Babylon Node Docker Setup

This project contains the setup for running a Babylon Node within a Ubuntu Docker container. It includes the Dockerfile for building the image and the docker-compose.yml for easy setup and management. This project is based on the excellent article from BreizhNode.

Prerequisites

• Docker
• Docker Compose
• A good internet connection for downloading dependencies
• Consequent amount of space on your hard drive / SSD (dozen of GB)

Getting Started

Step 1: Clone the Repository and setup env

Clone this repository to your local machine to get started.

git clone https://github.com/Trustia-labs/babylone-node.git
cd babylone-node

Duplicate the .env.example file and customize the NODE_NAME env variable for your node name.

cp .env.example .env
nano .env

Step 2: Build and Run the Container

In the project directory, use Docker Compose to build and start the Babylon Node.

docker-compose up -d --build

This command builds the Docker image if it hasn't been built and starts the container in detached mode.

Step 3: Verify Container is Running

Check that the container is running successfully.

docker ps

You should see your babylon-node container listed.

Post-Installation Steps

After the container is up and running, you'll need to perform a few steps inside the container to finalize the setup.

Accessing the Container

Enter the container using the following command:

docker exec -it babylon-node /bin/bash

Creating a Wallet and register your node

Check Node Synchronization

Before creating your wallet, ensure the node is fully synchronized with the network.

babylond status | jq '.sync_info.catching_up'

Wait until the catching_up value is false, indicating synchronization is complete.

Note that even when you reach the block indicated as current on the explorers, it can still continue for a few blocks (like 50) before finally moving to false. Just be patient.

Create Wallet

Create a new wallet by running:

babylond keys add wallet

Follow the prompts to secure your wallet.

Linking Wallet and Configuring Node

Link Wallet Replace with your wallet's address to link it.

babylond create-bls-key <WALLET_ADDRESS>

Configure config.toml

Adjust the timeout commit to 30s for better performance.

sed -i 's/^timeout_commit\s*=.*/timeout_commit = "30s"/' ~/.babylond/config/config.toml

Registering the Node

Before registering your node, ensure you have at least 1 $BBN in your wallet. You can find some instructions here. Be patient, the faucet can take sometimes 3 to 6 hours to deliver when crowded. This is a very long process, and it can take easily more than one week to gather the required 1 $BBN.

• Check Wallet Balance : Visit Babylon Explorers and enter your wallet address to verify your balance. Alternatively, you can go directly to https://testnet.babylon.explorers.guru/account/<YOUR_ADDRESS>
• Create Validator Profile : Create your validator profile in .babylond/config/validator.json. Replace placeholders with your information.

 touch .babylond/config/validator.json
 nano .babylond/config/validator.json

The content should be as follows (replace the placeholders):

{
  "pubkey": "<PUBLIC_KEY>",
  "amount": "1000000ubbn",
  "moniker": "<NAME>",
  "website": "<WEBSITE>",
  "details": "<DESCRIPTION>",
  "commission-rate": "0.10",
  "commission-max-rate": "0.20",
  "commission-max-change-rate": "0.01",
  "min-self-delegation": "1"
}

• The PUBLIC_KEY comes from your previously generated wallet. It should looks like this (don't include the simple quotes):

{
  "pubkey": {
    "@type": "/cosmos.crypto.ed25519.PubKey",
    "key": "GXU4XLhtIYE3iTAjx+CYa6XOquFrEvaw8ydH8nl/h1Y="
  }
}

• The moniker is your chosen nickname

Register Node as Validator

Run the following command:

babylond tx checkpointing create-validator .babylond/config/validator.json --chain-id="bbn-test-3" --gas="auto" --gas-adjustment="1.5" --gas-prices="0.025ubbn" --from=wallet

I advise you to write down your TX and your valorp address somewhere.

It will take at least 30 min to show up anywhere, don't panic! As long this command returns nothing, you still have to wait:

babylond query tendermint-validator-set | grep "$(babylond tendermint show-address)"

Additionally, your valorp address and your moniker won't give any result on the explorers search neither, it's normal.

Explorers

• https://testnet.babylon.explorers.guru/validator/<YOUR_VALORP_ADDRESS>
• https://explorer.kjnodes.com/babylon-testnet

Checking your wallet balance

babylond q bank balances <YOUR_ADDRESS>

Querying your validator info (works only after the wait)

babylond query staking validator <YOUR_VALORP_ADDRESS> --chain-id bbn-test-3

Editing your validator info (works only after the wait)

babylond tx staking edit-validator \
--identity=592BA308093141B4 \
--chain-id=bbn-test-3 \
--fees=2ubbn \
--from=<YOUR_WALLET_NAME_OR_ADDRESS> \
-y

Your identity can be created and managed at: https://keybase.io/

Following a similar tutorial: https://medium.com/@traintocrypto/run-an-active-validator-node-on-andromeda-blockchain-part-ii-821a344f47b0#5006

This helps changing your picture, description, etc... for example

Monitoring and Management

• Monitoring: Access logs and monitor the node using Docker commands.
• Management: Perform routine node management tasks within the container environment.
• Support For more information, visit the Babylon official documentation or join the Babylon Discord community.

Other relevant tutorials and resources

Even if it is about andromeda, the commands are more or less the same. Simply replace andromedad with babylond.

• https://medium.com/@traintocrypto/run-an-active-validator-node-on-andromeda-blockchain-part-i-1f9137e2ca01
• https://medium.com/@traintocrypto/run-an-active-validator-node-on-andromeda-blockchain-part-ii-821a344f47b0

Stay Connected and Support Us

We're constantly working on improving Babylon Node Docker Setup and adding new features based on community feedback. Here's how you can stay connected and support our project:

• Star this Repository: If you find this project useful, please consider starring it by clicking the ⭐ button at the top. It helps more people discover our work!
• Follow https://github.com/orgs/Trustia-labs : For updates on this project and others, follow @Trustia-labs on GitHub.

Your support and contributions make this project better every day. Thank you for being a part of our community!