Automated tradingUpdated 2 min readBy the FXNOD team
What is an expert advisor (EA) in trading?
An expert advisor, or EA, is a program that runs inside the MetaTrader 4 or MetaTrader 5 trading platform and places trades automatically according to its code. It is the MetaTrader name for a trading bot. An EA trades only while the terminal it is attached to is running, which is why they are usually hosted on a VPS.
How an EA works
It is attached to a chart
In the MetaTrader terminal, on a chosen market and timeframe.
It reads each new price
And checks its conditions.
It sends orders
Opening, modifying and closing positions on that account.
It stops when the terminal stops
Unless the terminal runs on an always-on machine.
EA, indicator and script
| Type | What it does | Places trades? |
|---|---|---|
| Expert advisor | Runs continuously and manages trades | Yes |
| Indicator | Draws calculations on the chart | No |
| Script | Runs once to do a single task | Only that once |
The strategy tester
MetaTrader includes a tester that runs an EA over past prices. It is useful and easy to misuse. Optimising settings until the past looks perfect produces an EA fitted to history, and results depend heavily on the quality of the data and on spread and slippage assumptions. Always test on a period the settings were not tuned on, then on a demo account.
Judging an EA someone is selling
- Is the logic described? Grid and Martingale EAs are the most common and the most dangerous.
- Is there a long, verified live record, not a backtest?
- What was the largest drawdown on equity?
- Does it need a large balance to survive its own ladder?
- Can you run it on demo first?
- Does the seller ask for account access? Walk away.
What an EA needs
- A broker offering MetaTrader and allowing automated trading.
- The terminal running without interruption, usually on a VPS.
- Monitoring. Terminals crash, updates restart machines, and brokers change symbols.
EAs and FXNOD
FXNOD is not MetaTrader and does not run expert advisors. Its bots trade options and multipliers on a Deriv account through Deriv's API, run on FXNOD's servers, and are built without code. If you want an EA on Deriv, that is Deriv MT5, which is a separate platform.
Questions people ask
- Is an expert advisor the same as a trading bot?
- Yes. It is the name for a trading bot that runs inside MetaTrader.
- Do I need a VPS for an EA?
- To trade around the clock, yes, or another always-on computer. The EA stops when the terminal closes.
- Are free EAs any good?
- Some are honest experiments. Many are grid or Martingale systems. Judge by the logic and a demo test, not the price.
Run a bot that keeps its limits
FXNOD's bots run on its servers and will not start without a stop loss, so your limits hold when your device is off. Build one in Bot Forge or start a ready-made one in Auto Hub, on your Deriv demo account first.
Get started