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Run a Testnet Validator

This guide uses the installer that already exists in this repository: scripts/install-validator.sh.

The installer creates a systemd service, builds the sentrix binary from this repo, generates an encrypted validator keystore, and starts the node with the testnet genesis file.

Prerequisites​

  • Linux on x86_64 or aarch64.
  • Debian or Ubuntu with apt-get.
  • At least 8 GiB RAM. The installer refuses lower memory.
  • At least 60 GiB free disk on /. The installer refuses lower disk.
  • sudo access.
  • A safe place to store the validator keystore password.

Do not commit or paste validator keystores, private keys, .env files, or wallet passwords.

Install And Build​

From a checked-out copy of this repository:

./scripts/install-validator.sh --network testnet --name sentrix-testnet-validator

The installer:

  • installs required packages with apt-get;
  • installs or updates Rust if needed;
  • clones or updates https://github.com/sentrix-labs/sentrix.git;
  • runs cargo build --release -p sentrix-node;
  • installs the binary as /opt/sentrix/sentrix by default;
  • copies genesis/testnet.toml to /opt/sentrix/genesis-testnet.toml;
  • generates a validator keystore under /opt/sentrix/data/wallets;
  • writes /etc/sentrix/<name>.env;
  • writes /etc/systemd/system/<name>.service;
  • starts the systemd service.

To use a pinned branch, tag, or local fork, use the installer's existing flags:

./scripts/install-validator.sh \
  --network testnet \
  --name sentrix-testnet-validator \
  --repo https://github.com/sentrix-labs/sentrix.git \
  --ref main

Validator Key Setup​

The installer runs:

sentrix wallet generate --password "<password>"

It stores the keystore under:

/opt/sentrix/data/wallets/

It also writes a non-secret identity sidecar with the validator address and public key. Back up the keystore and password separately.

Start, Stop, Restart​

Use the service name passed with --name:

sudo systemctl status sentrix-testnet-validator
sudo systemctl restart sentrix-testnet-validator
sudo systemctl stop sentrix-testnet-validator
sudo systemctl start sentrix-testnet-validator

Stopping or restarting the service does not delete chain data.

Logs​

sudo journalctl -u sentrix-testnet-validator -f
sudo journalctl -u sentrix-testnet-validator -n 200 --no-pager

Height And Sync Checks​

The node exposes HTTP API endpoints when the service is running:

curl http://localhost:8545/health
curl http://localhost:8545/chain/info | jq

Local binary checks:

SENTRIX_DATA_DIR=/opt/sentrix/data \
SENTRIX_ENCRYPTED_DISK=true \
/opt/sentrix/sentrix chain info

Backups​

Back up before upgrades or recovery work:

sudo systemctl stop sentrix-testnet-validator
sudo tar -C /opt/sentrix -czf "$HOME/sentrix-testnet-data-$(date -u +%Y%m%dT%H%M%SZ).tar.gz" data
sudo systemctl start sentrix-testnet-validator

DO NOT delete /opt/sentrix/data, /opt/sentrix/data/chain.db, or wallet keystores unless you intentionally want a fresh resync and you have backed up everything needed.

TODO​

  • TODO: confirm current public testnet bootstrap peers before publishing a copy-paste --peers value for third-party operators.