Learn about OpenZeppelin
OpenZeppelin is a platform that has tools you can use to write, deploy, and manage decentralized applications. OpenZeppelin is an open-source tool that provides reliability and security with the products it provides.
OpenZeppelin offers two products: the Contracts library and the SDK.
Contracts
The OpenZeppelin Contracts library gives you access to a robust set of modular and reusable smart contracts for the Ethereum network. The smart contracts are written in Solidity. The main benefit of using OpenZeppelin contracts is that they have been thoroughly tested, audited, and community-reviewed.
OpenZeppelin is the most popular library source in the industry for smart contracts, and it’s open source. When you use OpenZeppelin contracts, you'll learn the best practices for developing smart contracts. A variety of contract types are available, including:
- Access Control: Use when you want to decide who can perform actions.
- Tokens: Use to create tradeable assets.
- Gas Station Network: Use when you want your users to be able to use contracts without paying for the gas (fees).
- Utilities: Use when you need generic, useful tools.
Although we'll use only the token contracts in this module, it's good to be aware of the other contract resources that are available.
SDK
The other OpenZeppelin product you can use is the OpenZeppelin SDK. The SDK offers a command-line interface (CLI), so it's easier to manage smart contract development. You can save hours of development time by using the CLI to compile, upgrade, and deploy smart contracts. The CLI provides support for Ethereum and other Ethereum Virtual Machine-powered blockchains. The commands are intuitive and interactive to help guide you through the development process.
We won't use the SDK in this module, but it's a tool you can consider exploring on your own, and use for future blockchain development.