Joining Testnet
General instructions on how to join the Juno testnet
Current testnet
Below is the list of Juno testnets and their current status. You will need to know the version tag for installation of the junod
binary.
For details of upgrades on the current testnet, as well as syncing, you can check out the testnets repo, which is the definitive source of truth.
If you get stuck, then please ask on Discord.
Minimum Hardware Requirements
The minimum recommended hardware requirements for running a validator for the Juno testnets are:
These specifications are the minimum recommended. As Juno Network is a smart contract platform, it can at times be very demanding on hardware. Low spec validators WILL get stuck on difficult to process blocks.
Note that the testnets accumulate data as the blockchain continues. This means that you will need to expand your storage as the blockchain database gets larger with time.
junod Installation
To get up and running with the junod binary, please follow the instructions here
Configuration of Shell Variables
For this guide, we will be using shell variables. This will enable the use of the client commands verbatim. It is important to remember that shell commands are only valid for the current shell session, and if the shell session is closed, the shell variables will need to be re-defined.
If you want variables to persist for multiple sessions, then set them explicitly in your shell .profile, as you did for the Go environment variables.
To clear a variable binding, use unset $VARIABLE_NAME
. Shell variables should be named with ALL CAPS.
Choose a testnet
Set the CHAIN_ID
:
Set your moniker name
Choose your <moniker-name>
, this can be any name of your choosing and will identify your validator in the explorer. Set the MONIKER_NAME
:
Set persistent peers
Persistent peers will be required to tell your node where to connect to other nodes and join the network. To retrieve the peers for the chosen testnet:
NB: If you are unsure about this, you can ask in discord for the current peers and explicitly set them in ~/.juno/config/config.toml
instead.
Set minimum gas prices
In $HOME/.juno/config/app.toml
, set gas prices:
Setting up the Node
Running a node is different from running a Validator. In order to run a Validator, you must create and sync a node, and then upgrade it to a Validator.
These instructions will direct you on how to initialise your node, synchronise to the network and upgrade your node to a validator.
Initialize the chain
This will generate the following files in ~/.juno/config/
genesis.json
node_key.json
priv_validator_key.json
Note that this means if you jumped ahead and already downloaded the genesis file, this command will replace it and you will get an error when you attempt to start the chain.
Download the genesis file
This will replace the genesis file created using junod init
command with the genesis file for the testnet.
Set persistent peers
Using the peers variable we set earlier, we can set the persistent_peers
in ~/.juno/config/config.toml
:
Create a local key pair
Create a new key pair or restore a key for your validator:
Replace <key-name>
with a key name of your choosing.
After creating a new key, the key information and seed phrase will be shown. It is essential to write this seed phrase down and keep it in a safe place. The seed phrase is the only way to restore your keys.
Get some testnet tokens
Testnet tokens can be requested from the faucet. To request tokens, visit HERE and enter your Juno address in the address field like this: https://faucet.testnet.chaintools.tech/uni-6/<your_juno_address_here>
.
Setup cosmovisor
Follow these instructions to setup cosmovisor and start the node.
Syncing the node
After starting the junod daemon, the chain will begin to sync to the network. The time to sync to the network will vary depending on your setup, but could take a very long time. To query the status of your node:
If this command returns true
then your node is still catching up. If it returns false
then your node has caught up to the network current block and you are safe to proceed to upgrade to a validator node.
Validators and sentries can rapidly join the network with state-sync. See instructions for using state-sync here.
Upgrade to a validator
To upgrade the node to a validator, you will need to submit a create-validator
transaction:
Backup critical files
There are certain files that you need to backup to be able to restore your validator if, for some reason, it damaged or lost in some way. Please make a secure backup of the following files located in ~/.juno/config/
:
priv_validator_key.json
node_key.json
It is recommended that you encrypt the backup of these files.
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