Solana: How can we make comparisons using clock.unix_timestamps and the time provided by the instructions arguments?

Here is an article on comparisons using the times provided by “clock.unix_timestamps” and “instructions.arg”:

Comparison of Unix timestamps in Solidity

When creating surveys or running candidates, you must verify that they have started before adding candidates. However, if timing issues occur, it can be difficult to determine whether the query ran correctly.

In this article, we’ll explore how to make comparisons between “clock.unix_timestamps” and the times provided by Solidity’s “instructions.arg” arguments.

What is a Unix Timestamp?

A Unix timestamp is a number representing the number of seconds since January 1, 1970, 00:00:00 UTC. It can be obtained using the Date.now() function or the unixTimestamp() method on the Date object.

clock.unix_timestamps in Solidity

In Solidity, you can get the current Unix timestamp using the following syntax:

const unixTimestamp = Date.now() / 1000;

This returns an integer representing the number of seconds since January 1, 1970, 00:00:00 UTC.

Comparing Unix Timestamps

You can compare two Unix timestamps using the following functions:

• clock.unix_timestamps ( Solidity 0.6.x and later )

const unixTimestamp1 = clock.unix_timestamps();
const unixTimestamp2 = instructions.arg(0).unixTimestamp();
if (unixTimestamp1 < unixTimestamp2) {
// query started
} else if (unixTimestamp1 > unixTimestamp2) {
// query did not start properly
} else {
// both polls started at the same time
}

• clock.unix_timestamps(0) ( Solidity 0.4.x and earlier )

const unixTimestamp1 = clock.unix_timestamps(0);
const unixTimestamp2 = instructions.arg(0).unixTimestamp();
if (unixTimestamp1 < unixTimestamp2) {
// query started
} else if (unixTimestamp1 > unixTimestamp2) {
// query did not start properly
} else {
// both polls started at the same time
}

Using the “instructions.arg(0).unixTimestamp()” command

Alternatively, you can use the “instructions.arg(0).unixTimestamp()” command to get the Unix timestamp of the instruction that started the query. This is useful when you want to compare to a fixed time.

For example:

const unixTimestamp1 = instructions.arg(0).unixTimestamp();
const unixTimestamp2 = sat.unix_timestamps();
if (unixTimestamp1 < unixTimestamp2) {
// the poll was started
} else if (unixTimestamp1 > unixTimestamp2) {
// the poll did not start properly
} else {
// both polls started at the same time
}

Conclusion

In short, comparing the times given by Solidity’s “clock.unix_timestamps” and “instructions.arg(0).unixTimestamp()” arguments is simple. Using one of these actions will help you ensure that your poll is running properly and run candidates if necessary.

I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any questions or need further assistance.