How to Run a Full Node

Background

The Aztec full node is a critical infrastructure component that allows users to interact with the Aztec network. Full nodes provide a connection to the network and allow users to send and receive transactions and state updates without relying on a third party. Running a full node is a great way to support the Aztec network and get involved with the community. Running your own full node is the most privacy preserving way to interact with the Aztec network.

Prerequisites

Before following this guide, make sure you:

• Have the aztec tool installed
• You are using the correct version for the testnet by running aztec-up alpha-testnet
• Are running a Linux or MacOS machine with access to a terminal

Join the Discord to connect with the community and get help with your setup.

Setting Up Your Full Node

This guide will describe how to setup your sequencer using the aztec start command. For more advanced setups, refer to the Advanced Configuration section below.

The aztec start tool is a one-stop-shop for running your sequencer on any Aztec Network. It assigns default values to several config variables based on a --network flag and launches a docker container running the sequencer software.

To use the aztec start command, you need to obtain the following:

RPCs

• An L1 execution client (for reading transactions and state). It can be specified via the --l1-rpc-urls flag when using aztec start or via the env var ETHEREUM_HOSTS.

• An L1 consensus client (for blobs). It can be specified via the --l1-consensus-host-urls flag when using aztec start or via the env var L1_CONSENSUS_HOST_URLS. You can provide fallback URLs by separating them with commas.

• To reduce load on your consensus endpoint, the Aztec sequencer supports an optional remote server that serves blobs to the client. You can pass your own or use one provided by a trusted party via the --sequencer.blobSinkUrl flag when using aztec start, or via the env var BLOB_SINK_URL.

Networking

You MUST forward your ports. Your router must send UDP and TCP traffic on port 40400 (unless you changed the default) to your IP address on your local network. Failure to do so may result in your sequencer not participating on the p2p network.

As a tip, configure your router to give your MAC address the same IP address every time it does a DHCP refresh.

You also need to grab your external IP address and pass it along to the --p2p.p2pIp when using aztec start.

Starting Your Full Node

aztec start --node --archiver \
  --network alpha-testnet \
  --l1-rpc-urls https://example.com \
  --l1-consensus-host-urls https://example.com \
  --p2p.p2pIp 999.99.999.99

tip

For a full overview of all available commands, check out the CLI reference sheet.

tip

If you are unable to determine your public ip. Running the command curl ifconfig.me can retrieve it for you.

Advanced Configuration

Using Environment Variables

Every flag in the aztec start command corresponds to an environment variable. You can see the variable names by running aztec start --help. A reference is provided here.

For example:

• --l1-rpc-urls maps to ETHEREUM_HOSTS
• --l1-consensus-host-urls maps to L1_CONSENSUS_HOSTS_URLS

You can create a .env file with these variables:

ETHEREUM_HOSTS=https://example.com
L1_CONSENSUS_HOST_URLS=https://example.com
# Add other configuration variables as needed

Then source this file before running your command:

source .env
aztec start --network alpha-testnet --archiver --node # other flags...

Using a Docker Compose

If you would like to run in a docker compose, you can use a configuration like the one below:

name: aztec-node
services:
  node:
    network_mode: host # Optional, run with host networking
    image: aztecprotocol/aztec:alpha-testnet
    environment:
      ETHEREUM_HOSTS: "" # update with L1 execution client URL
      L1_CONSENSUS_HOST_URLS: "" # update with L1 consensus client URL
      DATA_DIRECTORY: /data
      P2P_IP: $P2P_IP
      LOG_LEVEL: debug
    entrypoint: >
      sh -c 'node --no-warnings /usr/src/yarn-project/aztec/dest/bin/index.js start --network alpha-testnet start --node --archiver'
    ports:
      - 40400:40400/tcp
      - 40400:40400/udp
      - 8080:8080

    volumes:
      - /home/my-node/node:/data # Local directory