# Getting Started with IC Development: What considerations should developers take into account when developing a canister locally and deploying it to the IC Mainnet **URL:** \ **Category:** Developers\ **Tags:** Discussing\ **Created:** [June 17, 2025, 10:19am UTC](https://forum.dfinity.org/t/getting-started-with-ic-development-what-considerations-should-developers-take-into-account-when-developing-a-canister-locally-and-deploying-it-to-the-ic-mainnet/50797 "2025-06-17T10:19:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![C-B-Elite](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/forum.dfinity.org/c-b-elite/32/34356_2.png) [@C-B-Elite](https://forum.dfinity.org/u/C-B-Elite)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2025, 10:19am UTC](https://forum.dfinity.org/t/getting-started-with-ic-development-what-considerations-should-developers-take-into-account-when-developing-a-canister-locally-and-deploying-it-to-the-ic-mainnet/50797/1 "2025-06-17T10:19:27Z")
# Background This article, as the first in the [Building a Community-Driven Knowledge Base for IC Development](https://forum.dfinity.org/t/building-a-community-driven-knowledge-base-for-ic-development/48503) series, gathers all the metrics and details I’ve focused on during ICP canister development—from local development through deployment and maintenance in production. Developers are welcome to further enrich this mind map; after thorough discussion on the forum, it will be consolidated into a dedicated GitHub repository. I’ve contributed this content as a Markdown article, along with mind-map images attached to the post. I built the mind map using XMind—if you need the PDF version or the original XMind file, feel free to DM me to get them. ## Local Development ### CDK Version - Use the latest Rust CDK version. - Pay attention to CDK API interface changes when upgrading between versions. - Check for known security issues of the target CDK version on the Dfinity forum. ### Benefits of Developing on Localnet - Local development doesn’t incur any fees—in other words, you don’t need to spend ICP/cycles. - Immediate access to detailed operational logs and debugging through the console. - On mainnet, retrieve logs using: ```bash dfx canister --ic logs $canister_id ``` ### Important Development Constraints - Be mindful of canister execution constraints: memory, compute limits, and execution cycles. - Early consideration prevents later maintenance issues. Refer to [IC documentation](https://internetcomputer.org/docs/building-apps/canister-management/resource-limits). ### Canister Upgrade - See the “Canister Maintenance” section for detailed upgrade guidance. ## Canister Maintenance ### Storage #### WebAssembly (WASM) Memory - Current WASM memory limit is 4GB, anticipated to extend to 6GB with wasm64 support. - Data not requiring upgrades can reside fully in WASM memory. - Reference: [WASM64 Beta Announcement](https://forum.dfinity.org/t/wasm64-beta-release-coming-soon/35791/23). #### Stable Memory - Stable memory is subnet-shared, totaling 500GB per subnet. - Primarily used during upgrades via hooks like `pre_upgrade`, unless using stable structures. - Recommended to store large data sets using stable structures for easy upgrades and decoupling data from logic. ### Canister Upgrade - Ensure the `pre_upgrade` hook never fails to prevent permanent upgrade blockage. - Strongly recommend using stable structure libraries for managing stable memory. **Suggested Upgrade Workflow:** 1. Stop canister 2. Take snapshot 3. Upgrade canister 4. Start canister ### Snapshot - Canisters retain up to 10 snapshots, allowing reversion in case of upgrade failures. ### Cycles #### Freezing Threshold - Default freezing threshold: 30 days. - Below this threshold, canisters reject update calls but allow query calls. - Exhausted cycles lead to data loss; controller retains canister ID for 10 years. ### Instruction Limitation - Update and query calls have strict instruction limits. - Exceeding limits results in state rollback. Always monitor instruction usage. ### Canister Settings - Optional compute and memory allocations reserve resources. - Typically unnecessary unless subnet resources are constrained to guarantee QoS. ## Deploying a Canister to Mainnet ### Choosing a Subnet #### Based on Node Count - More nodes increase security and operational costs: - 34-node subnet (~2.6x cost of 13-node subnet) - 13-node subnet #### Chain Key Signature Efficiency - 13-node (`fuqsr`) and 34-node (`pzp6e`) subnets directly support chain key signatures. - Other subnets delegate to these. #### Subnet Load - Busier subnets can increase execution latency. - MIEPS: Higher indicates busier subnet. - Finalization rate: Higher generally reduces latency. #### Based on Region - Europe (`bkfrj`): All nodes located in Europe. - Other regional subnets available. #### Subnet Eligibility - Subnets reaching maximum canister capacity reject new deployments. - Check Dfinity forums for subnet availability. ### Multi-Canister Architecture: Same or Different Subnets #### Same Subnet - Faster communication; max payload 10MB. - Lower latency. #### Different Subnets - More overall stable memory. - Load balancing capability. - Reduced operational costs by distributing canisters based on security and latency sensitivity. ![What considerations should developers take into account when developing a canister locally and deploying it to the IC Mainnet](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/uploads/dfn/original/3X/6/d/6dd00272b55a03216c348563021948562b4ee69a.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![marc0olo](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/forum.dfinity.org/marc0olo/32/17290_2.png) [@marc0olo](https://forum.dfinity.org/u/marc0olo)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2025, 11:08am UTC](https://forum.dfinity.org/t/getting-started-with-ic-development-what-considerations-should-developers-take-into-account-when-developing-a-canister-locally-and-deploying-it-to-the-ic-mainnet/50797/2 "2025-06-17T11:08:13Z")
Thanks for sharing and driving this effort! 🙂 > [@C-B-Elite](#): > > Stable memory is subnet-shared, totaling 500GB per subnet. The subnet limit is 1TB 😁 and the canister storage limit is 500GB. See the [Stellarator](https://internetcomputer.org/roadmap#Compute%20Platform-Stellarator) milestone. ---
**Author:** ![ilbert](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/forum.dfinity.org/ilbert/32/8717_2.png) [@ilbert](https://forum.dfinity.org/u/ilbert)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2025, 6:35am UTC](https://forum.dfinity.org/t/getting-started-with-ic-development-what-considerations-should-developers-take-into-account-when-developing-a-canister-locally-and-deploying-it-to-the-ic-mainnet/50797/3 "2025-06-18T06:35:31Z")
> [@marc0olo](#): > > The subnet limit is 1GB I believe there’s a typo here: the subnet limit is **1TB**. ---
**Author:** ![marc0olo](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/forum.dfinity.org/marc0olo/32/17290_2.png) [@marc0olo](https://forum.dfinity.org/u/marc0olo)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2025, 7:07am UTC](https://forum.dfinity.org/t/getting-started-with-ic-development-what-considerations-should-developers-take-into-account-when-developing-a-canister-locally-and-deploying-it-to-the-ic-mainnet/50797/4 "2025-06-18T07:07:27Z")
of course!🤦‍♂️ fixed ✅ funny if that happens when trying to correct somebody else 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![C-B-Elite](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex023/user_avatar/forum.dfinity.org/c-b-elite/32/34356_2.png) [@C-B-Elite](https://forum.dfinity.org/u/C-B-Elite)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2025, 7:10am UTC](https://forum.dfinity.org/t/getting-started-with-ic-development-what-considerations-should-developers-take-into-account-when-developing-a-canister-locally-and-deploying-it-to-the-ic-mainnet/50797/5 "2025-06-18T07:10:08Z")
In my article, I specifically noted that it’s Stable Memory that has a 500 GB limit, not canister storage. In practice, Stable Memory often better reflects a canister’s true storage capacity—because in large-data scenarios, most developers rely on stable structures to store their data. A particularly interesting development is the evolution and application of wasm64 within canisters, which could become a new storage paradigm. In any case, thank you for pointing that out! 😁