Setup Guardian Node

This tutorial demonstrates how to set up a Guardian Node for the Babylon TestNet. For information regarding setting up nodes for a private network, refer to MOIPod CLI Docs.

KYC Verification for Guardian Operators

• All Guardians Operators must be KYC verified to comply with the protocol's reputation requirements.
• Organizations can also become operators by completing the KYB verification.
• KYC verification for the MOI IDs is provided by select services such as IOMe which works with multiple vendors and agencies.
• Individual operators can host upto 21 Nodes, while Institutional operators can go upto 108.

Apply for the Guardian Waitlist

To become a Guardian Operator, you must first have a KYC-verified MOI ID and apply on the Guardian Waitlist with MOI Voyage to become eligible to register and start your node. If you already have a MOI ID (skip to Step 2) or if you already have a KYC ready MOI ID (skip to step 3).

Step 1: Create MOI ID

• Visit the IOMe Login Page, and create an account.

  
  

• Choose a Username and Password. You will then be redirected to the Secret Recovery Phrase section.

  
  

• If you have an existing Secret Recovery Phrase, you can import and link it to your new IOMe account. Otherwise, IOMe will generate a new seed phrase for you.

  
  
  

caution

Please back up your Secret Recovery Phrase & IOMe Password. They cannot be recovered!

• Voilà! You now have an IOMe Account with a MOI ID.

Step 2: Verify KYC

• Login to your IOMe Account and Find the Verify KYC/KYB Prompt on the top left

  
  
  

• Choose whether the verification is for an Individual (KYC) or an Organization (KYB)

• The KYC verification process involves 2 steps:

  • Uploading Documents (Passport, Government Issued Identification, etc.)
  • Completing the Face Scan

• After completing the KYC process, the verification may take some time. Once verified, you can then use this account you just activated to log in and use MOI Voyage.

Step 3: Apply for Waitlist

• Visit MOI Voyage

• Login into MOI Voyage using your KYC-verified IOMe Account.

  
  

• Proceed to the Guardians page on the sidebar.

  
  

• If you are already an operator you can skip this step. Otherwise, click on the Become a Guardian to register as an operator. Complete the required steps to register as an operator

  • Completing your KYC verification.

  • Validating your email address.

  • Accepting terms and conditions.

  • Register as operator.

    Note: This process needs to be completed only once. Once you are an operator, you can register multiple nodes.

    
    
    

• Click on the Become a Guardian button. This will redirect you to the Guardian application page where you can create desired number of nodes.

  
  

Step 4: Register Guardian Node

• Once your node is approved, you can now register your node.

  
  

• Next, click "Register". A modal popup will appear where the first step is to unlock your wallet.

  
  

• Next, select the account where you want to receive incentives. Click "Proceed" after you've chosen a wallet.

  
  

• After successful registration, return to the activity page and click "Download Node Keystore" to get your keystore file, essential for starting your node.

  
  

Install MOIPod

Recommended Specification

To make the most of the Babylon TestNet, it's important to optimize your setup for performance and contribution. We suggest the matching the hardware specifications listed below for optimal results.

Spec	Recommended
CPU	4 Cores (ARM64 or x86-64)
RAM	16 GB (DDR4)
SSD	512 GB

The MOI Protocol is highly network intensive and so, Guardians Nodes must have a reliable & steady internet connection with a speed of at least 500 Mbps. The average monthly bandwidth consumption is expected to be around 300-500 GB

Install Docker Desktop

In order to commence executing the docker commands, it is necessary to install Docker Desktop on our system. For guidance on installing Docker Desktop, please refer to the following links:

• macOS
• Windows
• Linux

Once Docker Desktop has been successfully downloaded and installed, launch the Docker CLI and proceed.

Pull the MOIPod Docker Image

Using the following command will provide you with a pre-built image from the Docker registry. This image contains the necessary code and data for your node to communicate with the network and validate interactions in a seamless manner.

docker pull sarvalabs/moipod:latest

Connectivity Settings

The Guardian Node is configured to utilize the following network ports by default:

Transport	Port	Reachability	Purpose
TCP/UDP	6000	Inbound/Outbound	Protocol P2P Interface
TCP	1600	Inbound	JSON RPC Interface

In order to ensure the successful operation of the guardian node, it is imperative that the designated ports 6000 and 1600, are open as mentioned, along with the corresponding protocol.

caution

If you opt against exposing the JSON-RPC port for external access, it is necessary to whitelist the WatchDog URL to ensure its ability to access the JSON-RPC port. Failure to whitelist this URL will result in non-crediting of your incentives.

Create a Data Directory

To set up your Guardian Node, start by creating a data directory that will store essential files for your node's operation. Run the following command to create a new data directory:

mkdir -p /path/to/data-directory

note

Replace /path/to/data-directory with your preferred directory path.

Next, copy your keystore file, which was downloaded from MOI Voyage, into the newly created data directory and name it keystore.json.

cp /path/to/your/keystore.json /path/to/data-directory/keystore.json

This keystore file is crucial for securely storing your node's credentials. Ensure it is named correctly as keystore.json in the data directory.

Start the Guardian Node

Using the following command provided below, you will initialize your personal Guardian Node, thereby enabling you to actively participate in the Babylon TestNet!

sudo docker run --network host --rm -it -d -w /data -v $(pwd):/data sarvalabs/moipod:latest server --babylon --data-dir {DIRPATH} --log-level DEBUG --node-password {NODE_PWD} --watchdog-url https://babylon-watchdog.moi.technology/add --network-rpc-url https://voyage-rpc.moi.technology/babylon

info

Custom Hostname or Port - If you are using a custom hostname or port, include the --local-rpc-url flag in the command. For example: --local-rpc-url http://13.235.63.184:1604 or --local-rpc-url http://node1.guardian.io.

Node Password - You can skip passing node password as a separate command-line flag if you have set it as an environment variable already.

Command Flags Reference Table

Flag	Type	Description
data-dir	string	Path to the data directory in which you wish you to start the node
log-level	string	The logger level. Default: "INFO"
node-password	string	Passcode used to decrypt your node keystore.
babylon	bool	Connects to babylon network by downloading its genesis file.
local-rpc-url	string	Local node JSON RPC URL. This is provided if you are behind a relay or gateway node and this will be the URL that WatchDog will hit
network-rpc-url	string	To register you would need to fire an interaction to the network. So this is the network JSON RPC URL to which the interaction will be sent.
watchdog-url	string	WatchDog service url. WatchDog is used to monitors and incentives your nodes based on your availability

Verifying Successful Startup of Node

Upon executing the above docker run command to start the node, you will receive a hash. This hash is used to verify if a Docker container started successfully. You can follow these steps to verify:

1. Run the docker ps -a command to list all the containers.
2. Look for the container that you want to check by looking at the Image column. The Image column will show the image that the container was created from.
3. If the container is running, it will have a status of "Up". If the container is not running, it will have a status of "Exited".
   

Container ID	Image	Command	created	Status	Ports	Names
f00f11223344	my-image	"/bin/bash"	10 minutes ago	Up 10 minutes	0.0.0.0:1600->1600/tcp	my-container

In this example, the container with the ID f00f11223344 is running. Image that the container was created from is my-image. The container was created 10 minutes ago and has been running for 10 minutes. To verify that the container started successfully, we check if the Status column shows Up.

Accessing Node Logs

The log file for the Guardian Node can be accessed at the data directory of the node at {DATA_DIR}/log/{kramaID}

Artifacts

Genesis File

You can find the Genesis file by visiting the following link: Genesis File