Shadow Fork Test Environment Provisioner

WHAT IT DOES

Shadow Fork Test Environment Provisioner helps developers prepare and configure shadow fork environments for testing smart contracts against real blockchain state. The tool takes user-provided parameters—RPC URL, block number, fork chain ID, and port—and generates ready-to-use configuration files and command-line instructions for popular forking tools including Anvil (Foundry), Hardhat, and Docker-based Anvil containers. It outputs the exact commands needed to start a shadow fork, along with Hardhat config snippets and foundry.toml entries. This eliminates the need to manually construct forking commands or remember syntax across different tools, accelerating the setup process for testing, debugging, and security analysis against mainnet state. All processing is local and does not require a wallet connection.

HOW TO USE

Enter the source RPC URL for the chain you want to fork (e.g., Infura, Alchemy, or local node). Specify the block number to fork at—this determines the exact state snapshot your fork will use. Optionally customize the fork chain ID (default: 31337) and RPC port (default: 8545). Click "Generate provisioning config" to produce a comprehensive configuration package. The output includes: an Anvil command with the correct parameters, a Hardhat network configuration snippet, a Foundry configuration block, and a Docker command for running Anvil in a container. Use the "Copy configuration" and "Copy commands" buttons to export the outputs directly to your clipboard for use in terminals or config files.

TECHNICAL MECHANISM: TEMPLATE-BASED COMMAND AND CONFIGURATION GENERATION

The tool uses parameterized templates to generate forking commands and configuration files for multiple toolchains. Each template includes placeholder variables for RPC URL, block number, chain ID, and port, which are substituted with user input. The Anvil command uses the --fork-url, --fork-block-number, --chain-id, and --port flags as per Foundry's specification. The Hardhat configuration uses the forking object under the hardhat network definition. The Foundry configuration is formatted as a TOML block with the fork parameters under the default profile. The Docker command includes the appropriate volume and port mappings for running Anvil in a containerized environment. All templates are stored client-side and populated using string interpolation, producing consistent, syntax-valid outputs that can be directly executed or pasted into configuration files. The tool does not execute any commands or make any network requests—it only prepares the configuration for the user to run.

WHAT IT CANNOT SEE

Cannot actually provision or spin up a shadow fork environment—this tool only prepares configuration and instructions; the user must execute the commands themselves. Cannot verify that the forked environment is accessible or correctly configured after the user starts it. Cannot ensure that the specified block number is valid or available on the target RPC—it assumes the user provides a correct block number. Cannot validate that the RPC endpoint supports forking or tracing—not all providers support the eth_getLogs or debug_trace methods required for forking. Cannot detect conflicts with existing local environments or port bindings. Cannot guarantee that the forked state accurately reflects the original chain at the specified block. Cannot automatically clean up or decommission the forked environment after use. Cannot provide real-time status monitoring of the shadow fork. Cannot provision forks for non-EVM chains.

PLEASE NOTE

EVM chains only. This tool does not interact with any blockchain, does not execute any commands, and does not start any services. It generates configuration snippets and commands for use with Foundry Anvil, Hardhat, and Docker. Users must have the respective tools installed to run the generated commands.