Crab Dedicated Nodes & RPC Infrastructure | OnFinality

Crab is a universal cross-chain messaging network built on Kusama, serving as the canary network for Darwinia. It provides a light client-based, programmable cross-chain messaging protocol (LCMP) that bridges Substrate-based chains and EVM chains. Developers use Crab RPC endpoints to read blockchain data, submit transactions, and integrate cross-chain capabilities into dApps.

What is Crab?

Crab is a Kusama parachain that powers Darwinia's cross-chain messaging infrastructure. It enables decentralized applications to send and receive messages across different blockchain networks using light client verification. This makes Crab a critical component for building hybrid cross-chain applications in the Polkadot ecosystem.

Why Use OnFinality for Crab Nodes?

OnFinality provides dedicated Crab node infrastructure for teams that need reliable, scalable access to the Crab network. Whether you are running a dApp, wallet, DeFi product, analytics tool, game, or backend service, a dedicated node gives you:

• Stable access with no rate limits from shared endpoints
• Full control over node configuration and upgrades
• Observability with monitoring and request analytics
• Global deployment across multiple cloud providers

Dedicated Node Types

OnFinality offers three types of dedicated Crab nodes:

• Full node: Complete blockchain data, suitable for most production use cases.
• Archive node: Full historical state, required for queries that need past data.
• Collator node: For teams participating in block production on the Crab parachain.

How to Connect to Crab via OnFinality

1. Create or sign in to your OnFinality account.
2. Select Crab from the supported networks list.
3. Deploy a dedicated node or create an API endpoint.
4. Test the endpoint using chain_getBlock.
5. Monitor usage, errors, and limits before moving production traffic.

Crab Network Details

• Network environment: Mainnet
• RPC protocol: Substrate JSON-RPC
• Transport: HTTP and WebSocket
• Chain ID: 44 (EVM compatible)
• Native token: CRAB

When to Choose Dedicated Crab RPC

Use a dedicated Crab node when your application requires:

• Higher request throughput than public endpoints
• Consistent latency and uptime
• Access to archive data for historical queries
• Custom node configurations or collator operations
• Support for traffic beyond lightweight testing