Run a Full Node

A full node verifies blocks, relays network data, and can optionally serve RPC endpoints for dApps and infrastructure partners. Full nodes do not participate in consensus and do not require staking.

1. System Requirements

Recommended:

OS: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
CPU: 4 cores
RAM: 8–16 GB
Storage: 500 GB+ NVMe SSD
Network: 100 Mbps
Dependencies: git, jq, curl, make, build-essential, pkg-config
Go: v1.25+

Install dependencies:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install git jq curl make build-essential pkg-config -y

Install Go:

curl -LO https://go.dev/dl/go1.25.0.linux-amd64.tar.gz
sudo rm -rf /usr/local/go
sudo tar -C /usr/local -xzf go1.25.0.linux-amd64.tar.gz
echo 'export PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/go/bin' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc
go version

2. Install Shardeum Node Binary

git clone https://github.com/shardeum/shardeum-evm.git
cd shardeum-evm
make install

Verify:

shardeumd version
command -v shardeumd

3. Environment Variables

export SHARDEUM_CONFIG_DIR="$PWD/config"
export SHARDEUM_NETWORK=mainnet
export BINARY=$(command -v shardeumd)

4. Initialize the Node

Choose a node ID and moniker (ASCII only):

NODE_ID="node0"
MONIKER="shardeum-fullnode"
 
shardeumd init "$MONIKER" \
  --chain-id shardeum_8118-1 \
  --home $HOME/.mainnet/$NODE_ID \
  --overwrite

5. Copy Genesis File

cp config/mainnet-genesis.json $HOME/.mainnet/$NODE_ID/config/genesis.json
ls -lh $HOME/.mainnet/$NODE_ID/config/genesis.json
jq -r '.chain_id' $HOME/.mainnet/$NODE_ID/config/genesis.json

6. Start and Sync the Node

Start:

shardeumd start \
  --home $HOME/.mainnet/$NODE_ID \
  --chain-id shardeum_8118-1 \
  --p2p.seeds [email protected]:27656 \
  --p2p.laddr tcp://0.0.0.0:27656 \
  > $HOME/.mainnet/$NODE_ID/node.log

Monitor:

shardeumd status | jq '.SyncInfo'

Or tail the log:

tail -f $HOME/.mainnet/$NODE_ID/node.log

Sync is complete when block height matches the explorer.

7. Optional: Run as systemd Service

Create service:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/shardeumd.service

Example content:

[Unit]
Description=Shardeum Full Node
After=network-online.target
 
[Service]
User=root
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/shardeumd start --home /root/.mainnet/node0
Restart=on-failure
LimitNOFILE=65535
 
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Enable:

sudo systemctl enable shardeumd
sudo systemctl start shardeumd
sudo systemctl status shardeumd

8. Optional: Enable JSON-RPC

Edit config/app.toml inside your node directory.

Enable:

json-rpc.enable = true
json-rpc.address = "0.0.0.0:8545"
json-rpc.ws-address = "0.0.0.0:8546"

Restart the node if using systemd.

9. Firewall Configuration

sudo ufw allow 26656/tcp   # P2P
sudo ufw allow 8545/tcp    # JSON-RPC (optional)
sudo ufw allow 8546/tcp    # WebSocket (optional)
sudo ufw enable

For production, restrict JSON-RPC to trusted IPs or localhost.

10. Optional: Pruning Settings

Full nodes can reduce storage usage.

Edit app.toml:

pruning = "default"

Or for higher performance:

pruning = "custom"
pruning-keep-recent = "10000"
pruning-interval = "50"

Restart node after making changes.

11. Node Management Commands

Checking Node Status

Sync status:

shardeumd status | jq '.SyncInfo'

Node ID:

shardeumd comet show-node-id

Check peers:

curl -s http://localhost:26657/net_info | jq '.result'
curl -s http://localhost:26657/net_info | jq '.result.n_peers'

Check logs:

journalctl -u shardeumd -f

Or if running without systemd:

tail -f $HOME/.mainnet/$NODE_ID/node.log

Account and Balance Management

List all keys:

shardeumd keys list

Account balance:

shardeumd query bank balances <address>

Stopping the Node

Stop shardeumd process:

pkill shardeumd

If using systemd:

sudo systemctl stop shardeumd

12. Troubleshooting

Node Won't Sync

Check peer connections:

shardeumd status | jq '.SyncInfo.latest_block_height'
curl -s http://localhost:26657/net_info | jq '.result.n_peers'

Common fixes:

Verify seeds in config.toml
Try adding more persistent peers
Check your time sync (NTP): timedatectl status
Check port 26656 is open

Out of Disk Space

Check disk usage:

df -h

Solutions:

For full nodes: Enable pruning in app.toml:
pruning = "default"
Or use custom pruning:
pruning = "custom" pruning-keep-recent = "10000" pruning-interval = "50"
Increase disk space

Important: If running as Archive Node with --pruning nothing, you need adequate storage for complete history.

RPC Not Responding

Check firewall rules: sudo ufw status
Verify RPC enabled in app.toml
Confirm bind address is correct (0.0.0.0:8545 for external access)
Check node is fully synced
Restart the service: sudo systemctl restart shardeumd

13. Important Notes

Chain ID: shardeum_8118-1 (mainnet)
EVM Chain ID: 8118 (hex: 0x1fb6) for MetaMask and EVM interactions
Unbonding Period: 21 days (if you later become a validator)
Archive Node: Use --pruning nothing flag to maintain complete history
Backups: Always back up node_key.json securely

Full Node Complete

Your Shardeum full node is now running and contributing to network decentralization.

You may proceed to:

Promote it to a validator, or
Enable RPC for dApps, or
Pair with a sentry node for validator security

Run a Full Node

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