developing-page

website/pages/en/network/developing.mdx

@@ -2,52 +2,92 @@
 title: Developing
 ---
 
-Developers are the demand side of The Graph ecosystem. Developers build subgraphs and publish them to The Graph Network. Then, they query live subgraphs with GraphQL in order to power their applications.
+Learn developer fundamentals and review the basics of a subgraph’s lifecycle. To start coding right away and build on The Graph, go to [Developer Quick Start](/quick-start/).
 
-## Subgraph Lifecycle
+## Overview
 
-Subgraphs deployed to the network have a defined lifecycle.
+As a developer, you need important data to build and power your dapps. Querying and indexing that blockchain data can be challenging, but The Graph provides a solution to this issue.
 
-### Build locally
+On The Graph, you can:
 
-As with all subgraph development, it starts with local development and testing. Developers can use the same local setup whether they are building for The Graph Network or a local Graph Node, leveraging `graph-cli` and `graph-ts` to build their subgraph. Developers are encouraged to use tools such as [Matchstick](https://github.com/LimeChain/matchstick) for unit testing to improve the robustness of their subgraphs.
+1.  Create, deploy, and publish subgraphs to The Graph using Graph CLI and [Subgraph Studio](https://thegraph.com/studio/).
+2.  Use GraphQL to query live subgraphs and power dapps.
 
-> There are certain constraints on The Graph Network, in terms of feature and network support. Only subgraphs on [supported networks](/developing/supported-networks) will earn indexing rewards, and subgraphs which fetch data from IPFS are also not eligible.
+### What is GraphQL?
 
-### Deploy to Subgraph Studio
+- [GraphQL](https://graphql.org/learn/) is the query language for APIs and a runtime for executing those queries with your existing data. The Graph uses GraphQL to query subgraphs.
 
-Once defined, the subgraph can be built and deployed to [Subgraph Studio](/deploying/subgraph-studio-faqs/). Subgraph Studio is a sandbox environment which will index the deployed subgraph and make it available for rate-limited development and testing. This gives developers an opportunity to verify that their subgraph does not encounter any indexing errors, and works as expected.
+### Developer Capabilities
 
-### Publish to the Network
+- Query subgraphs built by other developers in [The Graph Network](https://thegraph.com/explorer) and integrate them into your own dapps.
+- Create custom subgraphs to fulfill specific data needs, allowing improved scalability and flexibility for other developers.
+- Deploy, publish, and signal your subgraphs within The Graph Network.
 
-When the developer is happy with their subgraph, they can publish it to The Graph Network. This is an on-chain action, which registers the subgraph so that it is discoverable by Indexers. Published subgraphs have a corresponding NFT, which is then easily transferable. The published subgraph has associated metadata, which provides other network participants with useful context and information.
+## Subgraph Specifics
 
-### Signal to Encourage Indexing
+### What are subgraphs?
 
-Published subgraphs are unlikely to be picked up by Indexers without the addition of signal. Signal is locked GRT associated with a given subgraph, which indicates to Indexers that a given subgraph will receive query volume, and also contributes to the indexing rewards available for processing it. Subgraph developers will generally add signal to their subgraph, in order to encourage indexing. Third party Curators may also signal on a given subgraph, if they deem the subgraph likely to drive query volume.
+A subgraph is a custom API built on blockchain data. It extracts data from a blockchain, processes it, and stores it so that it can be easily queried via GraphQL.
 
-### Querying & Application Development
+A subgraph primarily consists of the following files:
 
-Once a subgraph has been processed by Indexers and is available for querying, developers can start to use the subgraph in their applications. Developers query subgraphs via a gateway, which forwards their queries to an Indexer who has processed the subgraph, paying query fees in GRT.
+- `subgraph.yaml`: this YAML file contains the [subgraph manifest](/developing/creating-a-subgraph/#the-subgraph-manifest).
+- `subgraph.graphql`: this GraphQL schema defines what data is stored for your subgraph, and how to query it via [GraphQL](/developing/creating-a-subgraph/#the-graphql-schema).
+- `mappings`: this [AssemblyScript](https://github.com/AssemblyScript/assemblyscript) mappings file translates data from the event data to the entities defined in your schema.
 
-In order to make queries, developers must generate an API key, which can be done in Subgraph Studio. This API key must be funded with GRT, in order to pay query fees. Developers can set a maximum query fee, in order to control their costs, and limit their API key to a given subgraph or origin domain. Subgraph Studio provides developers with data on their API key usage over time.
+Learn the detailed specifics to [create a subgraph](/developing/creating-a-subgraph/).
 
-Developers are also able to express an Indexer preference to the gateway, for example preferring Indexers whose query response is faster, or whose data is most up to date. These controls are set in Subgraph Studio.
+### Subgraph Lifecycle
 
-### Updating Subgraphs
+Here is a general view of a subgraph’s lifecycle:
 
-After a time a subgraph developer may want to update their subgraph, perhaps fixing a bug or adding new functionality. The subgraph developer may deploy new version(s) of their subgraph to Subgraph Studio for rate-limited development and testing.
+![Subgraph Lifecycle](/img/subgraph-lifecycle.png)
 
-Once the Subgraph Developer is ready to update, they can initiate a transaction to point their subgraph at the new version. Updating the subgraph migrates any signal to the new version (assuming the user who applied the signal selected "auto-migrate"), which also incurs a migration tax. This signal migration should prompt Indexers to start indexing the new version of the subgraph, so it should soon become available for querying.
+### Context for Subgraph Development
 
-### Deprecating Subgraphs
+Great subgraphs start with a local development environment and unit tests. Developers use [Graph CLI](https://github.com/graphprotocol/graph-tooling/tree/main/packages/cli), a command-line interface tool for building and deploying subgraphs in The Graph. They can also use [Graph TypeScript](/developing/graph-ts/) and [Matchstick](/developing/unit-testing-framework/) to create robust subgraphs that deploy to The Graph Network.
 
-At some point a developer may decide that they no longer need a published subgraph. At that point they may deprecate the subgraph, which returns any signalled GRT to the Curators.
+## Deploy to Subgraph Studio
 
-### Diverse Developer Roles
+Once defined, a subgraph can be [deployed to Subgraph Studio](/deploying/deploying-a-subgraph-to-studio/). In Subgraph Studio, you can do the following:
 
-Some developers will engage with the full subgraph lifecycle on the network, publishing, querying and iterating on their own subgraphs. Some may be focused on subgraph development, building open APIs which others can build on. Some may be application focused, querying subgraphs deployed by others.
+- Use its staging environment to index the deployed subgraph and make it available for review.
+- Verify that your subgraph doesn't have any indexing errors and works as expected.
 
-### Developers and Network Economics
+## Publish to the Network
 
-Developers are a key economic actor in the network, locking up GRT in order to encourage indexing, and crucially querying subgraphs, which is the network's primary value exchange. Subgraph developers also burn GRT whenever a subgraph is updated.
+When you are happy with your subgraph, you can put it into production and [publish it](/publishing/publishing-a-subgraph/) to The Graph Network. This ensures Indexers can index it.
+
+- This is an on-chain action, which registers the subgraph and makes it discoverable by Indexers.
+- Published subgraphs have a corresponding NFT, which defines the ownership of the subgraph. You can [transfer the subgraph's ownership](/managing/transfer-and-deprecate-a-subgraph/) by sending the NFT.
+- Published subgraphs have associated metadata, which provides other network participants with useful context and information.
+
+## Add Curation Signal for Indexing
+
+Published subgraphs are unlikely to be picked up by Indexers without curation signal. To encourage indexing you should add signal to your subgraph. Learn more about signaling and [curating](/network/curating/) on The Graph.
+
+### What is signal?
+
+- Signal is locked GRT associated with a given subgraph. It indicates to indexers that a given subgraph will receive query volume and it contributes to the indexing rewards available for processing it.
+- Third party Curators may also signal on a given subgraph, if they deem the subgraph likely to drive query volume.
+
+## Querying & Application Development
+
+Once a subgraph has been processed by Indexers and is ready to [query](/querying/querying-the-graph/), developers can start using their subgraph in their dapps.
+
+- When a query is made, The Graph Network selects an Indexer who has processed the subgraph to serve that query. Query fees are paid in GRT.
+- Developers must generate an API key and fund it with GRT to make queries, which can be done in [Subgraph Studio](https://thegraph.com/studio/).
+- Developers can set a maximum query fee, in order to control their costs, and limit their API key to a given subgraph or origin domain.
+  - Subgraph Studio provides API key usage data.
+- Developers can express an Indexer preference to the gateway, for example preferring Indexers whose query response is faster, or whose data is most up to date. These controls are set in Subgraph Studio.
+
+## Updating Subgraphs
+
+To update your subgraph with bug fixes or new functionalities, initiate a transaction to point it to the new version. You can deploy new versions of your subgraphs to [Subgraph Studio](https://thegraph.com/studio/) for development and testing.
+
+- If you selected "auto-migrate" when you applied the signal, updating the subgraph will migrate any signal to the new version and incur a migration tax.
+- This signal migration should prompt Indexers to start indexing the new version of the subgraph, so it should soon become available for querying.
+
+## Deprecating & Transferring Subgraphs
+
+If you no longer need a published subgraph, you can deprecate or transfer a subgraph. Deprecating a subgraph returns any signaled GRT to [Curators](/network/curating/). To deprecate or transfer a subgraph, check out [this guide](/managing/transfer-and-deprecate-a-subgraph/#deprecating-a-subgraph).