Articles on trading system automation in MQL5
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Mapping the Shape of Price: The Mapper Lens and Cover in MQL5
The article introduces the Mapper pipeline in MQL5 by implementing the two fundamental components: CTDAMapperFilter (lens) and CTDAMapperCover (overlapping intervals). It explains three lens options—eccentricity, density, and coordinate—plus cover parameters (resolution and gain), and demonstrates how a price point cloud is reduced to one value per point and interval memberships. Readers obtain ready inputs for subsequent clustering and graph construction.
Beyond GARCH (Part VIII): The MMAR Library And Putting it to Work in an Expert Advisor
This article finalizes the MMAR project with a CMMAR facade class and a demo Expert Advisor for MetaTrader 5. The facade exposes a compact API—configure, Fit(), Forecast()—that wraps partition analysis, spectrum fitting and Monte Carlo simulation. You will learn how to load data, fit the model and obtain a volatility forecast, with diagnostics and status handling for robust use in EAs.
Trading with the MQL5 Economic Calendar (Part 12): SQLite Storage and Deduplication
In this article, we replace the embedded CSV snapshot with a SQLite layer that persists calendar events and triggered trade IDs across restarts. The database lives in the common terminal folder and is shared by live charts and the strategy tester, so both modes read the same data without recompiling. An on-demand downloader with a canvas progress bar fetches history from the calendar API and stores it for offline reuse.
Beyond GARCH (Part III): Building the MMAR and the Verdict
With the multifractal parameters from Part 2 in hand, this article builds the full MMAR process. We construct the multiplicative cascade for trading time, generate Fractional Brownian Motion via Davies-Harte FFT, and combine both into X(t) = B_H[theta(t)]. A 100-path Monte Carlo simulation produces the volatility forecast, which we then pit against GARCH on the same EURUSD M5 data. Does Mandelbrot's fractal architecture outforecast Engle's conditional variance framework? Part 3 of a eight-part series leading to a native MQL5 library and Expert Advisor.
MQL5 Wizard Techniques you should know (Part 97): Using Convex Hull and a miniature GRU Network in a Custom Trailing Stop Class
For this article we look at a custom MQL5 Wizard class for Trailing Stops. Our implemented custom class ‘CTrailingConvexHullGRU’, is built from merging the Convex Hull algorithm with a GRU network. As always we seek to develop a model that is testable with MQL5 Wizard-Assembled Expert Advisors and can be tuned with various Money Management and entry Signals classes. Our testing is with the 'Envelopes' and the RSI classes for Signal.
MQL5 Wizard Techniques you should know (Part 100): Sliding Window Median and Bidirectional LSTM for a Custom Trailing Stop
CTrailingSlidingMedianBiLSTM is a custom MQL5 Wizard trailing module that combines robust median/MAD outlier filtering with a BiLSTM context score in the range [-1, 1]. Four algorithm modes (standard, bands, RSI, adaptive) target noise, mean-reverting bursts and liquidity spikes, reducing premature stop adjustments. This module is intended for side-by-side evaluation with diverse entry signals and money management settings.
Neural Networks in Trading: Effective Feature Extraction for Accurate Classification (Building Objects)
Mantis is a versatile tool for in-depth time series analysis that can be flexibly scaled to accommodate any financial scenario. Learn how a combination of patching, local convolutions, and cross-attention enables a highly accurate interpretation of market patterns.
Building a Trade Analytics System (Part 3): Storing MetaTrader 5 Trades in SQLite
This article extends a Flask backend to reliably receive, validate, and store closed trade data from MetaTrader 5 using SQLite and Flask‑SQLAlchemy. It implements required‑field checks, timestamp conversion, transaction‑safe persistence, and working retrieval endpoints for all trades and single records, plus a basic summary. The result is a complete data pipeline with local testing that records trades and exposes them through a structured API for further analysis.
How to Detect and Normalize Chart Objects in MQL5 (Part 5): Fibonacci in Focus
The article bridges automated placement with manual analysis for the Fibonacci family in MQL5. It scans charts, identifies user Fibonacci objects, and normalizes their level arrays, interaction flags, and visuals per object type while preserving coordinates. With manual-priority enforcement, Expert Advisors can evaluate both human and code-generated tools reliably, without duplicates or runtime indexing issues.
Carry Trade Logic in MQL5: Building an EA That Factors Swap Rates Into Position Sizing and Holding Decisions
Most retail traders ignore overnight swap rates, but for long-term positions, these interest payments can make or break your strategy. This article shows you how to build a dynamic MQL5 module that retrieves real-time swap data and converts it into actual profit or loss in your account currency. You will learn how to program an Expert Advisor that automatically calculates if a trade is worth holding based on carry income and adjusts your position size to account for expected interest. It is a practical guide to turning a hidden cost into a mathematical advantage for your trading systems.
Mapping Dealer Gamma Exposure (GEX) in MetaTrader 5: Walls, the Zero-Gamma Flip, and a Chart Overlay
In this article we build a dealer gamma-exposure map in MQL5. From an option chain, the tool computes per-strike GEX, finds the call and put walls, and solves for the zero-gamma flip that separates a mean-reverting regime from a trending one, then draws it all on the chart. CSV and native-symbol data paths included.
MetaTrader 5 Machine Learning Blueprint (Part 18): Sequential Bootstrap, Corrected — Clone, Class Erasure, and the Comparison Toolkit
The article diagnoses two defects that neutralize sequential bootstrap during cross‑validation: type erasure of SequentiallyBootstrappedBaggingClassifier and a fold‑level shape mismatch from cloning full samples info sets. It retains the classifier's identity, adds find seq bagging to re‑inject fold‑sliced t1 in CalibratorCV.fit, and resets state per split. A new bootstrap_comparison module reports OOF and OOB metrics and memory, letting you verify that sequential sampling is applied correctly and quantify its impact.
Market Simulation: Getting started with SQL in MQL5 (IV)
Many people tend to underestimate SQL, or even not use it at all, because they do not fully understand how it actually works. When running queries against an SQL database, we are not always looking for a universal answer; in some cases, we need a very specific and practical answer. If a database is created with a proper structure and data model, almost any type of information can be integrated into it.
MQL5 Wizard Techniques you should know (Part 98): Using an Unscented Kalman Filter and a Capsule Network in a Custom Signal Class
This article presents 'CSignalUKFCapsNet', as a custom class coded in MQL5. This class is meant to be used with the MQL5 Wizard when assembling an Expert Advisor and when selected in the Wizard it defines the Expert Advisor's entry signals. In building this custom class, we brought together the algorithm Unscented Kalman Filter and the Capsule Neural Network. Our algorithm is showcased with four operation modes, and the coding of this as a custom class for the MQL5 Wizard, allows testing with various Trailing Stop methods and Money Management systems.
Cross Recurrence Quantification Analysis (CRQA) in MQL5: Building a Complete Analysis Library
This article extends the MQL5 RQA library to Cross-Recurrence Quantification Analysis (CRQA) for comparing two time series. We implement dual‑series embedding, cross‑recurrence matrix construction, adapted metrics (CRR, CDET, CLAM, CENTR, and others), and rolling‑window analysis, with optional GPU acceleration via OpenCL. A ready-to-use indicator compares two symbols in real time, supporting timestamp alignment and normalization for practical inter-market analysis.
Neural Networks in Trading: Anomaly Detection in the Frequency Domain (Final Part)
We continue to work on implementing the CATCH framework, which combines the Fourier transform and frequency patching mechanisms, ensuring accurate detection of market anomalies. In this article, we complete the implementation of our own vision of the proposed approaches and test the new models on real historical data.
Encoding Candlestick Patterns (Part 4): Frequency Analysis for Double-Candlestick Structures
This article extends single-candlestick analysis to ordered double-candlestick patterns using an MQL5 script. The script encodes candles into symbols, extracts every consecutive two-symbol sequence (treating Aa and aA as different), counts occurrences and percentages, and writes sorted frequency tables to a text file. Readers can quickly identify the most recurrent transitions by symbol, timeframe, and lookback for further statistical testing.
Lazy-Loading Indicator Handles in MQL5: A Resource Manager Pattern for Multi-Timeframe EAs
Multi‑timeframe EAs that initialize every indicator handle in OnInit() pay a fixed startup cost even when most handles are never used. CIndicatorCache applies lazy loading with composite‑key lookup, reference‑counted Acquire/Release, and a deterministic FlushAll() for cleanup. Handles are created on first request and reused across ticks, reducing startup latency, avoiding repeated heap allocation, and preventing terminal resource leaks through centralized ownership.
From Novice to Expert: Weekend Gap Size Effect Research Using MQL5 and Python
The article provides a practical research setup for weekend gap analysis: MQL5 extracts precise pip‑based gaps and tracks fills, while Python performs statistical testing and visualization. You will compute fill rates by gap buckets, model fill probability with logistic regression, and assess time-to-fill via Kaplan–Meier curves. All steps are configurable and reproducible for EURUSD, GBPUSD, USDJPY and beyond.
Building a Modular Fair Value Gap (FVG) Detection Engine in MQL5
This article introduces a modular Fair Value Gap (FVG) detection engine for MQL5 packaged as a reusable include class, it evaluates imbalance zones on closed bars, applies a Simple True Range average filter to eliminate low-volatility noise, and supports wick-touch and close-through mitigation. A companion diagnostic indicator plots active gaps, and an Expert Advisor template demonstrates automated pullback entries with new-bar execution controls.
Monochronic Trading (Part 1): How to Detect Broker Timezone and DST in MQL5
We describe an MQL5 framework that aligns entries with session rhythms and scheduled clock events. A script identifies the broker's time zone and DST by detecting NFP spikes on EURUSD and matching them to EU/US/AU transition dates, producing EA‑ready settings. Session-to-broker time conversion and 15-minute marks constrain execution. A multi‑timeframe AMA signal aggregates trends for strategy selection and optimization.
Engineering Trading Discipline into Code (Part 8): Building a Setup Confirmation and Trade Authorization Layer in MQL5
This article introduces an MQL5 trade authorization framework built around CDisciplineLayer, CDisciplineGuardian, and CDisciplinePanel. The framework manages setup lifecycles, signal freshness, session restrictions, setup expiry, and global trading locks through a centralized authorization layer. It also provides automated enforcement of violations and a real-time dashboard, enabling consistent trade validation and monitoring before and after execution.
MetaTrader 5 Machine Learning Blueprint (Part 19): Bagging Regimes
We test AFML's claim that the sequential bootstrap decorrelates bagged trees on overlapping triple‑barrier labels by isolating two levers: draw count and draw rule. One decision identical tree is bagged under four row‑sampling regimes and evaluated on EURUSD 2022–2023 for draw uniqueness, between‑tree correlation, AUC, and calibration. Decorrelation comes almost entirely from throttling max_samples to average uniqueness; the sequential draw adds little. Out-of-bag inflation is largest under full-count sequential sampling.
Exporting MetaTrader 5 Open Positions to a Live-Refreshing HTML Dashboard
The article builds an MQL5 Expert Advisor that writes a self-refreshing HTML positions dashboard to MQL5/Files on every tick, so you can monitor open trades in any browser. It covers reading live position data, generating a complete page with inline CSS and a JavaScript reload timer, and writing the file atomically. The design escapes HTML in comments, shows an explicit empty state, and writes a clear offline page on EA shutdown.
MQL5 Trading Tools (Part 36): Adding Shape and Annotation Tools with In-Place Label Editing to the Canvas Drawing Layer
We add eight shape tools and nine annotation tools to the canvas and implement a full in-place label-editing system. The article walks through geometry, AA rendering, shared word-wrap and supersampled text helpers, and the caret-driven state machine for typing, navigation, and selection. This yields a complete, consistent annotation toolkit with editable labels that plugs into the prior interaction pipeline.
Implementing the Decorator Pattern in MQL5: Adding Logging, Timing, and Filtering to Any Indicator Non-Invasively
Cross-cutting concerns like logging, timing, and threshold filtering should not live inside indicator classes. We show how to apply the decorator pattern in MQL5 with a shared IIndicator interface, an owning CBaseDecorator, and concrete CLoggingDecorator, CTimingDecorator, and CThresholdFilterDecorator layers. You can stack behaviors per EA, keep computation code closed to modification, and get deterministic cleanup by deleting only the outermost decorator.
MQL5 Wizard Techniques you should know (Part 91): Using Skip Lists and a Hopfield Network in a Custom Trailing Class
For our next Exploration on notions that are testable with the MQL5 Wizard we examine if Skip Lists and the Hopfield Network can give us a profit-guarding trailing strategy. Trailing Stop Management, as already argued, can be overlooked in most trading systems at the expense of Entry Signals or even Money Management. Trailing stops can make all the difference in certain situations such as trending markets, and thus we test this out with GBP USD.
Adaptive Spread Monitoring and Order Gating in MQL5
This article presents a distribution-adaptive spread monitor for MQL5 that replaces fixed thresholds with a rolling histogram of each symbol's recent spread. It explains percentile estimation from bins, a four-state GREEN/YELLOW/RED/WARMING classification, and a CCanvas dashboard rendered from real histogram data. You will get a ready workflow for per-symbol order gating and controlled alerting via arm/disarm hysteresis plus cooldown, with a verification script and clear calibration and resolution limits.
A Symbol Metadata and Trading Hours Cache in MQL5: Eliminating Redundant SymbolInfo Calls in Multi-Symbol EAs
This article presents CSymbolMetaCache, an MQL5 layer that preloads contract specifications and trading-session schedules for monitored symbols at EA startup and then serves typed getters from memory. It explains which properties are safe to cache versus dynamic ones, including the semi-dynamic tick value on cross-currency pairs, and implements an in-memory IsMarketOpen() evaluator. A benchmark quantifies latency reduction across a set of twenty symbols.
Neural Networks in Trading: Effective Feature Extraction for Accurate Classification (Final Part)
The Mantis framework transforms complex time series into informative tokens and serves as a reliable foundation for an intelligent trading agent capable of operating in real time.
Building a Position Sizing Engine in MQL5 with Multiple Risk Models
The article presents a position sizing engine for MQL5 Expert Advisors that separates risk policy from lot conversion. Four models—fixed fractional, fixed monetary, ATR-based volatility scaling, and equity-curve scaling—share a CLotConverter that uses OrderCalcProfit() to measure real money per point. A unified CPositionSizer interface exposes CalculateLots(), making model changes straightforward while producing broker-compliant volumes across symbols.
Measuring What Matters (Part 2): Building the Covariance Matrix: Eigenvalue Decomposition and Risk Factor Analysis in MQL5
In Part 2, we introduce a reusable CCovarianceMatrix class that computes and stores a covariance matrix from raw return series using MQL5's native Cov() method. We verify symmetry, print a labeled matrix grid, and call Eig() to obtain eigenvalues and eigenvectors. Readers see how symbols co-move and which factors drive variance, enabling clearer portfolio diagnostics and reuse in scripts or EAs.
Neural Networks in Trading: An Intelligent Forecast Pipeline (Conclusion)
The article provides a fascinating look at how SwiGLU embedding reveals hidden market patterns, and how a sparse Mixture of Experts within a Decoder-Only Transformer makes forecasts more accurate at reasonable computational cost. We take an in-depth look at the integration of Time‑MoE into MQL5 and OpenCL, and provide a step-by-step guide to configuring and training the model.
Implementing a Fluent Interface Builder Pattern for MQL5 Order Construction
Manual population of MqlTradeRequest leaves cross-field rules unchecked, creating silent misconfigurations at execution time. A fluent COrderBuilder for MQL5 adds pointer-based method chaining, per-field validation, and directional SL/TP checks against broker stop‑level constraints. Its Send() method runs a four-stage gate—flag completeness, cross-field consistency, OrderCheck(), then OrderSend()—so configuration errors are caught early and order code stays clear and reusable.
Beyond GARCH (Part V): Fitting the Multifractal Spectrum in MQL5
This article builds the Spectrum Fitter: from tau(q) we compute f(alpha) with a discrete Legendre transform, then fit Normal, Binomial, Poisson, and Gamma spectra under box constraints using BLEIC. The best model by SSE is selected, and its parameters (eg, alpha min, alpha max or alpha_0, gamma) become the cascade inputs for multifractal simulation.
Exponentially Weighted Covariance Matrix in MQL5: Building an Adaptive Correlation Monitor for Multi-Symbol EAs
This article builds a constant-memory EW covariance engine and a chart heatmap for monitoring cross-symbol correlations in MQL5. CEWCovariance updates in O(N²) time per bar and exposes covariance/correlation accessors; CHeatmapRenderer shows a five‑symbol matrix with values and colors. You will learn λ-to‑window mapping, how to set a meaningful min_obs warm‑up, and how to size the variance guard epsilon for real FX M1 data.
Designing a Unified Order Execution Gateway Class in MQL5
This class provides one point of contact for trade operations in MQL5. It rounds and clamps lot sizes, validates SL/TP against the broker's minimum distance, resolves a compatible filling policy, and applies bounded retries for transient retcodes. Calls return a structured CGatewayResult instead of raw retcodes, simplifying error handling and maintenance across strategies.
Persistent Key-Value Store in MQL5: Using Flat Files as a Lightweight Database for EA State
A lightweight persistence design lets EAs retain counters, flags, and timestamps between terminal restarts. Using only MQL5, CPersistentStore writes a human-readable key=value file in MQL5/Files and serves reads from a CHashMap write-through cache via a typed API. The article analyzes O(1)/O(n) operations, partial‑write risks, and lack of locking, compares with GlobalVariables/SQLite, and provides a demo that reloads state deterministically.
Beyond GARCH (Part VI): Fractional Brownian Motion And The Multiplicative Cascade in MQL5
This article implements the MMAR Simulation Engine that turns fitted parameters (H, distribution, coefficients, sample volatility) into synthetic price paths. It builds multifractal trading time via a multiplicative cascade, synthesizes fractional Brownian motion with Davies–Harte or Cholesky, scales it to target volatility, and composes the process by time deformation. Readers get a reusable MQL5 class, method choices by path length, and validation steps for scenario testing and Monte Carlo use in the next part.
Streaming MetaTrader 5 Trade Events to a Local HTTP Server Using WinINet in MQL5
An MQL5 implementation sends trade lifecycle events to a local HTTP service through WinINet with a reusable session and per-request handles. The trade callback only enqueues JSON and returns, while a 500 ms timer drains the queue and retries failed posts, preserving order. A three-stage log policy keeps the Experts tab clear during downtime and summarizes recovery.