The ERC1167-minimal-proxy project showcases the implementation and usage of minimal proxy contracts (often referred to as "clones") based on the ERC1167 standard. This project provides a comprehensive guide to deploying and interacting with minimal proxy contracts, highlighting their efficiency and utility in various use cases. The project includes a simple example of deploying a proxy contract and executing functions through the proxy, demonstrating the practical benefits of this pattern.
A minimal proxy contract is a lightweight contract that delegates all calls to a predefined implementation contract using the DELEGATECALL opcode. This pattern is popular in the Ethereum ecosystem for creating multiple instances of a contract that share the same logic, reducing gas costs by avoiding full contract deployment for each instance.
An opcode (short for "operation code") is a single instruction that specifies an operation for the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to execute. Opcodes are the low-level commands that drive the behavior of smart contracts on the Ethereum network. Each opcode represents a basic operation, such as arithmetic, data storage, or control flow, and is represented by a unique hexadecimal code. For example, 0xF3 corresponds to the RETURN opcode, which stops execution and returns output data.
The minimal proxy contract works by delegating all calls to an implementation contract. The core of this pattern is a small piece of bytecode (known as the "creation code") that, when deployed, creates a contract forwarding all calls to the target implementation. The creation bytecode for a minimal proxy is constructed using a combination of opcodes and the address of the implementation contract.
The creation code typically looks like this:
3d60ad80600a3d3981f3363d3d373d3d3d363d73<implementation_address>5af43d82803e903d91602b57fd5bf3
This bytecode is responsible for creating a proxy contract that delegates calls to the specified implementation.
- Gas Efficiency: Deploying minimal proxies is significantly cheaper than deploying full contracts.
- Delegation: Proxies delegate calls to a predefined implementation contract, enabling code reuse.
- Factory Deployment: Easily create new proxy instances with a factory contract.
This project consists of three main contracts:
- ERC6551BytecodeLib: A library that provides the creation code for deploying minimal proxies.
- ProxyFactory: A factory contract responsible for creating new minimal proxy instances.
- Implementation: A simple contract containing a state variable and a function to demonstrate the functionality of the proxy.
The project includes tests written in TypeScript to ensure that the minimal proxy pattern is implemented correctly. These tests deploy an implementation contract, use the ProxyFactory to create a proxy, and then interact with the proxy to verify that it correctly delegates calls to the implementation.
To run this project locally:
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Clone the repository:
git clone https://github.com/sssshefer/ERC1167-minimal-proxy.git cd erc1167-minimal-proxy -
Install dependencies:
npm install
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Compile contracts:
npx hardhat compile
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Run tests:
npx hardhat test
This setup allows you to explore the project and understand how minimal proxies work in practice.
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Happy Hacking