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Using binaries

This guide will walk you through running a Polygon validator node using binaries.

This guide will walk you through running a Polygon validator node using binaries.

Limited spots for new validators

There is limited space for accepting new validators. New validators can only join the active set when an already active validator unbonds.

Prerequisites

  • Two machines - one sentry and one validator.

  • build-essential installed on both the sentry and the validator machines.

    To install:

    sudo apt-get install build-essential

  • Go 1.24+ installed on both the sentry and the validator machines.

  • RabbitMQ installed on the validator machine.

    Here are the commands to install RabbitMQ:

    sudo apt-get update
sudo apt install build-essential
sudo apt install erlang
wget https://github.com/rabbitmq/rabbitmq-server/releases/download/v3.10.8/rabbitmq-server_3.10.8-1_all.deb
sudo dpkg -i rabbitmq-server_3.10.8-1_all.deb

Overview

To set up a running validator node, follow these steps in the exact sequence:

Performing these steps out of sequence may lead to configuration issues. It's crucial to note that setting up a sentry node must always precede the configuration of the validator node.

  1. Prepare two machines, one for the sentry node and one for the validator node.
  2. Install the Heimdall and Bor binaries on the sentry and validator machines.
  3. Set up the Heimdall and Bor service files on the sentry and validator machines.
  4. Configure the sentry node.
  5. Start the sentry node.
  6. Configure the validator node.
  7. Set the owner and signer keys.
  8. Start the validator node.

Installing the binaries

Polygon node consists of 2 layers: Heimdall and Bor.
Heimdall is a Cosmos-SDK/CometBFT fork that monitors contracts in parallel with the Ethereum network.
Bor is basically a Geth fork that generates blocks shuffled by Heimdall nodes.

Both binaries must be installed and run in the correct order to function properly.

Install Heimdall

Install the latest version of Heimdall and related services. Make sure you checkout to the correct release version.

To install Heimdall, run the following command:

curl -L https://raw.githubusercontent.com/0xPolygon/install/heimdall-v2/heimdall-v2.sh | bash -s -- <heimdall_version> <network_type> <node_type>

You can run the above command with the following options:

That will install the heimdalld binary.

Then, edit the configuration files under /var/lib/heimdall/config
The templates for each supported network are available here
Download the genesis.json file and place it under /var/lib/heimdall/config/ Use the following commands based on your target network:

cd /var/lib/heimdall/config
curl -fsSL <BUCKET_URL> -o genesis.json

Where BUCKET_URL is

Verify the installation by checking the Heimdall version on your machine:

heimdalld version

It should return the version of Heimdall you installed.

Before proceeding, ensure that Heimdall is installed on both the sentry and validator machines.

Install Bor

Install the latest version of Bor. Make sure you checkout to the correct release version.

curl -L https://raw.githubusercontent.com/0xPolygon/install/main/bor.sh | bash -s -- <bor_version> <network_type> <node_type>

You can run the above command with the following options:

That will install the bor binary. Verify the installation by checking the Bor version on your machine:

bor version

Before proceeding, make sure that Bor is installed on both the sentry and validator machines.

Configure Bor

Open the Bor configuration file for editing using:

vi /var/lib/bor/config.toml

In config.toml, add the boot node addresses consisting of a node ID, an IP address, and a port by adding them under bootnodes in [p2p.discovery] section, shared in the next section.

Now, add the following in the config.toml file:

[p2p]
    [p2p.discovery]
        static-nodes = ["<replace with enode://validator_machine_enodeID@validator_machine_ip:30303>"]

To fetch the Node ID of Bor on the validator machine:

  • Log in to the validator machine
  • Run bor attach /var/lib/bor/bor.ipc
  • Run admin.nodeInfo.enode

PC console is only accessible when Bor is running. To get the enode of the validator node, setup the validator node and then run the above commands.

Finally, save the changes in config.toml.

Seeds and Bootnodes

The latest bor and heimdall seeds can be found here. Adding them will ensure your node connects to the peers.

Configuring a firewall

The sentry machine must have the following ports open to the world 0.0.0.0/0:

  • 26656- Your Heimdall service will connect your node to other nodes Heimdall service.
  • 30303- Your Bor service will connect your node to other nodes Bor service.

Starting the sentry node

First, start the Heimdall service. Then, once the Heimdall service syncs, start the Bor service.

Sync node using snapshots

The Heimdall service can take several days to sync from scratch fully.

Alternatively, you can use a maintained snapshot, which will reduce the sync time to a few hours. For detailed instructions, see Snapshot Instructions for Heimdall and Bor.

Starting the Heimdall service

Start the Heimdall service:

sudo service heimdalld start

Check the Heimdall service logs using the following command:

journalctl -u heimdalld.service -f

Common error

In the logs, you may see the following errors:

  • Stopping peer for error
  • MConnection flush failed
  • use of closed network connection

These logs mean that one of the nodes on the network refused a connection to your node.

Wait for your node to crawl more nodes on the network; you do not need to do anything manually to address these errors.

Check the sync status of Heimdall using the following command:

curl localhost:26657/status

In the output, the catching_up signifies the following:

  • true: The Heimdall service is syncing.
  • false: The Heimdall service is fully synced.

Wait for the Heimdall service to sync fully.

Starting the Bor service

Once the Heimdall service is fully synced, start the Bor service.

Start the Bor service:

sudo service bor start

Check the Bor service logs:

journalctl -u bor.service -f

Configuring the validator node

In order to proceed, you'll need to have access to an RPC endpoint of a fully synced Ethereum mainnet node ready.

Configuring the Bor service

Open config file for editing using: vi /var/lib/bor/config.toml

Change the value of static-nodes parameter as follows:

static-nodes = ["<replace with enode://sentry_machine_enodeID@sentry_machine_ip:30303>"]
// the node ID and IP address of Bor set up on the sentry machine

To get the Node ID of Bor on the sentry machine:

  1. Log in to the sentry machine.
  2. Run bor attach /var/lib/bor/bor.ipc.
  3. Run admin.nodeInfo.enode.

Setting the Owner and Signer Key

On Polygon PoS, it is recommended that you keep the owner and signer keys different.

  • Signer: The address that signs the checkpoint transactions. It is advisable to keep at least 1 ETH on the signer address.
  • Owner: The address that is used to perform the staking transactions. It is advisable to keep the POL tokens on the owner address.

Generating a Heimdall private key

You must generate a Heimdall private key only on the validator machine. Do not generate a Heimdall private key on the sentry machine.

To generate the private key, run:

heimdalld generate-validator-key ETHEREUM_PRIVATE_KEY

where ETHEREUM_PRIVATE_KEY is your Ethereum wallet’s private key.

This will generate priv_validator_key.json. Move the generated JSON file to the Heimdall configuration directory using the following command:

mv ./priv_validator_key.json  /var/lib/heimdall/config

Generating a Bor keystore file

You must generate a Bor keystore file only on the validator machine. Do not generate a Bor keystore file on the sentry machine.

To generate the private key, run:

heimdalld generate-keystore ETHEREUM_PRIVATE_KEY

where ETHEREUM_PRIVATE_KEY is your Ethereum wallet’s private key.

When prompted, set up a password to the keystore file.

This will generate a UTC-<time>-<address> keystore file.

Move the generated keystore file to the Bor configuration directory using the following command:

mv ./UTC-<time>-<address> /var/lib/bor/data/keystore

Add password.txt

Make sure to create a password.txt file, then add the Bor keystore file password in the /var/lib/bor/password.txt file.

Add your Ethereum address

Open config.toml for editing: vi /var/lib/bor/config.toml.

[miner]
  mine = true
  etherbase = "validator address"

[accounts]
  unlock = ["validator address"]
  password = "The path of the file you entered in password.txt"
  allow-insecure-unlock = true

Set file permissions

Please ensure that priv_validator_key.json & UTC-<time>-<address> files have relevant permissions.

To set the permissions for priv_validator_key.json, run:

sudo chown -R heimdall:nogroup /var/lib/heimdall/config/priv_validator_key.json

and similarly, for the UTC-<time>-<address> file, run:

sudo chown -R heimdall:nogroup /var/lib/bor/data/keystore/UTC-<time>-<address>

Starting the Heimdall service

You will now start the Heimdall service on the validator machine. Once the Heimdall service syncs, you will start the Bor service on the validator machine.

Start the Heimdall service using the following command:

sudo service heimdalld start

The rest service and the bridge starts along with heimdall.

Check the Heimdall service logs using the following command:

journalctl -u heimdalld.service -f

Check the sync status of Heimdall using the following command:

curl localhost:26657/status

In the output, the catching_up signifies the following:

  • true: The Heimdall service is syncing.
  • false: The Heimdall service is synced.

Wait for the Heimdall service to fully sync.

Starting the Bor service

Once the Heimdall service on the validator machine is fully synced, start the Bor service on the validator machine.

Start the Bor service using the following command:

sudo service bor start

Check the Bor service logs using the following command:

journalctl -u bor.service -f
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Validator best practices

This document explores best practices for running a Polygon PoS validator node.

Using Ansible

This section guides you through starting and running the validator node through an Ansible playbook. Check out the Git repository for details.

On this page

PrerequisitesOverviewInstalling the binariesInstall HeimdallInstall BorConfigure BorSeeds and BootnodesConfiguring a firewallStarting the sentry nodeStarting the Heimdall serviceStarting the Bor serviceConfiguring the validator nodeConfiguring the Bor serviceSetting the Owner and Signer KeyGenerating a Heimdall private keyGenerating a Bor keystore fileAdd password.txtAdd your Ethereum addressStarting the Heimdall serviceStarting the Bor service