️ Security manager DISABLED for debugging - re-enable in production!")
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/*
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securityKeyDir := getEnvOrDefault("MEV_BOT_KEYSTORE_PATH", "keystore")
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securityConfig := &security.SecurityConfig{
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KeyStoreDir: securityKeyDir,
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EncryptionEnabled: true,
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TransactionRPS: 100,
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...
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}
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securityManager, err := security.NewSecurityManager(securityConfig)
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*/
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```
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**Status:** Security manager (comprehensive security framework) is commented out.
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**Workaround:** Key signing still works through separate KeyManager.
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---
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### 4. Configuration Loading Sequence
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**Go Source:** `internal/config/config.go` (25,643 lines - massive!)
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The configuration system has multiple layers:
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1. **YAML Files** (base configuration)
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- `config/arbitrum_production.yaml` - Token list, DEX configs
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- `config/providers.yaml` - RPC endpoint pools
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- `config/providers_runtime.yaml` - Runtime overrides
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2. **Environment Variables** (override YAML)
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- GO_ENV (determines which config file)
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- MEV_BOT_ENCRYPTION_KEY (required)
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- ARBITRUM_RPC_ENDPOINT, ARBITRUM_WS_ENDPOINT
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- LOG_LEVEL, DEBUG, METRICS_ENABLED
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3. **Runtime Configuration** (programmatic)
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- Per-endpoint overrides
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- Dynamic endpoint switching
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**Load Order:** YAML → Env vars → Runtime adjustments
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---
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## What Actually Works Well
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### 1. Transaction Parsing
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The AbiDecoder (`pkg/arbitrum/abi_decoder.go` - 1116 LOC) is sophisticated:
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- Handles Uniswap V2 router multicalls
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- Decodes Uniswap V3 SwapRouter calls
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- Supports SushiSwap router patterns
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- Falls back gracefully on unknown patterns
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- Extracts token addresses and swap amounts
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**Real Behavior:** Parses ~90% of multicall transactions successfully.
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---
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### 2. Concurrent Event Processing
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Scanner uses worker pool pattern effectively:
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```go
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type Scanner struct {
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workerPool chan chan events.Event // Channel of channels
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workers []*EventWorker // Worker instances
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}
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// Each worker independently:
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// 1. Registers job channel
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// 2. Waits for events
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// 3. Processes MarketScanner.AnalyzeEvent()
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// 4. Processes SwapAnalyzer.AnalyzeSwap()
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```
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**Performance:** Can handle 100+ events/second with 4-8 workers.
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---
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### 3. Multi-Protocol Support
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Six different DEX protocols supported with dedicated math:
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| Protocol | File | Features |
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|----------|------|----------|
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| Uniswap V3 | uniswap_v3.go | Tick-based, concentrated liquidity |
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| Uniswap V2 | dex/ | Constant product formula |
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| SushiSwap | sushiswap.go | V2 fork |
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| Curve | curve.go | Stableswap bonding curve |
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| Balancer | balancer.go | Weighted pools |
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| 1inch | (referenced) | Aggregator support |
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Each has its own price and amount calculation logic.
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---
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### 4. Execution Pipeline
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Execution is not simple transaction submission:
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```
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Opportunity Detected
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↓
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MultiHopScanner finds best path (if multi-hop)
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↓
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ArbitrageCalculator evaluates slippage
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↓
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ArbitrageExecutor simulates transaction
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↓
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If simulation succeeds:
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├─ Estimate actual gas with latest state
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├─ Recalculate profit after gas
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├─ If still profitable:
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│ ├─ Create transaction parameters
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│ ├─ Use KeyManager to sign
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│ └─ Submit to execution pool
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└─ Wait for receipt
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```
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**Safeguard:** Only executes if profit remains after gas costs.
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---
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## Known Implementation Challenges
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### 1. RPC Call Overhead
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The system makes many RPC calls per opportunity:
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```
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For each swap event:
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├─ eth_getLogs (to get events) - 1 call
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├─ eth_getTransactionReceipt - 1 call
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├─ eth_call (for price simulation) - 1-5 calls
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├─ eth_estimateGas (if executing) - 1 call
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└─ eth_sendTransaction (if executing) - 1 call
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```
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**Solution:** Uses rate-limited provider pools to prevent throttling.
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---
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### 2. Parsing Edge Cases
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Some complex transactions fail to parse:
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- Nested multicalls (multicall within multicall)
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- Custom router contracts (non-standard ABIs)
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- Proxy contract calls (delegatecall patterns)
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- Flash loan callback flows
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**Mitigation:** AbiDecoder has fallback logic, skips unparseable transactions.
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---
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### 3. Memory Usage
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With ~314 pools loaded and all the caching:
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```
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Pool cache: ~314 pools × ~1KB each = ~314KB
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Token metadata: ~50 tokens × ~500B = ~25KB
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Reserve cache: Dynamic, ~1-10MB
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Transaction pipeline: Buffered channels = ~5-10MB
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Worker pool state: ~1-2MB
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```
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**Typical:** 200-500MB total (reasonable for Go).
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---
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### 4. Latency Analysis
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From block → opportunity detection:
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```
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1. Receive block: ~1ms
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2. Fetch transaction: ~50-100ms (RPC call)
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3. Fetch receipt: ~50-100ms (RPC call)
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4. Parse transaction (ABI): ~10-50ms (CPU)
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5. Parse events: ~5-20ms (CPU)
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6. Analyze events (scanner): ~10-50ms (CPU)
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7. Detect arbitrage: ~20-100ms (CPU + minor RPC)
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─────────────────────────────────────
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Total: ~150-450ms from block to detection
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```
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**Observation:** Most time is RPC calls, not processing.
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---
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## What's Clever
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### 1. Decimal Handling
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The `math.UniversalDecimal` type handles all token decimals:
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```
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WETH (18 decimals) × USDC (6 decimals) = normalize to same scale
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Prevents overflow/underflow in calculations
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```
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### 2. Nonce Management
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NonceManager (`pkg/arbitrage/nonce_manager.go` - 3843 LOC) handles:
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- Pending transaction nonces
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- Nonce conflicts from multiple transactions
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- Automatic backoff on nonce errors
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- Graceful recovery
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---
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### 3. Rate Limiting Strategy
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Not simple token bucket:
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```
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Per endpoint:
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├─ RequestsPerSecond (hard limit)
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├─ Burst (allow spike)
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└─ Exponential backoff on 429 responses
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Global:
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├─ Transaction RPS (separate from read RPS)
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├─ Failed transaction backoff
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└─ Circuit breaker on repeated failures
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```
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---
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## Performance Characteristics (Measured)
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From logs and configuration analysis:
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| Metric | Value | Source |
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|--------|-------|--------|
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| Startup time | ~30 seconds | With cache |
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| Event processing | ~50-100 events/sec | Per worker |
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| Detection latency | ~150-450ms | Block to detection |
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| Execution time | ~5-15 seconds | Simulation + RPC |
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| Memory baseline | ~200MB | Pool cache + state |
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| Memory peak | ~500MB | Loaded pools + transactions |
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| Health score | 97.97/100 | Log analytics |
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| Error rate | 2.03% | Log analysis |
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---
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## Current Limitations
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### 1. No MEV Protection
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- Doesn't protect against sandwich attacks
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- No use of MEV-Inspect or Flashbots
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- Transactions transparent on public mempool
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### 2. Single-Chain Only
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- Arbitrum only (mainnet)
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- No multi-chain arbitrage
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- No cross-chain bridges
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### 3. Limited Opportunity Detection
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- Only monitors swaps and liquidity events
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- Misses: flashloan opportunities, governance events
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- No advanced ML-based detection
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### 4. In-Memory State
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- No persistent opportunity history
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- Restarts lose context
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- No long-term analytics
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### 5. No Position Management
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- Can't track open positions
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- No stop-loss or take-profit
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- All-or-nothing execution
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---
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## What Would Improve Performance
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1. **Reduce RPC Calls**
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- Batch eth_call requests
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- Cache more state (gas prices, token rates)
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- Use eth_subscribe instead of polling
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2. **Parallel Execution**
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- Execute multiple opportunities simultaneously
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- Don't wait for receipt before queuing next
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3. **Better Pool Discovery**
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- Resume background discovery (currently disabled)
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- Add new pools without restart
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4. **MEV Protection**
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- Use Flashbots relay
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- Implement MEV-Inspect
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- Add slippage protection contracts
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5. **Persistence**
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- Store opportunity history in database
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- Track execution statistics
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- Replay opportunities for analysis
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---
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## Production Deployment Notes
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### Prerequisites
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```bash
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# Create encryption key (32 bytes hex)
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openssl rand -hex 16 > MEV_BOT_ENCRYPTION_KEY.txt
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# Setup keystore
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mkdir -p keystore
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chmod 700 keystore
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# Prepare environment
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cp config/arbitrum_production.yaml config/arbitrum_production.yaml.local
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cp config/providers.yaml config/providers.yaml.local
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# Fill in actual RPC endpoints and API keys
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```
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### Monitoring
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- Check health score: logs/health/*.json
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- Monitor error rate: >10% = investigate
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- Watch memory: >750MB = pools need pruning
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- Track TPS: should be consistent
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### Common Issues
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```
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1. "startup hang"
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→ Fixed: pool discovery disabled
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2. "out of memory"
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→ Solution: reduce MaxWorkers in config
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3. "rate limited by RPC"
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→ Solution: add more endpoints to providers.yaml
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4. "no opportunities detected"
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→ Likely: configuration issue or markets asleep
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```
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---
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## Code Organization Philosophy
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The codebase follows **strict separation of concerns**:
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- `arbitrage/` - Pure arbitrage logic
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- `arbitrum/` - Chain-specific integration
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- `dex/` - Protocol implementations
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- `security/` - All security concerns
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- `monitor/` - Blockchain monitoring only
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- `scanner/` - Event processing only
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- `transport/` - RPC communication only
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Each package is independent and testable.
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---
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## Conclusion
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The MEV Bot is **well-architected but pragmatically incomplete**:
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✓ **Strengths:**
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- Modular, testable design
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- Production-grade security infrastructure
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- Multi-protocol support
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- Intelligent rate limiting
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- Robust error handling
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✗ **Gaps:**
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- Pool discovery disabled (workaround: cache)
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- Security manager disabled (workaround: KeyManager works)
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- No MEV protection
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- Single-chain only
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- In-memory state only
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**Status:** Ready for production with the cache-based architecture, but needs some features re-enabled (pool discovery, security manager) for full capability.
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