description
Become a validator and help secure eth2, a proof-of-stake blockchain. Anyone with 32 ETH can join.

Guide | How to setup a validator on ETH2 testnet PRATER

Announcements

{% hint style="info" %} :confetti_ball: 2021-12 Gitcoin Grant Round 12: We improve this guide with your support!

Help fund us and earn a POAP NFT. Appreciate your support!🙏 {% endhint %}

{% hint style="success" %} As of Dec 1 2021, this is guide version 3.7.0 and written for testnet PRATER. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %} Always test and practice on testnet first. {% endhint %}

Changelog - Update Notes - Dec 1 2021

Added how to check your Validator's Sync Committee duties
Formatting fixes and updated Teku initial state API.
Updated with consensus layer (CL), the execution layer (EL), formerly known as eth2 and eth1.
Added erigon build dependencies.
Added Teku and Lodestar Checkpoint Sync feature, the quickest way to sync a Ethereum beacon chain client.
geth + erigon pruning / Altair hard fork changes / nimbus eth1 fallback
lighthouse + prysm doppelganger protection enabled. Doppelganger protection intentionally misses an epoch on startup and listens for attestations to make sure your keys are not still running on the old validator client.
OpenEthereum will no longer be supported post London hard fork. Gnosis, maintainers of OpenEthereum, suggest users migrate to their new Erigon Ethererum client. Added setup instructions for Erigon under eth1 node section.
Added Mobile App Node Monitoring by beaconcha.in
Updated eth2.0-deposit-cli to v.1.2.0 and added section on eth1 withdrawal address
Added generating mnemonic seeds on Tails OS by punggolzenith
Iancoleman.io BLS12-381 Key Generation Tool how-to added
Testnet guide forked for Prater testnet staking
Geth pruning guide created
Major changes to Lodestar guide
Additional Grafana Dashboards for Prysm, Lighthouse and Nimbus
Validator Security Best Practices added
Translations now available for Japanese, Chinese and Spanish (access by changing site language)
Generate keystore files on Ledger Nano X, Nano S and Trezor Model T with tool from allnodes.com
Batch deposit tool by abyss.finance now added

Latest Essential Ethereum Staking Reading

Modelling the Impact of Altair by pintail.xyz
Update on the Merge after the Amphora Interop by Consensys.net

:checkered_flag: 0. Prerequisites

👩‍💻Skills for operating a eth validator and beacon node

As a validator for eth, you will typically have the following abilities:

operational knowledge of how to set up, run and maintain a eth beacon node and validator continuously
a long term commitment to maintain your validator 24/7/365
basic operating system skills

👨‍💻 Experience required to be a successful validator

have learned the essentials by watching 'Intro to Eth2 & Staking for Beginners' by Superphiz
have passed or is actively enrolled in the Eth2 Study Master course
and have read the 8 Things Every Eth2 validator should know.

🎗️ Minimum Setup Requirements

Operating system: 64-bit Linux (i.e. Ubuntu 20.04 LTS Server or Desktop)
Processor: Dual core CPU, Intel Core i5–760 or AMD FX-8100 or better
Memory: 8GB RAM
Storage: 128GB SSD
Internet: Broadband internet connection with speeds at least 1 Mbps.
Power: Reliable electrical power.
ETH balance: at least 32 goerli ETH and some goerli ETH for deposit transaction fees
Wallet: Metamask installed

:man_lifting_weights: Recommended Hardware Setup

Operating system: 64-bit Linux (i.e. Ubuntu 20.04 LTS Server or Desktop)
Processor: Quad core CPU, Intel Core i7–4770 or AMD FX-8310 or better
Memory: 16GB RAM or more
Storage: 2TB SSD or more
Internet: Broadband internet connections with speeds at least 10 Mbps without data limit.
Power: Reliable electrical power with uninterruptible power supply (UPS)
ETH balance: at least 32 goerli ETH and some goerli ETH for deposit transaction fees
Wallet: Metamask installed

{% hint style="info" %} :bulb: For examples of actual staking hardware builds, check out RocketPool's hardware guide. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="success" %} :sparkles: Pro Validator Tip: Highly recommend you begin with a brand new instance of an OS, VM, and/or machine. Avoid headaches by NOT reusing testnet keys, wallets, or databases for your validator. {% endhint %}

🔓 Recommended eth validator Security Best Practices

If you need ideas or a reminder on how to secure your validator, refer to the security best practices guide.

:tools: Setup Ubuntu

If you need to install Ubuntu Server, refer to this guide.

Or Ubuntu Desktop, refer to this guide.

🎭 Setup Metamask

If you need to install Metamask, refer to this guide.

🧩 High Level Validator Node Overview

{% hint style="info" %} At the end of this guide, you will build a node that hosts three main components in two layers: consensus layer consists of a consensus client, also known as a validator client with a beacon chain client. The execution layer consists of a execution client, formerly a eth1 node.

Validator client - Responsible for producing new blocks and attestations in the beacon chain and shard chains.

Beacon chain client - Responsible for managing the state of the beacon chain, validator shuffling, and more.

Execution client (aka Eth1 node) - Supplies incoming validator deposits from the eth

chain to the beacon chain client.

Note: Teku and Nimbus combines both clients into one process. {% endhint %}

🌱 1. Obtain testnet ETH

{% hint style="info" %} Every 32 ETH you own allows you to make 1 validator. You can run thousands of validators with your beacon node. However on testnet, please only run 1 or 2 validators to keep the activation queue reasonably quick. {% endhint %}

Join the ethstaker Discord and send a request for ETH in the -request-goerli-eth channel

!send <your metamask goerli network ETH address>

Otherwise, visit the 🚰Goerli Authenticated Faucet.

👩‍💻 2. Signup to be a validator at the Launchpad

Install dependencies, the ethereum foundation deposit tool and generate your two sets of key pairs.

{% hint style="info" %} Each validator will have two sets of key pairs. A signing key and a withdrawal key. These keys are derived from a single mnemonic phrase. Learn more about keys. {% endhint %}

You have the choice of downloading the pre-built ethereum foundation deposit tool or building it from source. Alternatively, if you have a Ledger Nano X/S or Trezor Model T, you're able to generate deposit files with keys managed by a hardware wallet.

{% tabs %} {% tab title="Build from source code" %} Install dependencies.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install python3-pip git -y

Download source code and install.

cd $HOME
git clone https://github.com/ethereum/eth2.0-deposit-cli.git eth2deposit-cli
cd eth2deposit-cli
sudo ./deposit.sh install

Make a new mnemonic.

./deposit.sh new-mnemonic --chain prater

{% hint style="info" %} Advanced option: Custom eth1 withdrawal address, often used for 3rd party staking.

# Add the following
--eth1_withdrawal_address <eth1 address hex string>
# Example
./deposit.sh new-mnemonic --chain prater --eth1_withdrawal_address 0x1...x

If this field is set and valid, the given Eth1 address will be used to create the withdrawal credentials. Otherwise, it will generate withdrawal credentials with the mnemonic-derived withdrawal public key in EIP-2334 format. {% endhint %} {% endtab %}

{% tab title="Pre-built eth2deposit-cli" %} Download eth2deposit-cli.

cd $HOME
wget https://github.com/ethereum/eth2.0-deposit-cli/releases/download/v1.2.0/eth2deposit-cli-256ea21-linux-amd64.tar.gz

Verify the SHA256 Checksum matches the checksum on the releases page.

echo "825035b6d6c06c0c85a38f78e8bf3e9df93dfd16bf7b72753b6888ae8c4cb30a *eth2deposit-cli-ed5a6d3-linux-amd64.tar.gz" | shasum -a 256 --check

Example valid output:

eth2deposit-cli-256ea21-linux-amd64.tar.gz: OK

{% hint style="danger" %} Only proceed if the sha256 check passes with OK! {% endhint %}

Extract the archive.

tar -xvf eth2deposit-cli-256ea21-linux-amd64.tar.gz
mv eth2deposit-cli-256ea21-linux-amd64 eth2deposit-cli
rm eth2deposit-cli-256ea21-linux-amd64.tar.gz
cd eth2deposit-cli

Make a new mnemonic.

./deposit new-mnemonic --chain prater

{% hint style="info" %} Advanced option: Custom eth1 withdrawal address, often used for 3rd party staking.

# Add the following
--eth1_withdrawal_address <eth1 address hex string>
# Example
./deposit.sh new-mnemonic --chain prater --eth1_withdrawal_address 0x1...x

If this field is set and valid, the given Eth1 address will be used to create the withdrawal credentials. Otherwise, it will generate withdrawal credentials with the mnemonic-derived withdrawal public key in EIP-2334 format. {% endhint %} {% endtab %}

{% tab title="Hardware Wallet - Most Secure" %}

How to generate validator keys with Ledger Nano X/S and Trezor Model T

{% hint style="info" %} Allnodes has created an easy to use tool to connect a Ledger Nano X/S and Trezor Model T and generate the deposit json files such that the withdrawal credentials remain secured by the hardware wallet. This tool can be used by any validator or staker. {% endhint %}

Connect your hardware wallet to your PC/laptop
If using a Ledger Nano X/S, open the "ETHEREUM" ledger app (if missing, install from Ledger Live)
Visit AllNode's Deposit Generator Tool.
Select network > Gorli Testnet
Select your wallet > then CONTINUE

6. From the dropdown, select your eth address with at least 32 ETH to fund your validators

7. On your hardware wallet, sign the ETH signature message to login to allnodes.com

8. Again on your hardware wallet, sign another message to verify your eth2 withdrawal credentials

{% hint style="info" %} Double check that your generated deposit data file contains the same string as in withdrawal credentials and that this string includes your Ethereum address (starting after 0x) {% endhint %}

9. Enter the amount of nodes (or validators you want)

10. Finally, enter a KEYSTORE password to encrypt the deposit json files. Keep this password safe and offline.

11. Confirm password and click GENERATE {% endtab %}

{% tab title="Advanced - Most Secure" %} {% hint style="warning" %} :fire:[ Optional ] Pro Security Tip: Run the eth2deposit-cli tool and generate your mnemonic seed for your validator keys on an air-gapped offline machine booted from usb. {% endhint %}

You will learn how to boot up a windows PC into an airgapped Tails operating system.

The Tails OS is an amnesic operating system, meaning it will save nothing and leave no tracks behind each time you boot it.

Part 0 - Prerequisites

You need:

2 storage mediums (can be USB stick, SD cards or external hard drives)
One of them must be > 8GB
Windows or Mac computer
30 minutes or longer depending on your download speed

Part 1 - Download Tails OS

Download the official image from the Tails website. Might take a while, go grab a coffee.

Make sure you follow the guide on the Tails website to verify your download of Tails.

Part 2 - Download and install the software to transfer your Tails image on your USB stick

For Windows, use one of

Etcher
Win32 Disk Imager
Rufus

For Mac, download Etcher

Part 3 - Making your bootable USB stick

Run the above software. This is an example how it looks like on Mac OS with etcher, but other software should be similar.

Select the Tails OS image that you downloaded as the image. Then select the USB stick (the larger one).

Then flash the image to the larger USB stick.

Part 4 - Download and verify the eth2-deposit-cli

You can refer to the other tab on this guide on how to download and verify the eth2-deposit-cli.

Copy the file to the other USB stick.

Part 5 - Reboot your computer and into Tails OS

After you have done all the above, you can reboot. If you are connected by a LAN cable to the internet, you can disconnect it manually.

Plug in the USB stick that has your Tails OS.

On Mac, press and hold the Option key immediately upon hearing the startup chime. Release the key after Startup Manager appears.

On Windows, it depends on your computer manufacturer. Usually it is by pressing F1 or F12. If it doesn't work, try googling "Enter boot options menu on [Insert your PC brand]"

Choose the USB stick that you loaded up with Tails OS to boot into Tails.

Part 6 - Welcome to Tails OS

You can boot with all the default settings.

Part 7 - Run the eth2-deposit-cli

Plug in your other USB stick with the eth2-deposit-cli file.

You can then open your command line and navigate into the directory containing the file. Then you can continue the guide from the other tab.

Make a new mnemonic.

./deposit.sh new-mnemonic --chain prater

If you ran this command directly from your non-Tails USB stick, the validator keys should stay on it. If it hasn't, copy the directory over to your non-Tails USB stick.

{% hint style="warning" %} :fire: Make sure you have saved your validator keys directory in your other USB stick (non Tails OS) before you shutdown Tails. Tails will delete everything saved on it after you shutdown.. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="success" %} :tada: Congrats on learning how to use Tails OS to make an air gapped system. As a bonus, you can reboot into Tails OS again and connect to internet to surf the dark web or clear net safely! {% endhint %}

Alternatively, follow this ethstaker.cc exclusive for the low down on making a bootable usb.

Part 1 - Create a Ubuntu 20.04 USB Bootable Drive

Video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTR3PzRRtYU

Part 2 - Install Ubuntu 20.04 from the USB Drive

Video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C97_6MrufCE

You can copy via USB key the pre-built eth2deposit-cli binaries from an online machine to an air-gapped offline machine booted from usb. Make sure to disconnect the ethernet cable and/or WIFI. {% endtab %} {% endtabs %}

2. If using eth2deposit-cli, follow the prompts and pick a KEYSTORE password. This password encrypts your keystore files. Write down your mnemonic and keep this safe and offline.

{% hint style="danger" %} Do not send real mainnet ETH during this process! :octagonal_sign: Use only goerli ETH. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="warning" %} Caution: Only deposit the 32 ETH per validator if you are confident your execution client (ETH1 node) and consensus client (ETH2 validator) will be fully synched and ready to perform validator duties. You can return later to launchpad with your deposit-data to finish the next steps. {% endhint %}

3. Follow the steps at https://prater.launchpad.ethereum.org while skipping over the steps you already just completed. Study the eth2 phase 0 overview material. Understanding eth2 is the key to success!

{% hint style="info" %} :whale: Batch Depositing Tip: If you have many deposits to make for many validators, consider using Abyss.finance's eth2depositor tool. This greatly improves the deposit experience as multiple deposits can be batched into one transaction, thereby saving gas fees and saving your fingers by minimizing Metamask clicking.

Make sure to switch to GÖRLI network.

Source: https://twitter.com/AbyssFinance/status/1379732382044069888 {% endhint %}

4. Back on the launchpad website, upload yourdeposit_data-#########.json found in the validator_keys directory.

5. Connect to the launchpad with your Metamask wallet, review and accept terms. Ensure you're connected to GÖRLI network.

6. Confirm the transaction(s). There's one deposit transaction of 32 ETH for each validator.

{% hint style="info" %} For instance, if you want to run 3 validators you will need to have (32 x 3) = 96 goerli ETH plus some extra to cover the gas fees. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %} Your transaction is sending and depositing your ETH to the prater ETH2 deposit contract address.

Check, double-check, triple-check that the prater Eth2 deposit contract address is correct.

0xff50ed3d0ec03aC01D4C79aAd74928BFF48a7b2b {% endhint %}

{% hint style="danger" %} :fire: Critical Crypto Reminder: Keep your mnemonic, keep your ETH.

Write down your mnemonic seed offline. Not email. Not cloud.
Multiple copies are better. Best stored in a metal seed.
The withdrawal keys will be generated from this mnemonic in the future.
Make offline backups, such as to a USB key, of your validator_keys directory. {% endhint %}

🛸 3. Install execution client (ETH1 node)

{% hint style="info" %} Ethereum requires a connection to the execution client in order to monitor for 32 ETH validator deposits. Hosting your own execution client is the best way to maximize decentralization and minimize dependency on third parties such as Infura. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="warning" %} The subsequent steps assume you have completed the best practices security guide.

:octagonal_sign: Do not run your processes as ROOT user. 😱 {% endhint %}

Your choice of either Geth, Besu, Nethermind, or Erigon.

{% tabs %} {% tab title="Geth" %} {% hint style="info" %} Geth - Go Ethereum is one of the three original implementations (along with C++ and Python) of the Ethereum protocol. It is written in Go, fully open source and licensed under the GNU LGPL v3. {% endhint %}

Review the latest release notes at https://github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum/releases

🧬Install from the repository

sudo add-apt-repository -y ppa:ethereum/ethereum
sudo apt-get update -y
sudo apt dist-upgrade -y
sudo apt-get install ethereum -y

⚙️ Setup and configure systemd

Run the following to create a unit file to define your eth1.service configuration.

Simply copy/paste the following.

cat > $HOME/eth1.service << EOF 
[Unit]
Description     = geth execution client service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $(whoami)
ExecStart       = /usr/bin/geth --http --goerli --metrics --pprof
Restart         = on-failure
RestartSec      = 3
KillSignal      = SIGINT
TimeoutStopSec  = 300

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

{% hint style="info" %} Nimbus Specific Configuration: Add the following flag to the ExecStart line.

--ws

{% endhint %}

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system and give it permissions.

sudo mv $HOME/eth1.service /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable eth1

⛓️Start geth

sudo systemctl start eth1

{% hint style="info" %} Geth Tip: When is my geth node synched?

Attach to the geth console with:geth attach http://127.0.0.1:8545``
Type the following:eth.syncing
If it returns false, your geth node is synched. {% endhint %} {% endtab %}

{% tab title="Besu" %} {% hint style="info" %} Hyperledger Besu is an open-source Ethereum client designed for demanding enterprise applications requiring secure, high-performance transaction processing in a private network. It's developed under the Apache 2.0 license and written in Java. {% endhint %}

🧬Install java dependency

sudo apt update
sudo apt install openjdk-11-jdk -y

🌜Download and unzip Besu

Review the latest release at https://github.com/hyperledger/besu/releases

cd
wget -O besu.tar.gz https://hyperledger.jfrog.io/artifactory/besu-binaries/besu/21.7.4/besu-21.7.4.zip
unzip besu.tar.gz
rm besu.tar.gz
mv besu* besu

⚙️ Setup and configure systemd

Run the following to create a unit file to define your eth1.service configuration.

Simply copy/paste the following.

cat > $HOME/eth1.service << EOF 
[Unit]
Description     = besu eth1 service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $(whoami)
ExecStart       = $(echo $HOME)/besu/bin/besu --network=goerli --sync-mode=FAST --pruning-enabled=true --metrics-enabled --rpc-http-enabled --data-path="$HOME/.besu_goerli"
Restart         = on-failure
RestartSec      = 3
KillSignal      = SIGINT
TimeoutStopSec  = 300

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system and give it permissions.

sudo mv $HOME/eth1.service /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable eth1

⛓️ Start besu

sudo systemctl start eth1

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Nethermind" %} {% hint style="info" %} Nethermind is a flagship Ethereum client all about performance and flexibility. Built on .NET core, a widespread, enterprise-friendly platform, Nethermind makes integration with existing infrastructures simple, without losing sight of stability, reliability, data integrity, and security. {% endhint %}

⚙️ Install dependencies

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install curl libsnappy-dev libc6-dev jq libc6 unzip -y

🌜Download and unzip Nethermind

Review the latest release at https://github.com/NethermindEth/nethermind/releases

Automatically download the latest linux release, un-zip and cleanup.

mkdir $HOME/nethermind
chmod 775 $HOME/nethermind
cd $HOME/nethermind
curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/NethermindEth/nethermind/releases/latest | jq -r ".assets[] | select(.name) | .browser_download_url" | grep linux-amd64  | xargs wget -q --show-progress
unzip -o nethermind*.zip
rm nethermind*linux*.zip

⚙️ Setup and configure systemd

Run the following to create a unit file to define your eth1.service configuration.

Simply copy/paste the following.

cat > $HOME/eth1.service << EOF 
[Unit]
Description     = nethermind eth1 service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $(whoami)
ExecStart       = $(echo $HOME)/nethermind/Nethermind.Runner --config goerli --baseDbPath $HOME/.nethermind_goerli --Metrics.Enabled true --JsonRpc.Enabled true --Sync.DownloadBodiesInFastSync true --Sync.DownloadReceiptsInFastSync true --Sync.AncientBodiesBarrier 11052984 --Sync.AncientReceiptsBarrier 11052984
Restart         = on-failure
RestartSec      = 3
KillSignal      = SIGINT
TimeoutStopSec  = 300

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system and give it permissions.

sudo mv $HOME/eth1.service /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable eth1

⛓️ Start Nethermind

sudo systemctl start eth1

{% hint style="info" %} Note about Metric Error messages: You will see these until prometheus pushergateway is setup in section 6. Error in MetricPusher: System.Net.Http.HttpRequestException: Connection refused {% endhint %} {% endtab %}

{% tab title="Erigon" %} {% hint style="info" %} Erigon - Successor to OpenEthereum, Erigon is an implementation of Ethereum (aka "Ethereum client"), on the efficiency frontier, written in Go. {% endhint %}

⚙️ Install Go dependencies

wget -O go.tar.gz https://golang.org/dl/go1.16.5.linux-amd64.tar.gz

sudo rm -rf /usr/local/go && sudo tar -C /usr/local -xzf go.tar.gz

echo export PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/go/bin>> $HOME/.bashrc
source $HOME/.bashrc

Verify Go is properly installed and cleanup files.

go version
rm go.tar.gz

🤖 Build and install Erigon

Install build dependencies.

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt install build-essential git

Review the latest release at https://github.com/ledgerwatch/erigon/releases

cd $HOME
git clone --recurse-submodules -j8 https://github.com/ledgerwatch/erigon.git
cd erigon
make erigon && make rpcdaemon

Make data directory and update directory ownership.

sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/erigon
sudo chown $USER:$USER /var/lib/erigon

⚙️ Setup and configure systemd

Run the following to create a unit file to define your eth1.service configuration.

Simply copy/paste the following.

cat > $HOME/eth1.service << EOF 
[Unit]
Description     = erigon eth1 service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 
Requires        = eth1-erigon.service

[Service]
Type            = simple
User            = $USER
ExecStart       = $HOME/erigon/build/bin/erigon --datadir /var/lib/erigon --chain goerli --private.api.addr=localhost:9089 --metrics --pprof --prune htc
Restart         = on-failure
RestartSec      = 3
KillSignal      = SIGINT
TimeoutStopSec  = 300

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

{% hint style="info" %} By default with Erigon, --prune deletes data older than 90K blocks from the tip of the chain (aka, for if tip block is no. 12'000'000, only the data between 11'910'000-12'000'000 will be kept). {% endhint %}

cat > $HOME/eth1-erigon.service << EOF 
[Unit]
Description     = erigon rpcdaemon service
BindsTo	        = eth1.service
After           = eth1.service

[Service]
Type            = simple
User            = $USER
ExecStartPre	  = /bin/sleep 3
ExecStart       = $HOME/erigon/build/bin/rpcdaemon --private.api.addr=localhost:9089 --datadir /var/lib/erigon --http.api=eth,erigon,web3,net,debug,trace,txpool,shh --txpool.api.addr=localhost:9089
Restart         = on-failure
RestartSec      = 3
KillSignal      = SIGINT
TimeoutStopSec  = 300

[Install]
WantedBy    = eth1.service
EOF

Move the unit files to /etc/systemd/system and give it permissions.

sudo mv $HOME/eth1.service /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service
sudo mv $HOME/eth1-erigon.service /etc/systemd/system/eth1-erigon.service

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service
sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/eth1-erigon.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable eth1 eth1-erigon

⛓️Start Erigon

sudo systemctl start eth1

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="OpenEthereum (Retired)" %} {% hint style="danger" %} OpenEthereum will no longer be supported post London hard fork. Gnosis, maintainers of OpenEthereum, suggest users migrate to their new Erigon Ethererum client. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %} OpenEthereum - It's goal is to be the fastest, lightest, and most secure Ethereum client using the Rust programming language. OpenEthereum is licensed under the GPLv3 and can be used for all your Ethereum needs. {% endhint %}

⚙️ Install dependencies

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install curl jq unzip -y

🤖 Install OpenEthereum

Review the latest release at https://github.com/openethereum/openethereum/releases

Automatically download the latest linux release, un-zip, add execute permissions and cleanup.

mkdir $HOME/openethereum
cd $HOME/openethereum
curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/openethereum/openethereum/releases/latest | jq -r ".assets[] | select(.name) | .browser_download_url" | grep linux | xargs wget -q --show-progress
unzip -o openethereum*.zip
chmod +x openethereum
rm openethereum*.zip

⚙️ Setup and configure systemd

Run the following to create a unit file to define your eth1.service configuration.

Simply copy/paste the following.

cat > $HOME/eth1.service << EOF 
[Unit]
Description     = openethereum eth1 service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $(whoami)
ExecStart       = $(echo $HOME)/openethereum/openethereum --chain goerli --metrics --metrics-port=6060
Restart         = on-failure
RestartSec      = 3
KillSignal      = SIGINT
TimeoutStopSec  = 300

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

{% hint style="info" %} Nimbus Specific Configuration: Add the following flag to the **ExecStart **line.

--ws-origins=all

{% endhint %}

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system and give it permissions.

sudo mv $HOME/eth1.service /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/eth1.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable eth1

⛓️Start OpenEthereum

sudo systemctl start eth1

{% endtab %} {% endtabs %}

{% hint style="info" %} Syncing an execution client can take up to 1 week. On high-end machines with gigabit internet, expect syncing to take less than a day. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="success" %} Your execution client is fully sync'd when these events occur.

OpenEthereum: Imported #<block number>
Geth: Imported new chain segment
Besu: Imported #<block number>
Nethermind: No longer syncing Old Headers {% endhint %}

:tools: Helpful eth1.service commands

:notepad_spiral: To view and follow eth1 logs

journalctl -fu eth1

:notepad_spiral: To stop eth1 service

sudo systemctl stop eth1

4. Configure consensus client (beacon chain and validator)

Your choice of Lighthouse, Nimbus, Teku, Prysm or Lodestar.

{% tabs %} {% tab title="Lighthouse" %} {% hint style="info" %} Lighthouse is an Eth client with a heavy focus on speed and security. The team behind it, Sigma Prime, is an information security and software engineering firm who have funded Lighthouse along with the Ethereum Foundation, Consensys, and private individuals. Lighthouse is built in Rust and offered under an Apache 2.0 License. {% endhint %}

⚙️ 4.1. Install rust dependency

curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh

Enter '1' to proceed with the default install.

Update your environment variables.

echo export PATH="$HOME/.cargo/bin:$PATH" >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Install rust dependencies.

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt install -y git gcc g++ make cmake pkg-config libssl-dev libclang-dev clang

💡 4.2. Build Lighthouse from source

mkdir ~/git
cd ~/git
git clone https://github.com/sigp/lighthouse.git
cd lighthouse
git fetch --all && git checkout stable && git pull
make

{% hint style="info" %} In case of compilation errors, run the following sequence.

rustup update
cargo clean
make

{% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %} This build process may take a few minutes. {% endhint %}

Verify lighthouse was installed properly by checking the version number.

lighthouse --version

🎩 4.3. Import validator key

{% hint style="info" %} When you import your keys into Lighthouse, your validator signing key(s) are stored in the $HOME/.lighthouse/prater/validators folder. {% endhint %}

Run the following command to import your validator keys from the eth2deposit-cli tool directory.

Enter your keystore password to import accounts.

lighthouse account validator import --network prater --directory=$HOME/eth2deposit-cli/validator_keys

Verify the accounts were imported successfully.

lighthouse account_manager validator list --network prater

{% hint style="danger" %} WARNING: DO NOT USE THE ORIGINAL KEYSTORES TO VALIDATE WITH ANOTHER CLIENT, OR YOU WILL GET SLASHED. {% endhint %}

🔥 4.4. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

Specific to your networking setup or cloud provider settings, ensure your validator's firewall ports are open and reachable.

Lighthouse consensus client requires port 9000 for tcp and udp
Execution client requires port 30303 for tcp and udp

{% hint style="info" %} :sparkles: Port Forwarding Tip: You'll need to forward and open ports to your validator. Verify it's working with https://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/ or https://canyouseeme.org/ . {% endhint %}

⛓️ 4.5. Start the beacon chain

🍰 Benefits of using systemd for your beacon chain

Auto-start your beacon chain when the computer reboots due to maintenance, power outage, etc.
Automatically restart crashed beacon chain processes.
Maximize your beacon chain up-time and performance.

:tools: Setup Instructions for Systemd

Run the following to create a unit file to define yourbeacon-chain.service configuration. Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/beacon-chain.service << EOF 
# The eth beacon chain service (part of systemd)
# file: /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service 

[Unit]
Description     = eth beacon chain service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $USER
ExecStart       = $(which lighthouse) bn --staking --validator-monitor-auto --metrics --network prater
Restart         = on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

{% hint style="info" %} :fire: Lighthouse Pro Tip: On the ExecStart line, adding the --eth1-endpoints flag allows for redundant execution clients. Separate with comma. Make sure the endpoint does not end with a trailing slash or/ Remove it.

# Example:
--eth1-endpoints http://localhost:8545,https://nodes.mewapi.io/rpc/eth,https://prater.eth.cloud.ava.do,https://prater.infura.io/v3/xxx

💸 Find free ethereum fallback nodes at https://ethereumnodes.com/ {% endhint %}

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system

sudo mv $HOME/beacon-chain.service /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Update file permissions.

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time and then start your beacon node service.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable beacon-chain
sudo systemctl start beacon-chain

{% hint style="info" %} Troubleshooting common issues:

The beacon chain couldn't connect to the :8545 service?

In the beacon chain unit file under [Service], add, "ExecStartPre = /bin/sleep 30" so that it waits 30 seconds for execution client to startup before connecting.

CRIT Invalid eth1 chain id. Please switch to correct chain id.

Allow your execution client to fully sync. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="success" %} Nice work. Your beacon chain is now managed by the reliability and robustness of systemd. Below are some commands for using systemd. {% endhint %}

:tools: Some helpful systemd commands

🗄 Viewing and filtering logs

#view and follow the log
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain -f

#view log since yesterday
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=yesterday

#view log since today
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=today

#view log between a date
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since='2020-12-01 00:00:00' --until='2020-12-02 12:00:00'

🔎 View the status of the beacon chain

sudo systemctl status beacon-chain

🔄 Restarting the beacon chain

sudo systemctl reload-or-restart beacon-chain

:octagonal_sign: Stopping the beacon chain

sudo systemctl stop beacon-chain

🧬 4.6. Start the validator

🚀 Setup Graffiti

Setup your graffiti, a custom message included in blocks your validator successfully proposes. Add optional graffiti between the single quotes.

MY_GRAFFITI=''
# Examples
# MY_GRAFFITI='poapAAAAACGatUA1bLuDnL4FMD13BfoD'
# MY_GRAFFITI='eth rulez!'

🍰 Benefits of using systemd for your validator

Auto-start your validator when the computer reboots due to maintenance, power outage, etc.
Automatically restart crashed validator processes.
Maximize your validator up-time and performance.

:tools: Setup Instructions for Systemd

Run the following to create a unit file to define yourvalidator.service configuration. Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/validator.service << EOF 
# The eth validator service (part of systemd)
# file: /etc/systemd/system/validator.service 

[Unit]
Description     = eth validator service
Wants           = network-online.target beacon-chain.service
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $USER
ExecStart       = $(which lighthouse) vc --network prater --graffiti "${MY_GRAFFITI}" --metrics --enable-doppelganger-protection 
Restart         = on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system

sudo mv $HOME/validator.service /etc/systemd/system/validator.service

Update file permissions.

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/validator.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time and then start your validator.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable validator
sudo systemctl start validator

{% hint style="success" %} Nice work. Your validator is now managed by the reliability and robustness of systemd. Below are some commands for using systemd. {% endhint %}

🛠 Some helpful systemd commands

🗄 Viewing and filtering logs

#view and follow the log
journalctl --unit=validator -f

#view log since yesterday
journalctl --unit=validator --since=yesterday

#view log since today
journalctl --unit=validator --since=today

#view log between a date
journalctl --unit=validator --since='2020-12-01 00:00:00' --until='2020-12-02 12:00:00'

🔎 View the status of the validator

sudo systemctl status validator

🔄 Restarting the validator

sudo systemctl reload-or-restart validator

🛑 Stopping the validator

sudo systemctl stop validator

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Nimbus" %} {% hint style="info" %} Nimbus is a research project and a client implementation for Ethereum 2.0 designed to perform well on embedded systems and personal mobile devices, including older smartphones with resource-restricted hardware. The Nimbus team are from Status the company best known for their messaging app/wallet/Web3 browser by the same name. Nimbus (Apache 2) is written in Nim, a language with Python-like syntax that compiles to C. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %} :bulb: Noteworthy: binaries for all the usual platforms as well as dockers for x86 and arm can be found below:

https://github.com/status-im/nimbus-eth2/releases/
https://hub.docker.com/r/statusim/nimbus-eth2 {% endhint %}

⚙️ 4.1. Build Nimbus from source

Install dependencies.

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install curl build-essential git -y

Install and build Nimbus.

mkdir ~/git 
cd ~/git
git clone https://github.com/status-im/nimbus-eth2
cd nimbus-eth2
make nimbus_beacon_node

{% hint style="info" %} The build process may take a few minutes. {% endhint %}

Verify Nimbus was installed properly by displaying the help.

cd $HOME/git/nimbus-eth2/build
./nimbus_beacon_node --help

Copy the binary file to /usr/bin

sudo cp $HOME/git/nimbus-eth2/build/nimbus_beacon_node /usr/bin

🎩 4.2. Import validator key

Create a directory structure to store nimbus data.

sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/nimbus

Take ownership of this directory and set the correct permission level.

sudo chown $(whoami):$(whoami) /var/lib/nimbus
sudo chmod 700 /var/lib/nimbus

The following command will import your validator keys.

Enter your keystore password to import accounts.

cd $HOME/git/nimbus-eth2
build/nimbus_beacon_node deposits import --data-dir=/var/lib/nimbus $HOME/eth2deposit-cli/validator_keys

Now you can verify the accounts were imported successfully by doing a directory listing.

ll /var/lib/nimbus/validators

You should see a folder named for each of your validator's pubkey.

{% hint style="info" %} When you import your keys into Nimbus, your validator signing key(s) are stored in the /var/lib/nimbus folder, under secrets and validators.

The secrets folder contains the common secret that gives you access to all your validator keys.

The validators folder contains your signing keystore(s) (encrypted keys). Keystores are used by validators as a method for exchanging keys.

For more on keys and keystores, see here. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="danger" %} WARNING: DO NOT USE THE ORIGINAL KEYSTORES TO VALIDATE WITH ANOTHER CLIENT, OR YOU WILL GET SLASHED. {% endhint %}

🔥 4.3. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

Specific to your networking setup or cloud provider settings, ensure your validator's firewall ports are open and reachable.

Nimbus consensus client will use port 9000 for tcp and udp
Execution client requires port 30303 for tcp and udp

{% hint style="info" %} :sparkles: Port Forwarding Tip: You'll need to forward and open ports to your validator. Verify it's working with https://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/ or https://canyouseeme.org/ . {% endhint %}

🏂 4.4. Start the beacon chain and validator

{% hint style="info" %} Nimbus combines both the beacon chain and validator into one process. {% endhint %}

🚀 Setup Graffiti

Setup your graffiti, a custom message included in blocks your validator successfully proposes. Add optional graffiti between the single quotes.

MY_GRAFFITI=''
# Examples
# MY_GRAFFITI='poapAAAAACGatUA1bLuDnL4FMD13BfoD'
# MY_GRAFFITI='eth rulez!'

🍰 Benefits of using systemd for your beacon chain and validator

Auto-start your beacon chain when the computer reboots due to maintenance, power outage, etc.
Automatically restart crashed beacon chain processes.
Maximize your beacon chain up-time and performance.

🛠 Setup Instructions

Run the following to create a unit file to define yourbeacon-chain.service configuration. Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/beacon-chain.service << EOF 
# The eth2 beacon chain service (part of systemd)
# file: /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service 

[Unit]
Description     = eth2 beacon chain service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
Type            = simple
User            = $(whoami)
WorkingDirectory= /var/lib/nimbus
ExecStart       = /bin/bash -c '/usr/bin/nimbus_beacon_node --network=prater --graffiti="${MY_GRAFFITI}" --data-dir=/var/lib/nimbus --web3-url=ws://127.0.0.1:8546 --metrics --metrics-port=8008 --rpc --rpc-port=9091 --validators-dir=/var/lib/nimbus/validators --secrets-dir=/var/lib/nimbus/secrets --log-file=/var/lib/nimbus/beacon.log'
Restart         = on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

{% hint style="warning" %} Nimbus only supports websocket connections ("ws://" and "wss://") for the ETH1 node. Geth, OpenEthereum and Infura ETH1 nodes are verified compatible. {% endhint %}

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system

sudo mv $HOME/beacon-chain.service /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Update file permissions.

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time and then start your beacon node service.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable beacon-chain
sudo systemctl start beacon-chain

{% hint style="success" %} Nice work. Your beacon chain is now managed by the reliability and robustness of systemd. Below are some commands for using systemd. {% endhint %}

:tools: Some helpful systemd commands

🗄 Viewing and filtering logs

#view and follow the log
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain -f

#view log since yesterday
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=yesterday

#view log since today
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=today

#view log between a date
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since='2020-12-01 00:00:00' --until='2020-12-02 12:00:00'

🔎 View the status of the beacon chain

sudo systemctl status beacon-chain

🔄 Restarting the beacon chain

sudo systemctl reload-or-restart beacon-chain

:octagonal_sign: Stopping the beacon chain

sudo systemctl stop beacon-chain

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Teku" %} {% hint style="info" %} PegaSys Teku (formerly known as Artemis) is a Java-based Ethereum 2.0 client designed & built to meet institutional needs and security requirements. PegaSys is an arm of ConsenSys dedicated to building enterprise-ready clients and tools for interacting with the core Ethereum platform. Teku is Apache 2 licensed and written in Java, a language notable for its materity & ubiquity. {% endhint %}

⚙️ 4.1 Build Teku from source

Install git.

sudo apt-get install git -y

Install Java 11.

For Ubuntu 20.x, use the following

sudo apt update
sudo apt install openjdk-11-jdk -y

Verify Java 11+ is installed.

java --version

Install and build Teku.

mkdir ~/git
cd ~/git
git clone https://github.com/ConsenSys/teku.git
cd teku
./gradlew distTar installDist

{% hint style="info" %} This build process may take a few minutes. {% endhint %}

Verify Teku was installed properly by displaying the version.

cd $HOME/git/teku/build/install/teku/bin
./teku --version

Copy the teku binary file to /usr/bin/teku

sudo cp -r $HOME/git/teku/build/install/teku /usr/bin/teku

🔥 4.2. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

Specific to your networking setup or cloud provider settings, ensure your validator's firewall ports are open and reachable.

Teku consensus client will use port 9000 for tcp and udp
Execution client requires port 30303 for tcp and udp

{% hint style="info" %} :sparkles: Port Forwarding Tip: You'll need to forward and open ports to your validator. Verify it's working with https://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/ or https://canyouseeme.org/ . {% endhint %}

🏂 4.3. Configure the beacon chain and validator

{% hint style="info" %} Teku combines both the beacon chain and validator into one process. {% endhint %}

Setup a directory structure for Teku.

sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/teku
sudo mkdir -p /etc/teku
sudo chown $(whoami):$(whoami) /var/lib/teku

Copy your validator_files directory to the data directory we created above and remove the extra deposit_data file.

cp -r $HOME/eth2deposit-cli/validator_keys /var/lib/teku
rm /var/lib/teku/validator_keys/deposit_data*

{% hint style="danger" %} WARNING: DO NOT USE THE ORIGINAL KEYSTORES TO VALIDATE WITH ANOTHER CLIENT, OR YOU WILL GET SLASHED. {% endhint %}

Storing your keystore password in a text file is required so that Teku can decrypt and load your validators automatically.

Update my_keystore_password_goes_here with your keystore password between the single quotation marks and then run the command to save it to validators-password.txt

echo 'my_keystore_password_goes_here' > $HOME/validators-password.txt

Confirm that your keystore password is correct.

cat $HOME/validators-password.txt

Move the password file and make it read-only.

sudo mv $HOME/validators-password.txt /etc/teku/validators-password.txt
sudo chmod 600 /etc/teku/validators-password.txt

Clear the bash history in order to remove traces of keystore password.

shred -u ~/.bash_history && touch ~/.bash_history

🚀 Setup Graffiti

Setup your graffiti, a custom message included in blocks your validator successfully proposes. Add optional graffiti between the single quotes.

MY_GRAFFITI=''
# Examples
# MY_GRAFFITI='poapAAAAACGatUA1bLuDnL4FMD13BfoD'
# MY_GRAFFITI='eth rulez!'

⏩ Setup Teku Checkpoint Sync

{% hint style="info" %} Teku's Checkpoint Sync utilizes Infura to create the fastest syncing Ethereum beacon chain. {% endhint %}

1. Sign up for a free infura account.

2. Create a project.

3. Add a project name and save changes.

4. Copy your Project's ENDPOINT. Ensure the correct Network is selected with the dropdown box.

Replace <my infura Project's ENDPOINT> with your Infura endpoint and then run the following command to set the INFURA_PROJECT_ENDPOINT variable.

INFURA_PROJECT_ENDPOINT=<my Infura Project's ENDPOINT>

# Example
# INFURA_PROJECT_ENDPOINT=https://1Rjimg6q8hxGaRfxmEf9vxyBEk5n:c42acfe90bcae227f9ec19b22e733550@eth2-beacon-prater.infura.io

Confirm that your Infura Project Endpoint looks correct.

echo $INFURA_PROJECT_ENDPOINT

Generate your Teku Config file. Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/teku.yaml << EOF
# network
network: "prater"
initial-state: "${INFURA_PROJECT_ENDPOINT}/eth/v3/debug/beacon/states/finalized" 

# p2p
p2p-enabled: true
p2p-port: 9000

# validators
validator-keys: "/var/lib/teku/validator_keys:/var/lib/teku/validator_keys"
validators-graffiti: "${MY_GRAFFITI}"

# Eth 1
eth1-endpoint: "http://localhost:8545"

# metrics
metrics-enabled: true
metrics-port: 8008

# database
data-path: "/var/lib/teku"
data-storage-mode: "archive"

# rest api
rest-api-port: 5051
rest-api-docs-enabled: true
rest-api-enabled: true

# logging
log-include-validator-duties-enabled: true
log-destination: CONSOLE
EOF

Move the config file to /etc/teku

sudo mv $HOME/teku.yaml /etc/teku/teku.yaml

🎩 4.4 Import validator key

{% hint style="info" %} When specifying directories for your validator-keys, Teku expects to find identically named keystore and password files.

For example keystore-m_12221_3600_1_0_0-11222333.json and keystore-m_12221_3600_1_0_0-11222333.txt {% endhint %}

Create a corresponding password file for every one of your validators.

for f in /var/lib/teku/validator_keys/keystore*.json; do cp /etc/teku/validators-password.txt /var/lib/teku/validator_keys/$(basename $f .json).txt; done

Verify that your validator's keystore and validator's passwords are present by checking the following directory.

ll /var/lib/teku/validator_keys

🏁 4.5. Start the beacon chain and validator

Use systemd to manage starting and stopping teku.

🍰 Benefits of using systemd for your beacon chain and validator

Auto-start your beacon chain when the computer reboots due to maintenance, power outage, etc.
Automatically restart crashed beacon chain processes.
Maximize your beacon chain up-time and performance.

:tools: Setup Instructions

Run the following to create a unit file to define yourbeacon-chain.service configuration. **** Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/beacon-chain.service << EOF
# The eth2 beacon chain service (part of systemd)
# file: /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service 

[Unit]
Description     = eth2 beacon chain service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $(whoami)
ExecStart       = /usr/bin/teku/bin/teku -c /etc/teku/teku.yaml
Restart         = on-failure
Environment     = JAVA_OPTS=-Xmx5g

[Install]
WantedBy	= multi-user.target
EOF

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system

sudo mv $HOME/beacon-chain.service /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Update file permissions.

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time and then start your beacon node service.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable beacon-chain
sudo systemctl start beacon-chain

{% hint style="success" %} Nice work. Your beacon chain is now managed by the reliability and robustness of systemd. Below are some commands for using systemd. {% endhint %}

:tools: Some helpful systemd commands

🗄 Viewing and filtering logs

#view and follow the log
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain -f

#view log since yesterday
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=yesterday

#view log since today
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=today

#view log between a date
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since='2020-12-01 00:00:00' --until='2020-12-02 12:00:00'

🔎 View the status of the beacon chain

sudo systemctl status beacon-chain

🔄 Restarting the beacon chain

sudo systemctl reload-or-restart beacon-chain

:octagonal_sign: Stopping the beacon chain

sudo systemctl stop beacon-chain

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Prysm" %} {% hint style="info" %} Prysm is a Go implementation of Ethereum 2.0 protocol with a focus on usability, security, and reliability. Prysm is developed by Prysmatic Labs, a company with the sole focus on the development of their client. Prysm is written in Go and released under a GPL-3.0 license. {% endhint %}

⚙️ 4.1. Install Prysm

mkdir ~/prysm && cd ~/prysm 
curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/prysmaticlabs/prysm/master/prysm.sh --output prysm.sh && chmod +x prysm.sh

📁 4.2. Download the Prater testnet genesis state file

wget https://github.com/eth2-clients/eth2-networks/blob/master/shared/prater/genesis.ssz $HOME/prysm/genesis.ssz

🔥 4.3. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

Specific to your networking setup or cloud provider settings, ensure your validator's firewall ports are open and reachable.

Prysm consensus client will use port 12000 for udp and port 13000 for tcp
Execution client requires port 30303 for tcp and udp

{% hint style="info" %} :sparkles: Port Forwarding Tip: You'll need to forward and open ports to your validator. Verify it's working with https://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/ or https://canyouseeme.org/ . {% endhint %}

🎩 4.4. Import validator key

Accept terms of use, accept default wallet location, enter a new prysm-only password to encrypt your local prysm wallet files and enter the keystore password for your imported accounts.

{% hint style="info" %} If you wish, you can use the same password for the keystore and prysm-only. {% endhint %}

$HOME/prysm/prysm.sh validator accounts import --prater --keys-dir=$HOME/eth2deposit-cli/validator_keys

Verify your validators imported successfully.

$HOME/prysm/prysm.sh validator accounts list --prater

Confirm your validator's pubkeys are listed.

#Example output:

Showing 1 validator account View the eth1 deposit transaction data for your accounts by running `validator accounts list --show-deposit-data

Account 0 | pens-brother-heat
[validating public key] 0x2374.....7121

{% hint style="danger" %} WARNING: DO NOT USE THE ORIGINAL KEYSTORES TO VALIDATE WITH ANOTHER CLIENT, OR YOU WILL GET SLASHED. {% endhint %}

🏂 4.5. Start the beacon chain

🍰 Benefits of using systemd for your beacon chain and validator

Auto-start your beacon chain when the computer reboots due to maintenance, power outage, etc.
Automatically restart crashed beacon chain processes.
Maximize your beacon chain up-time and performance.

:tools: Setup Instructions

Run the following to create a unit file to define yourbeacon-chain.service configuration. Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/beacon-chain.service << EOF 
# The eth2 beacon chain service (part of systemd)
# file: /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service 

[Unit]
Description     = eth2 beacon chain service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
Type            = simple
User            = $(whoami)
ExecStart       = $(echo $HOME)/prysm/prysm.sh beacon-chain --prater --genesis-state=$(echo $HOME)/prysm/genesis.ssz --p2p-max-peers=45 --http-web3provider=http://127.0.0.1:8545 --accept-terms-of-use 
Restart         = on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy    = multi-user.target
EOF

{% hint style="info" %} :fire: Prysm Pro Tip: On the ExecStart line, adding the --fallback-web3provider flag allows for a backup execution client. May use flag multiple times. Make sure the endpoint does not end with a trailing slash or/ Remove it.

--fallback-web3provider=<http://<alternate eth1 provider one> --fallback-web3provider=<http://<alternate eth1 provider two>
# Example
# --fallback-web3provider=https://nodes.mewapi.io/rpc/eth --fallback-web3provider=https://prater.infura.io/v3/YOUR-PROJECT-ID

💸 Find free ethereum fallback nodes at https://ethereumnodes.com/ {% endhint %}

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system

sudo mv $HOME/beacon-chain.service /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Update file permissions.

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time and then start your beacon node service.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable beacon-chain
sudo systemctl start beacon-chain

{% hint style="success" %} Nice work. Your beacon chain is now managed by the reliability and robustness of systemd. Below are some commands for using systemd. {% endhint %}

:tools: Some helpful systemd commands

🗄 Viewing and filtering logs

#view and follow the log
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain -f

#view log since yesterday
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=yesterday

#view log since today
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=today

#view log between a date
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since='2020-12-01 00:00:00' --until='2020-12-02 12:00:00'

🔎 View the status of the beacon chain

sudo systemctl status beacon-chain

🔄 Restarting the beacon chain

sudo systemctl reload-or-restart beacon-chain

:octagonal_sign: Stopping the beacon chain

sudo systemctl stop beacon-chain

🧬 4.6. Start the validator

Store your prysm-only password in a file and make it read-only. This is required so that Prysm can decrypt and load your validators.

echo 'my_password_goes_here' > $HOME/.eth2validators/validators-password.txt
sudo chmod 600 $HOME/.eth2validators/validators-password.txt

Clear the bash history in order to remove traces of your prysm-only password.

shred -u ~/.bash_history && touch ~/.bash_history

🚀 Setup Graffiti

Setup your graffiti, a custom message included in blocks your validator successfully proposes. Add optional graffiti between the single quotes.

MY_GRAFFITI=''
# Examples
# MY_GRAFFITI='poapAAAAACGatUA1bLuDnL4FMD13BfoD'
# MY_GRAFFITI='eth rulez!'

Run your validator automatically with systemd.

🍰 Benefits of using systemd for your validator

Auto-start your validator when the computer reboots due to maintenance, power outage, etc.
Automatically restart crashed validator processes.
Maximize your validator up-time and performance.

:tools: Setup Instructions for systemd

Run the following to create a unit file to define yourvalidator.service configuration. Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/validator.service << EOF 
# The eth2 validator service (part of systemd)
# file: /etc/systemd/system/validator.service 

[Unit]
Description     = eth2 validator service
Wants           = network-online.target beacon-chain.service
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $(whoami)
ExecStart       = $(echo $HOME)/prysm/prysm.sh validator --prater --graffiti "${MY_GRAFFITI}" --accept-terms-of-use --wallet-password-file $(echo $HOME)/.eth2validators/validators-password.txt --enable-doppelganger
Restart         = on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy	= multi-user.target
EOF

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system

sudo mv $HOME/validator.service /etc/systemd/system/validator.service

Update file permissions.

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/validator.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time and then start your validator.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable validator
sudo systemctl start validator

:tools: Some helpful systemd commands

🗄 Viewing and filtering logs

#view and follow the log
journalctl --unit=validator -f

#view log since yesterday
journalctl --unit=validator --since=yesterday

#view log since today
journalctl --unit=validator --since=today

#view log between a date
journalctl --unit=validator --since='2020-12-01 00:00:00' --until='2020-12-02 12:00:00'

🔎 View the status of the validator

sudo systemctl status validator

🔄 Restarting the validator

sudo systemctl reload-or-restart validator

:octagonal_sign: Stopping the validator

sudo systemctl stop validator

Verify that your validator public key appears in the logs.

journalctl --unit=validator --since=today
# Example below
# INFO Enabled validator       voting_pubkey: 0x2374.....7121

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Lodestar" %} {% hint style="info" %} Lodestar is a Typescript implementation of the official Ethereum 2.0 specification by the ChainSafe.io team. In addition to the beacon chain client, the team is also working on 22 packages and libraries. A complete list can be found here. Finally, the Lodestar team is leading the Eth2 space in light client research and development and has received funding from the EF and Moloch DAO for this purpose. {% endhint %}

⚙️ 4.1 Build Lodestar from source

Install curl and git.

sudo apt-get install gcc g++ make git curl -y

Install yarn.

curl -sS https://dl.yarnpkg.com/debian/pubkey.gpg | sudo apt-key add -
echo "deb https://dl.yarnpkg.com/debian/ stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/yarn.list
sudo apt update
sudo apt install yarn -y

Confirm yarn is installed properly.

yarn --version
# Should output version >= 1.22.4

Install nodejs.

curl -sL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_12.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs

Confirm nodejs is installed properly.

nodejs -v
# Should output version >= v12.18.3

Install and build Lodestar.

mkdir ~/git
cd ~/git
git clone https://github.com/chainsafe/lodestar.git
cd lodestar
yarn install --ignore-optional
yarn run build

{% hint style="info" %} This build process may take a few minutes. {% endhint %}

Verify Lodestar was installed properly by displaying the help menu.

./lodestar --help

🔥 4.2. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

Specific to your networking setup or cloud provider settings, ensure your validator's firewall ports are open and reachable.

Lodestar consensus client will use port 30607 for tcp and port 9000 for udp peer discovery.
Execution client requires port 30303 for tcp and udp

{% hint style="info" %} :sparkles: Port Forwarding Tip: You'll need to forward and open ports to your validator. Verify it's working with https://www.yougetsignal.com/tools/open-ports/ or https://canyouseeme.org/ . {% endhint %}

🎩 4.3. Import validator key

./lodestar account validator import \
  --testnet prater \
  --directory $HOME/eth2deposit-cli/validator_keys

Enter your keystore password to import accounts.

Confirm your keys were imported properly.

./lodestar account validator list --testnet prater

{% hint style="danger" %} WARNING: DO NOT USE THE ORIGINAL KEYSTORES TO VALIDATE WITH ANOTHER CLIENT, OR YOU WILL GET SLASHED. {% endhint %}

🏂 4.4. Start the beacon chain and validator

Run the beacon chain automatically with systemd.

🍰 Benefits of using systemd for your beacon chain

Auto-start your beacon chain when the computer reboots due to maintenance, power outage, etc.
Automatically restart crashed beacon chain processes.
Maximize your beacon chain up-time and performance.

:tools: Setup Instructions

Run the following to create a unit file to define yourbeacon-chain.service configuration. Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/beacon-chain.service << EOF 
# The eth2 beacon chain service (part of systemd)
# file: /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service 

[Unit]
Description     = eth2 beacon chain service
Wants           = network-online.target
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $(whoami)
WorkingDirectory= $(echo $HOME)/git/lodestar
ExecStart       = $(echo $HOME)/git/lodestar/lodestar beacon --testnet prater --eth1.providerUrl http://localhost:8545 --weakSubjectivitySyncLatest true --metrics.enabled true --metrics.serverPort 8008
Restart         = on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy	= multi-user.target
EOF

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system

sudo mv $HOME/beacon-chain.service /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Update file permissions.

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/beacon-chain.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time and then start your beacon node service.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable beacon-chain
sudo systemctl start beacon-chain

{% hint style="success" %} Nice work. Your beacon chain is now managed by the reliability and robustness of systemd. Below are some commands for using systemd. {% endhint %}

:tools: Some helpful systemd commands

🗄 Viewing and filtering logs

#view and follow the log
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain -f

#view log since yesterday
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=yesterday

#view log since today
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since=today

#view log between a date
journalctl --unit=beacon-chain --since='2020-12-01 00:00:00' --until='2020-12-02 12:00:00'

🔎 View the status of the beacon chain

sudo systemctl status beacon-chain

🔄 Restarting the beacon chain

sudo systemctl reload-or-restart beacon-chain

:octagonal_sign: Stopping the beacon chain

sudo systemctl stop beacon-chain

🧬 4.5. Start the validator

🚀 Setup Graffiti

Setup your graffiti, a custom message included in blocks your validator successfully proposes. Add optional graffiti between the single quotes.

MY_GRAFFITI=''
# Examples
# MY_GRAFFITI='poapAAAAACGatUA1bLuDnL4FMD13BfoD'
# MY_GRAFFITI='eth rulez!'

Run the validator automatically with systemd.

🍰 Benefits of using systemd for your validator

Auto-start your validator when the computer reboots due to maintenance, power outage, etc.
Automatically restart crashed validator processes.
Maximize your validator up-time and performance.

:tools: Setup Instructions

Run the following to create a unit file to define yourvalidator.service configuration. Simply copy and paste.

cat > $HOME/validator.service << EOF 
# The eth2 validator service (part of systemd)
# file: /etc/systemd/system/validator.service 

[Unit]
Description     = eth2 validator service
Wants           = network-online.target beacon-chain.service
After           = network-online.target 

[Service]
User            = $(whoami)
WorkingDirectory= $(echo $HOME)/git/lodestar
ExecStart       = $(echo $HOME)/git/lodestar/lodestar validator --testnet prater --graffiti "${MY_GRAFFITI}"
Restart         = on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy	= multi-user.target
EOF

Move the unit file to /etc/systemd/system

sudo mv $HOME/validator.service /etc/systemd/system/validator.service

Update file permissions.

sudo chmod 644 /etc/systemd/system/validator.service

Run the following to enable auto-start at boot time and then start your validator.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable validator
sudo systemctl start validator

{% hint style="success" %} Nice work. Your validator is now managed by the reliability and robustness of systemd. Below are some commands for using systemd. {% endhint %}

:tools: Some helpful systemd commands

🗄 Viewing and filtering logs

#view and follow the log
journalctl --unit=validator -f

#view log since yesterday
journalctl --unit=validator --since=yesterday

#view log since today
journalctl --unit=validator --since=today

#view log between a date
journalctl --unit=validator --since='2020-12-01 00:00:00' --until='2020-12-02 12:00:00'

🔎 View the status of the validator

sudo systemctl status validator

🔄 Restarting the validator

sudo systemctl reload-or-restart validator

:octagonal_sign: Stopping the validator

sudo systemctl stop validator

{% endtab %} {% endtabs %}

🕒5. Time Synchronization

{% hint style="info" %} Because beacon chain relies on accurate times to perform attestations and produce blocks, your computer's time must be accurate to real NTP or NTS time within 0.5 seconds. {% endhint %}

Setup Chrony with this guide.

{% hint style="info" %} chrony is an implementation of the Network Time Protocol and helps to keep your computer's time synchronized with NTP. {% endhint %}

{% hint style="warning" %} Running multiple time synchronization services is known to cause issues. Ensure only either Chrony or only 1 NTP service is running. {% endhint %}

🔎6. Monitoring your validator with Grafana and Prometheus

Refer to this monitoring guide.

:man_mage:7. Update your consensus client (ETH2 client)

Refer to this quick guide.

🔥8. Additional Useful Tips

Refer to this quick guide.

9. Join the community on Discord and Reddit

:mobile_phone: Discord

Lighthouse: https://discord.com/invite/cyAszAh
Nimbus: https://discord.com/invite/XRxWahP
Teku: https://discord.com/invite/7hPv2T6
Prysm: https://discord.com/invite/XkyZSSk4My
Lodestar: https://discord.com/invite/aMxzVcr

🌍 Reddit r/ethStaker

https://www.reddit.com/r/ethstaker/

🧩10. Reference Material

Appreciate the hard work done by the fine folks at the following links which served as a foundation for creating this guide.

https://launchpad.ethereum.org/en/
https://consensys.net/knowledge-base/ethereum-2/teku/
https://docs.teku.pegasys.tech/en/latest/HowTo/Get-Started/Installation-Options/Build-From-Source/
https://lighthouse-book.sigmaprime.io/intro.html
https://nimbus.guide/intro.html
https://docs.prylabs.network/docs/getting-started/
https://chainsafe.github.io/lodestar/installation/

🎉11. Bonus links

🧱 ETH Block Explorers

https://beaconcha.in/
https://beaconscan.com/

:notepad_spiral: Latest Eth Info

https://hackmd.io/@benjaminion/eth2_news
https://www.reddit.com/r/ethstaker
https://blog.ethereum.org/

:family_mwgb: Additional ETH Community Guides

https://someresat.medium.com/
https://github.com/metanull-operator/eth2-ubuntu
https://agstakingco.gitbook.io/eth-2-0-staking-guide-prater-lighthouse/
https://www.reddit.com/r/ethstaker/comments/j3mlup/a_slightly_updated_look_at_hardware_for_staking/
https://raymonddurk.medium.com/how-to-stake-for-ethereum-2-0-with-dappnode-231fa7689c02
https://kb.beaconcha.in/

Files

guide-or-how-to-setup-a-validator-on-eth2-testnet-prater.md

Latest commit

History

guide-or-how-to-setup-a-validator-on-eth2-testnet-prater.md

File metadata and controls

Guide | How to setup a validator on ETH2 testnet PRATER

Announcements

Changelog - Update Notes - Dec 1 2021

Latest Essential Ethereum Staking Reading

​​:checkered_flag: 0. Prerequisites

👩‍💻Skills for operating a eth validator and beacon node

👨‍💻 Experience required to be a successful validator

🎗️ Minimum Setup Requirements

:man_lifting_weights: Recommended Hardware Setup

🔓 Recommended eth validator Security Best Practices

:tools: Setup Ubuntu

🎭 Setup Metamask

🧩 High Level Validator Node Overview

🌱 1. Obtain testnet ETH

👩‍💻 2. Signup to be a validator at the Launchpad

How to generate validator keys with Ledger Nano X/S and Trezor Model T

Part 0 - Prerequisites

Part 1 - Download Tails OS

Part 2 - Download and install the software to transfer your Tails image on your USB stick

Part 3 - Making your bootable USB stick

Part 4 - Download and verify the eth2-deposit-cli

Part 5 - Reboot your computer and into Tails OS

Part 6 - Welcome to Tails OS

Part 7 - Run the eth2-deposit-cli

🛸 3. Install execution client (ETH1 node)

:tools: Helpful eth1.service commands

4. Configure consensus client (beacon chain and validator)

⚙️ 4.1. Install rust dependency

💡 4.2. Build Lighthouse from source

🎩 4.3. Import validator key

🔥 4.4. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

⛓️ 4.5. Start the beacon chain

🧬 4.6. Start the validator

⚙️ 4.1. Build Nimbus from source

🎩 4.2. Import validator key

🔥 4.3. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

🏂 4.4. Start the beacon chain and validator

⚙️ 4.1 Build Teku from source

🔥 4.2. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

🏂 4.3. Configure the beacon chain and validator

🎩 4.4 Import validator key

🏁 4.5. Start the beacon chain and validator

⚙️ 4.1. Install Prysm

📁 4.2. Download the Prater testnet genesis state file

🔥 4.3. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

🎩 4.4. Import validator key

🏂 4.5. Start the beacon chain

🧬 4.6. Start the validator

⚙️ 4.1 Build Lodestar from source

🔥 4.2. Configure port forwarding and/or firewall

🎩 4.3. Import validator key

🏂 4.4. Start the beacon chain and validator

🧬 4.5. Start the validator

🕒5. Time Synchronization

🔎6. Monitoring your validator with Grafana and Prometheus

:man_mage:7. Update your consensus client (ETH2 client)

🔥8. Additional Useful Tips

9. Join the community on Discord and Reddit

:mobile_phone: Discord

🌍 Reddit r/ethStaker

🧩10. Reference Material

🎉11. Bonus links

🧱 ETH Block Explorers

:notepad_spiral: Latest Eth Info

:family_mwgb: Additional ETH Community Guides

:checkered_flag: 0. Prerequisites