Run a full node for Axelar chain

Axelar is a cross chain protocol that supports cross chain transfers and messages,

Hardware Requirements: Recommended 6-8 cores, 16-32 GB RAM, 1 TB+ drive.

Increase Swap Space (skip if you have 32GB)

Follow the steps from here:

Update and install Dependencies

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt install git build-essential ufw curl jq snapd make jq tar clang pkg-config libssl-dev gcc chrony -y

Install Go:

wget -q -O - https://git.io/vQhTU | bash -s -- --version 1.20.5

This script is made by osmosis-labs and installs PATH variables to .bashrc and sets up in a way compatible with the rest of the build. Go binary installs to $HOME/.go and $HOME/go/bin

Run source $HOME/.bashrc to take effect, confirm installed with go version which should return the version installed

#to remove installation 
wget -q -O - https://git.io/vQhTU | bash -s -- --remove

This method will clone Axelar’s core repository and build the binary from source, find Axelar repository and version releases here: (use version tagged latest)

Clone and build from Axelar Repository

git clone https://github.com/axelarnetwork/axelar-core
cd axelar-core
git fetch
git checkout v0.33.3
make build

Move Binary

sudo mv ./bin/axelard /usr/local/bin/

Confirm installed:

axelard version
which axelard

You should now have a directory `.axelar`

See Here for more info: https://docs.axelar.dev/node/config-cli

There is no client.toml file, create this manually or add the following commands to CLI commands

--node tcp://localhost:26657 --gas auto --gas-adjustment 1.5 --chain-id mainnet

This is not needed for a Full node for RPC provision, however should you wish to manage AXL wallet through your own node

Create New Keystore, add --recover to use existing seed

axelard keys add <WALLET-NAME> --keyring-backend test

axelard keys show <WALLET-NAME> -a --keyring-backend test

Test Connection to CLI

If you created a client.toml this can test you are able to call your own node through tcp://localhost:26657, this will not work until the node is fully synced.

axelard query bank balances <WALLET ADDRESS>

Initialize Node:

NODE_MONIKER=< enter any node name here >
axelard init $NODE_MONIKER --chain-id mainnet

Get Genesis

cd
rm .axelar/config/genesis.json
wget -O $HOME/.axelar/config/genesis.json "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/axelarnetwork/axelarate-community/main/resources/mainnet/genesis.json"

NOTE: TO SELF

compare the two files, delete as needed!

Get Seeds

cd
wget -O $HOME/.axelar/config/seeds.toml "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/axelarnetwork/axelarate-community/main/resources/mainnet/seeds.toml"

NOTE: the genesis and seeds are from an Axelar repository which is older, other sources for these files can be used that may be more recent.

Open API interfaces

PENDING

This install method is using snapshot data, this means downloading the blockchain history directly from a trusted source, many community members host this data, some examples: bwarelabs.com, quicksync.io, staketab.com

Download LZ4

sudo apt-get update -y
sudo apt-get install wget liblz4-tool aria2 -y

To Use Quicksync, pruning settings are default, nothing needs to change in the config.toml or app.toml

Remove data folder, backup validator state

cd
mkdir -p axelar-backups
mv .axelar/data/priv_validator_state.json axelar-backups/priv_validator_state.backup
rm -rf .axelar/data/

Get the latest URL

SNAPSHOT_URL=`curl -L https://quicksync.io/axelar.json|jq -r '.[] |select(.file=="axelar-dojo-1-pruned")|.url'`

Extract Snapshot data into data folder

cd ~/.axelar/
wget -O - $SNAPSHOT_URL | lz4 -d | tar -xvf -

cd
mv axelar-backups/priv_validator_state.backup .axelar/data/priv_validator_state.json

this may vary depending on provider, but this is an example for pruning settings that must be changed to use snapshot, check with the provider for details, the following example is using bware

Change Prunning settings

In app.toml

pruning = "custom"
pruning-keep-recent = "100"
pruning-keep-every = "0"
pruning-interval = "10"

[state-sync]

snapshot-interval = 0

In config.toml

...
[tx_index]
indexer = "null"

Get snapshot URL

SNAPSHOT_URL=<enter url to download link here>

Remove data folder, backup validator state

mkdir -p axelar-backups
mv .axelar/data/priv_validator_state.json axelar-backups/priv_validator_state.backup
rm -rf .axelar/data/

Decompress archive

curl -L $SNAPSHOT_URL | tar -Ilz4 -xf - -C $HOME/.axelar
mv axelar-backups/priv_validator_state.backup .axelar/data/priv_validator_state.json

Create System service to run node as a background service

sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/axelard.service > /dev/null <<EOF
[Unit] 
Description=AXL node 
After=network.target 
[Service] 
Type=simple
User=$USER
ExecStart=$(which axelard) start 
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=10
LimitNOFILE=65535
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Enable and start service

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable axelard
sudo systemctl start axelard

Check Status and logs

sudo systemctl status axelard

journalctl -u axelard -f

Check node Sync status

curl localhost:26657/status | jq '.result.sync_info'

Example queries at the bottom here:

Cosmovisor: is a process management tool to handle cosmos based chain upgrades seamlessly, it looks for chain upgrades and downloads & installs at the correct block height.

Create directories for Cosmovisor

cd
mkdir -p ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/genesis/bin
mkdir -p ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/upgrades

create directory for corresponding binary version (change v0.33.3 accordingly)

mkdir -p ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/upgrades/v0.33.3/bin

Install Cosmovisor binary

go install cosmossdk.io/tools/cosmovisor/cmd/cosmovisor@latest

this should install cosmovisor binary to $GOPATH/bin/cosmovisor

Copy binaries to Cosmovisor

Note on versions: if using snapshot (this guide) you are downloading the latest binary, with chain data manually downloaded and placed in the correct location, cosmovisor will look from the block height the node is currently on and the corresponding binary in the upgrades folder.  The binary also needs to be placed in ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/genesis/bin for first start up or an error will occur.

cp /usr/local/bin/axelard ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/genesis/bin
cp /usr/local/bin/axelard ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/upgrades/v0.33.3/bin/

Create system service.

System service to run node as background service through cosmovisor

sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/cosmovisor.service > /dev/null <<EOF
[Unit]
Description=Axelar Daemon (cosmovisor)
After=network-online.target

[Service]
User=$USER
ExecStart=$HOME/go/bin/cosmovisor run start
Restart=always
RestartSec=10
LimitNOFILE=65535
Environment="DAEMON_NAME=axelard"
Environment="DAEMON_HOME=$HOME/.axelar"
Environment="DAEMON_ALLOW_DOWNLOAD_BINARIES=true"
Environment="DAEMON_RESTART_AFTER_UPGRADE=true"
Environment="DAEMON_LOG_BUFFER_SIZE=512"

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Enable and start service.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable cosmovisor
sudo systemctl start cosmovisor

Run a full node for Axelar chain

Axelar is a cross chain protocol that supports cross chain transfers and messages,

Hardware Requirements: Recommended 6-8 cores, 16-32 GB RAM, 1 TB+ drive.

Increase Swap Space (skip if you have 32GB)

Follow the steps from here:

Update and install Dependencies

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt install git build-essential ufw curl jq snapd make jq tar clang pkg-config libssl-dev gcc chrony -y

Install Go:

wget -q -O - https://git.io/vQhTU | bash -s -- --version 1.20.5

This script is made by osmosis-labs and installs PATH variables to .bashrc and sets up in a way compatible with the rest of the build. Go binary installs to $HOME/.go and $HOME/go/bin

Run source $HOME/.bashrc to take effect, confirm installed with go version which should return the version installed

#to remove installation 
wget -q -O - https://git.io/vQhTU | bash -s -- --remove

This method will clone Axelar’s core repository and build the binary from source, find Axelar repository and version releases here: (use version tagged latest)

Clone and build from Axelar Repository

git clone https://github.com/axelarnetwork/axelar-core
cd axelar-core
git fetch
git checkout v0.33.3
make build

Move Binary

sudo mv ./bin/axelard /usr/local/bin/

Confirm installed:

axelard version
which axelard

You should now have a directory `.axelar`

See Here for more info: https://docs.axelar.dev/node/config-cli

There is no client.toml file, create this manually or add the following commands to CLI commands

--node tcp://localhost:26657 --gas auto --gas-adjustment 1.5 --chain-id mainnet

This is not needed for a Full node for RPC provision, however should you wish to manage AXL wallet through your own node

Create New Keystore, add --recover to use existing seed

axelard keys add <WALLET-NAME> --keyring-backend test

axelard keys show <WALLET-NAME> -a --keyring-backend test

Test Connection to CLI

If you created a client.toml this can test you are able to call your own node through tcp://localhost:26657, this will not work until the node is fully synced.

axelard query bank balances <WALLET ADDRESS>

Initialize Node:

NODE_MONIKER=< enter any node name here >
axelard init $NODE_MONIKER --chain-id mainnet

Get Genesis

cd
rm .axelar/config/genesis.json
wget -O $HOME/.axelar/config/genesis.json "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/axelarnetwork/axelarate-community/main/resources/mainnet/genesis.json"

NOTE: TO SELF

compare the two files, delete as needed!

Get Seeds

cd
wget -O $HOME/.axelar/config/seeds.toml "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/axelarnetwork/axelarate-community/main/resources/mainnet/seeds.toml"

NOTE: the genesis and seeds are from an Axelar repository which is older, other sources for these files can be used that may be more recent.

Open API interfaces

PENDING

This install method is using snapshot data, this means downloading the blockchain history directly from a trusted source, many community members host this data, some examples: bwarelabs.com, quicksync.io, staketab.com

Download LZ4

sudo apt-get update -y
sudo apt-get install wget liblz4-tool aria2 -y

To Use Quicksync, pruning settings are default, nothing needs to change in the config.toml or app.toml

Remove data folder, backup validator state

cd
mkdir -p axelar-backups
mv .axelar/data/priv_validator_state.json axelar-backups/priv_validator_state.backup
rm -rf .axelar/data/

Get the latest URL

SNAPSHOT_URL=`curl -L https://quicksync.io/axelar.json|jq -r '.[] |select(.file=="axelar-dojo-1-pruned")|.url'`

Extract Snapshot data into data folder

cd ~/.axelar/
wget -O - $SNAPSHOT_URL | lz4 -d | tar -xvf -

cd
mv axelar-backups/priv_validator_state.backup .axelar/data/priv_validator_state.json

this may vary depending on provider, but this is an example for pruning settings that must be changed to use snapshot, check with the provider for details, the following example is using bware

Change Prunning settings

In app.toml

pruning = "custom"
pruning-keep-recent = "100"
pruning-keep-every = "0"
pruning-interval = "10"

[state-sync]

snapshot-interval = 0

In config.toml

...
[tx_index]
indexer = "null"

Get snapshot URL

SNAPSHOT_URL=<enter url to download link here>

Remove data folder, backup validator state

mkdir -p axelar-backups
mv .axelar/data/priv_validator_state.json axelar-backups/priv_validator_state.backup
rm -rf .axelar/data/

Decompress archive

curl -L $SNAPSHOT_URL | tar -Ilz4 -xf - -C $HOME/.axelar
mv axelar-backups/priv_validator_state.backup .axelar/data/priv_validator_state.json

Create System service to run node as a background service

sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/axelard.service > /dev/null <<EOF
[Unit] 
Description=AXL node 
After=network.target 
[Service] 
Type=simple
User=$USER
ExecStart=$(which axelard) start 
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=10
LimitNOFILE=65535
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Enable and start service

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable axelard
sudo systemctl start axelard

Check Status and logs

sudo systemctl status axelard

journalctl -u axelard -f

Check node Sync status

curl localhost:26657/status | jq '.result.sync_info'

Example queries at the bottom here:

Cosmovisor: is a process management tool to handle cosmos based chain upgrades seamlessly, it looks for chain upgrades and downloads & installs at the correct block height.

Create directories for Cosmovisor

cd
mkdir -p ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/genesis/bin
mkdir -p ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/upgrades

create directory for corresponding binary version (change v0.33.3 accordingly)

mkdir -p ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/upgrades/v0.33.3/bin

Install Cosmovisor binary

go install cosmossdk.io/tools/cosmovisor/cmd/cosmovisor@latest

this should install cosmovisor binary to $GOPATH/bin/cosmovisor

Copy binaries to Cosmovisor

Note on versions: if using snapshot (this guide) you are downloading the latest binary, with chain data manually downloaded and placed in the correct location, cosmovisor will look from the block height the node is currently on and the corresponding binary in the upgrades folder.  The binary also needs to be placed in ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/genesis/bin for first start up or an error will occur.

cp /usr/local/bin/axelard ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/genesis/bin
cp /usr/local/bin/axelard ~/.axelar/cosmovisor/upgrades/v0.33.3/bin/

Create system service.

System service to run node as background service through cosmovisor

sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/cosmovisor.service > /dev/null <<EOF
[Unit]
Description=Axelar Daemon (cosmovisor)
After=network-online.target

[Service]
User=$USER
ExecStart=$HOME/go/bin/cosmovisor run start
Restart=always
RestartSec=10
LimitNOFILE=65535
Environment="DAEMON_NAME=axelard"
Environment="DAEMON_HOME=$HOME/.axelar"
Environment="DAEMON_ALLOW_DOWNLOAD_BINARIES=true"
Environment="DAEMON_RESTART_AFTER_UPGRADE=true"
Environment="DAEMON_LOG_BUFFER_SIZE=512"

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Enable and start service.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable cosmovisor
sudo systemctl start cosmovisor