Simulator networks

A simulator network is Acton's simplified implementation of TON. It produces basechain and masterchain blocks without validators or consensus. Use it for local contract execution, public-network forks, and tests that need virtual time or manual mining.

Unlike with a localnet, Docker is not required.

Prerequisites

• Acton 1.2 or later installed.
• An Acton project containing Acton.toml.
• For startup accounts, configured project wallets.

Public-network forks also require a remote procedure call (RPC) provider and any required API key. Historical forks require access to the selected block.

Create and connect

Create a network and connect clients through Studio or the standalone CLI. A standalone simulator serves its bundled explorer at the printed HTTP address, such as http://127.0.0.1:5411/.

Standalone simulators persist committed state in SQLite and runtime state in checkpoints.

Simulator controls

• Fork public state and fund accounts or mint jettons.
• Control time and mining for time-dependent scenarios.
• Set API conditions to test latency and rate-limit handling.
• Save checkpoints and change blockchain configuration.
• Edit account state through the control API.

Compatibility and limits

The simulator exposes TON Center v2/v3, Streaming, Emulate, and optional LiteAPI endpoints. The HTTP coverage matrices and LiteAPI reference document their limits.

Message simulation in Transaction emulator previews execution without committing it. Sending a message to the simulator network changes its local blockchain.

The simulator does not model validator elections, consensus, or shard splitting or merging. Use a localnet for tests that depend on validator or indexer infrastructure.