diff --git a/.github/relay-values.yml b/.github/relay-values.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..15c76d7ea
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/relay-values.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+relay:
+  config:
+    DEBUG_API_ENABLED: "true"
diff --git a/.github/scripts/forward-ports.sh b/.github/scripts/forward-ports.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..7eb7c70c7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/scripts/forward-ports.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+# Built-in SOLO port forwarding does not work :/
+# Port forwarding stops shortly after a one-shot Falcon start in GitHub actions.
+# For this reason, we use this script to start port forwarding directly via Bash,
+# instead of relying on the Node.js script.
+# This approach keeps the connection stable and ensures it lasts throughout the tests.
+
+FORWARDS=(
+  "mirror-1-rest|5551"
+  "network-node1|50211"
+  "relay-1|7546"
+  "mirror-1-grpc|5600"
+)
+
+ps aux | grep "port-forward" | grep kubectl | awk '{print $2}' | xargs -r kill -9
+NS="$(kubectl get ns -o name | sed 's|^namespace/||' | grep '^solo' | grep -v '^solo-setup$' | head -n1)"
+
+listen() {
+  local pod="$1"
+  local port="$2"
+  (
+    while true; do
+      if ! ps aux | grep -F kubectl | grep -F port-forward | grep -F " ${port}:${port}" | grep -v grep >/dev/null; then
+        kubectl port-forward "$pod" -n "$NS" "${port}:${port}" >/dev/null 2>&1 &
+      fi
+      sleep 1
+    done
+  ) &
+}
+
+for row in "${FORWARDS[@]}"; do
+  IFS='|' read -r include port <<<"$row"
+  POD="$(kubectl get pods -A --no-headers | grep -E "$include" | head -n 1 | awk '{print $2}' | head -n1)"
+  listen "$POD" "$port"
+done
diff --git a/.github/workflows/erc-registry-test.yml b/.github/workflows/erc-registry-test.yml
index 4babfa023..9d0a23b3f 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/erc-registry-test.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/erc-registry-test.yml
@@ -46,15 +46,55 @@ jobs:
           cd ${{env.INDEXER_PATH}}
           npm run test:unit
 
-      - name: Start the local node
-        run: npx hedera start -d --verbose=trace
-        timeout-minutes: 5
+      - name: Generate falcon-values config file
+        run: |
+          cat > .github/falcon.yml <<EOF
+          network:
+            --release-tag: "v0.72.0"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          setup:
+            --release-tag: "v0.72.0"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          consensusNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          mirrorNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+            --pinger: true
+            --mirror-node-version: "v0.151.0"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          explorerNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+          relayNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --relay-release: "v0.75.0"
+            --values-file: ".github/relay-values.yml"
+          EOF
+
+      - name: Setup Kind
+        uses: helm/kind-action@a1b0e391336a6ee6713a0583f8c6240d70863de3 # v1.12.0
+        with:
+          install_only: true
+          node_image: kindest/node:v1.32.5@sha256:e3b2327e3a5ab8c76f5ece68936e4cafaa82edf58486b769727ab0b3b97a5b0d
+          version: v0.29.0
+          kubectl_version: v1.32.5
+          verbosity: 3
+          wait: 120s
+
+      - name: Start the solo node
+        run: npx @hashgraph/solo@0.58.0 one-shot falcon deploy --values-file .github/falcon.yml --dev
+        timeout-minutes: 15
+
+      - name: Forward solo ports
+        run: .github/scripts/forward-ports.sh
 
       - name: Run Acceptance Tests
         run: |
           cd ${{env.INDEXER_PATH}}
           npm run test:acceptance
 
-      - name: Stop the local node
+      - name: Stop solo
         if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
-        run: npx hedera stop
+        run: npx @hashgraph/solo@${{ inputs.soloVersion || '0.58.0' }} one-shot single destroy
diff --git a/.github/workflows/migration-testing.yml b/.github/workflows/migration-testing.yml
index 5f6ab4587..5ce122177 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/migration-testing.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/migration-testing.yml
@@ -35,6 +35,10 @@ on:
         description: 'Specify post-migration test tags'
         required: false
         default: '@post-migration'
+      soloVersion:
+        description: 'Specify solo version'
+        required: false
+        type: string
 
 jobs:
   check:
@@ -70,9 +74,73 @@ jobs:
         with:
           version: stable
 
-      - name: Start the local node with N:${{ inputs.initialNetworkNodeTag }}, M:${{ inputs.initialMirrorNodeTag }}, R:${{ inputs.initialRelayTag }}
-        run: npx hedera start -d --full --network-tag=${{inputs.initialNetworkNodeTag}} --mirror-tag=${{inputs.initialMirrorNodeTag}} --relay-tag=${{inputs.initialRelayTag}}
-        timeout-minutes: 5
+      - name: Generate falcon-values config file
+        run: |
+          cat > .github/initial.yml <<EOF
+          network:
+            --release-tag: "${{ inputs.initialNetworkNodeTag }}"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          setup:
+            --release-tag: "${{ inputs.initialNetworkNodeTag }}"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          consensusNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          mirrorNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+            --pinger: true
+            --mirror-node-version: "${{ inputs.initialMirrorNodeTag }}"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          explorerNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+          relayNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --relay-release: "${{ inputs.initialRelayTag }}"
+            --values-file: ".github/relay-values.yml"
+          EOF
+          cat > .github/target.yml <<EOF
+          network:
+            --release-tag: "${{ inputs.targetNetworkNodeTag }}"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          setup:
+            --release-tag: "${{ inputs.targetNetworkNodeTag }}"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          consensusNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          mirrorNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+            --pinger: true
+            --mirror-node-version: "${{ inputs.targetlMirrorNodeTag }}"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          explorerNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+          relayNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --relay-release: "${{ inputs.targetRelayTag }}"
+            --values-file: ".github/relay-values.yml"
+          EOF
+
+      - name: Setup Kind
+        uses: helm/kind-action@a1b0e391336a6ee6713a0583f8c6240d70863de3 # v1.12.0
+        with:
+          install_only: true
+          node_image: kindest/node:v1.32.5@sha256:e3b2327e3a5ab8c76f5ece68936e4cafaa82edf58486b769727ab0b3b97a5b0d
+          version: v0.29.0
+          kubectl_version: v1.32.5
+          verbosity: 3
+          wait: 120s
+
+      - name: Start the solo node
+        run: npx @hashgraph/solo@${{ inputs.soloVersion || '0.58.0' }} one-shot falcon deploy --values-file .github/initial.yml --dev
+        timeout-minutes: 15
+
+      - name: Forward solo ports
+        run: .github/scripts/forward-ports.sh
 
       - name: Run pre-migration tests
         run: npx hardhat test --grep ${{ inputs.preMigrationTestTags }}
@@ -84,21 +152,11 @@ jobs:
           sleep 30
         timeout-minutes: 5
 
-      - name: Stop docker containers (network node)
-        run: docker stop network-node json-rpc-relay json-rpc-relay-ws
-        timeout-minutes: 5
-
-      - name: Run the local node with N:${{ inputs.targetNetworkNodeTag }}, M:${{ inputs.targetMirrorNodeTag }}, R:${{ inputs.targetRelayTag }}
-        env:
-          NETWORK_NODE_IMAGE_TAG: ${{inputs.targetNetworkNodeTag}}
-          MIRROR_IMAGE_TAG: ${{inputs.targetMirrorNodeTag}}
-          RELAY_IMAGE_TAG: ${{inputs.targetRelayTag}}
-          NETWORK_NODE_LOGS_ROOT_PATH: ~/.local/share/hedera-local/network-logs/node
+      - name: Start the solo node with new network
         run: |
-          docker compose -f docker-compose-state-migration.yml up -d
-          sleep 5
-        working-directory: node_modules/@hashgraph/hedera-local/
-        timeout-minutes: 5
+          npx @hashgraph/solo@${{ inputs.soloVersion || '0.58.0' }} one-shot single destroy
+          npx @hashgraph/solo@${{ inputs.soloVersion || '0.58.0' }} one-shot falcon deploy --values-file .github/target.yml --dev
+        timeout-minutes: 15
 
       - name: Run post-migration tests
         run: npx hardhat test --grep ${{ inputs.postMigrationTestTags }}
diff --git a/.github/workflows/opcode-logger-testing.yml b/.github/workflows/opcode-logger-testing.yml
index 5c1042469..6a3e5a2f3 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/opcode-logger-testing.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/opcode-logger-testing.yml
@@ -53,8 +53,49 @@ jobs:
       - name: Run opcode tests against besu
         run: npx hardhat test --grep "besu comparison" --network besu_local
 
-      - name: Start the hedera local node
-        run: npx hedera start -d
+      - name: Generate falcon-values config file
+        run: |
+          cat > .github/falcon.yml <<EOF
+          network:
+            --release-tag: "v0.72.0"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          setup:
+            --release-tag: "v0.72.0"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          consensusNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          mirrorNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+            --pinger: true
+            --mirror-node-version: "v0.151.0"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          explorerNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+          relayNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --relay-release: "v0.75.0"
+            --values-file: ".github/relay-values.yml"
+          EOF
+
+      - name: Setup Kind
+        uses: helm/kind-action@a1b0e391336a6ee6713a0583f8c6240d70863de3 # v1.12.0
+        with:
+          install_only: true
+          node_image: kindest/node:v1.32.5@sha256:e3b2327e3a5ab8c76f5ece68936e4cafaa82edf58486b769727ab0b3b97a5b0d
+          version: v0.29.0
+          kubectl_version: v1.32.5
+          verbosity: 3
+          wait: 120s
+
+      - name: Start the solo node
+        run: npx @hashgraph/solo@0.58.0 one-shot falcon deploy --values-file .github/falcon.yml --dev
+        timeout-minutes: 15
+
+      - name: Forward solo ports
+        run: .github/scripts/forward-ports.sh
 
-      - name: Run opcode tests against hedera local node
+      - name: Run opcode tests against solo
         run: npx hardhat test --grep @OpcodeLogger
diff --git a/.github/workflows/test-workflow.yml b/.github/workflows/test-workflow.yml
index 0844d21ee..4b6835270 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/test-workflow.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/test-workflow.yml
@@ -15,6 +15,9 @@ on:
       relayTag:
         required: false
         type: string
+      soloVersion:
+        required: false
+        type: string
 
 defaults:
   run:
@@ -67,9 +70,49 @@ jobs:
         with:
           version: stable
 
-      - name: Start the local node
-        run: npx hedera start -d --network-tag=${{inputs.networkTag}} --mirror-tag=${{inputs.mirrorTag}} --relay-tag=${{inputs.relayTag}} --verbose=trace
-        timeout-minutes: 5
+      - name: Generate falcon-values config file
+        run: |
+          cat > .github/falcon.yml <<EOF
+          network:
+            --release-tag: "${{ inputs.networkTag  || 'v0.72.0' }}"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          setup:
+            --release-tag: "${{ inputs.networkTag  || 'v0.72.0' }}"
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+          
+          consensusNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          mirrorNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+            --pinger: true
+            --mirror-node-version: "${{ inputs.mirrorTag || 'v0.151.0' }}"
+            --force-port-forward: true
+          explorerNode:
+            --enable-ingress: true
+          relayNode:
+            --node-aliases: "node1"
+            --relay-release: "${{ inputs.relayTag || 'v0.75.0' }}"
+            --values-file: ".github/relay-values.yml"
+          EOF
+
+      - name: Setup Kind
+        uses: helm/kind-action@a1b0e391336a6ee6713a0583f8c6240d70863de3 # v1.12.0
+        with:
+          install_only: true
+          node_image: kindest/node:v1.32.5@sha256:e3b2327e3a5ab8c76f5ece68936e4cafaa82edf58486b769727ab0b3b97a5b0d
+          version: v0.29.0
+          kubectl_version: v1.32.5
+          verbosity: 3
+          wait: 120s
+
+      - name: Start the solo node
+        run: npx @hashgraph/solo@${{ inputs.soloVersion || '0.58.0' }} one-shot falcon deploy --values-file .github/falcon.yml --dev
+        timeout-minutes: 15
+
+      - name: Forward solo ports
+        run: .github/scripts/forward-ports.sh
 
       - name: Run the test in ${{ inputs.testfilter }}
         run: npx hardhat test --grep ${{ inputs.testfilter }}
@@ -90,6 +133,6 @@ jobs:
           json_thousands_separator: ','
           files: 'test-*.xml'
 
-      - name: Stop the local node
+      - name: Stop solo
         if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
-        run: npx hedera stop
+        run: npx @hashgraph/solo@${{ inputs.soloVersion || '0.58.0' }} one-shot single destroy
diff --git a/.github/workflows_documentation.md b/.github/workflows_documentation.md
index 9e8b1599e..15e3aae38 100644
--- a/.github/workflows_documentation.md
+++ b/.github/workflows_documentation.md
@@ -63,8 +63,8 @@ In order to make opcode logger testing easier, we decided to use Besu's **debug_
   - *8541* which is mapped to Besu's WS json-rpc relay
 
   All the overridden node properties as miner address, enabled and included apis including custom genesis file are defined in *utils/besu-configs/customConfigFile.toml*. A custom genesis file (defined in *utils/besu-configs/customGenesisFile.toml*) is needed because starting block number of all existing forks till now must be set to 0 when Besu's node is used as a local private testing network. Start-up accounts are included in *customGenesisFile.json* as well and they easily can be expanded with new user-defined ones.
-- executes specific tests - These tests have custom before and after methods that detect the target network, and if it is Besu, then execute **debug_traceTransaction** against Besu node and save the opcodes response into JSON file. That step doesn't gain us any coverage, it's needed to generate a source of truth when the same tests are executed against the Hedera local node.
-- starts Hedera local node
-- executes specific tests - These tests have custom before and after methods that detect the target network, and if it is Hedera, then execute **debug_traceTransaction** against Hedera local node and compare response opcodes with these generated against Besu and saved in JSON several steps above.
+- executes specific tests - These tests have custom before and after methods that detect the target network, and if it is Besu, then execute **debug_traceTransaction** against Besu node and save the opcodes response into JSON file. That step doesn't gain us any coverage, it's needed to generate a source of truth when the same tests are executed against solo.
+- starts solo
+- executes specific tests - These tests have custom before and after methods that detect the target network, and if it is Hedera, then execute **debug_traceTransaction** against solo and compare response opcodes with these generated against Besu and saved in JSON several steps above.
 
 Entire Besu's prerequisites and responses generation are required because each time a solidity's compiler version in the **hardhat.config.js** is changed, the developer, who did the update, must locally run these tests against Besu to generate a new hardcoded JSON which will be used for further comparison. That would be needed because let's get for example changes from solidity *0.8.23* and *0.8.24*. Contracts compiled with the older version will not include EIP-5656 (for `MCOPY` opcode) and EIP-1153 (for `TSTORE` and `TLOAD` opcodes) and **debug_traceTransaction** will return opcodes based on the contract's bytecode. When a solidity version is updated to *0.8.24* in **hardhat.config.js**, contracts will be precompiled and the new opcodes (from EIP-5656 and EIP-1153) will be introduced in the contracts bytecodes, so when we run the tests and compare **debug_traceTransaction** responses with the hardcoded ones (generated with contracts compiled with solidity *0.8.23*) they will differ. After using a CI as above, the solidity version update is not binding to developers and they shouldn't take extra care for new "source of truth" JSON generation.
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 4645b68b9..55c2c3150 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,5 +1,4 @@
 HARDHAT_BASE_COMMAND=npx hardhat
-HEDERA_BASE_COMMAND=npx hedera
 PRETTIER_BASE_COMMAND=npx prettier
 
 # compiles all smart contracts
@@ -10,13 +9,13 @@ run-compile:
 run-test:
 	$(HARDHAT_BASE_COMMAND) test
 
-# starts a new hedera local node
-start-hedera-local:
-	$(HEDERA_BASE_COMMAND) start -d
+# starts a new solo instance
+start-solo:
+	npx @hashgraph/solo@0.58.0 one-shot falcon deploy --values-file .github/falcon.yml --dev
 
-# stop current hedera local node
-stop-hedera-local:
-	$(HEDERA_BASE_COMMAND) stop
+# stop a solo instance
+stop-solo:
+	npx @hashgraph/solo@0.58.0 one-shot falcon destroy
 
 # format all files
 format-codebase:
@@ -25,4 +24,3 @@ format-codebase:
 # assure all files are formatted
 format-check:
 	$(PRETTIER_BASE_COMMAND) . --check
-
diff --git a/TEST_SETUP.md b/TEST_SETUP.md
index 0aca1ec95..85ed560ea 100644
--- a/TEST_SETUP.md
+++ b/TEST_SETUP.md
@@ -71,20 +71,18 @@ foundryup
 
 #### 6. Test smart contracts
 
-##### 6.1 Set up `Hedera Local Node`
+##### 6.1 Set up `Solo`
 
 - Use the default env variables provided in [local.env](./local.env) for your `.env` file.
 
 - Ensure that the `defaultNetwork` in [hardhat.config.js](./hardhat.config.js) is set to `NETWORKS.local.name`.
 
-- From the root of your project directory, execute the following command to start up a `Hedera local node`:
+- From the root of your project directory, execute the following command to start up a `solo`:
 
 ```
-   npx hedera start -d
+    npx @hashgraph/solo  one-shot falcon deploy --values-file .github/falcon.yml --dev
 ```
 
-**_Important_**: Before running the `hedera local node`, verify that there are no other instances of Hedera docker containers or json-rpc-relay running in the background, as they might interfere with the functionality of the `hedera local node`.
-
 ##### 6.2 Execute test suites
 
 Run below command to execute the tests
diff --git a/local.env b/local.env
index d0251d9dc..d053a0d3a 100644
--- a/local.env
+++ b/local.env
@@ -1,9 +1,8 @@
-
 # ECSDA Account ID
 OPERATOR_ID_A=0.0.2
 
 # ECDSA DER Encoded Private Key
-OPERATOR_KEY_A= 302e020100300506032b65700422042091132178e72057a1d7528025956fe39b0b847f200ab59b2fdd367017f3087137
+OPERATOR_KEY_A=302e020100300506032b65700422042091132178e72057a1d7528025956fe39b0b847f200ab59b2fdd367017f3087137
 
 # ECDSA HEX Encoded Private Key
 PRIVATE_KEYS=
@@ -16,4 +15,3 @@ PRIVATE_KEYS=
 
 RETRY_DELAY=3000 # ms
 MAX_RETRY=5
-
diff --git a/test/README.md b/test/README.md
index 3c276f4b7..012ffa71a 100644
--- a/test/README.md
+++ b/test/README.md
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ Running "npx hardhat test" in the terminal will execute all the existing tests.
 # Execute tests locally against mainnet, testnet and previewnet, localnet
 
 - Start the local node:
-  npx hedera start -d --network ${networkName}
+  npx @hashgraph/solo one-shot falcon deploy --values-file .github/falcon.yml --dev
 
 Network specific configurations can be applied using the -n/--network option when starting/restarting the local node. Pre-configured options are mainnet, previewnet, testnet and local.
 
diff --git a/tools/erc-repository-indexer/erc-contract-indexer/local.env b/tools/erc-repository-indexer/erc-contract-indexer/local.env
index c4c7a90ce..5377edb78 100644
--- a/tools/erc-repository-indexer/erc-contract-indexer/local.env
+++ b/tools/erc-repository-indexer/erc-contract-indexer/local.env
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 HEDERA_NETWORK=local-node
 MIRROR_NODE_URL=http://127.0.0.1:5551
 MIRROR_NODE_URL_WEB3=http://127.0.0.1:8545
-SDK_OPERATOR_ID=0.0.1022
-SDK_OPERATOR_KEY=302e020100300506032b657004220420a608e2130a0a3cb34f86e757303c862bee353d9ab77ba4387ec084f881d420d4
+SDK_OPERATOR_ID=0.0.2
+SDK_OPERATOR_KEY=302e020100300506032b65700422042091132178e72057a1d7528025956fe39b0b847f200ab59b2fdd367017f3087137