tezos-baker

Boilerplate code to set up a minimalistic Tezos baker capable of baking, accusing, and optionally paying its delegators.

This code:

• installs octez-node, octez-baker, octez-accuser,
• optionally installs Tezpay and its extension payouts-substitutor on the same machine,
• provides some basic maintenance tools.

Content of this document:

• tezos-baker
  • Disclaimer
  • Release management
  • Prerequisites
  • Operating instructions
    • Initial setup
    • Upgrade from the previous version
    • Maintenance
  • Should you wish to support us
  • Contact

Disclaimer

This repository is not intended to provide perfect code, but code as simple as possible and sufficient to start a baking activity. It can be used as a tutorial.

As a result, it is not state-of-the-art in terms of automation, high availability, or security. We will address these aspects throughout this documentation when relevant. In any case, we decline all responsibility in the event of damages, theft of crypto-assets, operational or security incidents, as detailed further in the LICENSE.txt file.

Additionally, this code doesn't leverage all the options provided by octez, Tezpay and payouts-substitutor. We encourage you to read the documentation for these tools and enhance your setup, transforming this basic configuration into something remarkable.

• octez: https://tezos.gitlab.io/index.html
• Tezpay: https://docs.tez.capital/tezpay/tutorials/
• payouts-substitutor: https://github.com/LaBoulange/tezpay-extensions

Release management

• Versions are numbered in the same way as those of the Tezos Gitlab repository, on which they are based. (See https://gitlab.com/tezos/tezos/-/releases). Before v20.0, they were based on Serokell's 'tezos-packaging' repository (See https://github.com/serokell/tezos-packaging).
• Underlying tags are named according to the same version number, with references to the active and replaced protocol names. Before v18.1-1, only the major version number was used.
• In the case of a change not tied to a new release of octez, a minor version number prefixed by an underscore is appended to both versions and tags.

Prerequisites

This code is designed to run on a x86_64 or ARM64 Linux platform.

Hardware requirements:

• 2 CPU cores
• 8GB RAM
• 100GB to 500GB SSD drive depending on the chosen node history mode ("rolling" or "full", see https://tezos.gitlab.io/user/history_modes.html)

Before using this code, you should also have:

• a Tezos account set up to become the baker, and funded with a sufficient amount of XTZ (6000 is required to have baking rights without relying on externally staked and delegated).
• if you wish to pay your delegators, a Tezos account set up to handle the payouts.

Operating instructions

For simplicity, both the initial setup and maintenance processes are designed to be executed by the 'root' user. While this is convenient, it is not best practice from a security standpoint. Ideally, one should minimize operations performed as 'root' and designate one or more users specifically for Tezos-related tasks.

Because user management configurations can vary widely, we've opted not to make assumptions about your preferences in this area. This approach allows you to easily modify these scripts and procedures according to your own criteria and preferences.

Initial setup

• Choose a directory where the executable files for your baker will be installed (typically /usr/local/bin). This directory will be referred to as BAKER_INSTALLATION_DIR later in this document.
• Ensure this BAKER_INSTALLATION_DIR is part of the PATH environment variable the user intended to run or service the baker (see Operating instructions section above).
• Copy the file usr/local/bin/install-tezos-baker.sh of this repository to the BAKER_INSTALLATION_DIR directory of your machine.
• Copy the file usr/local/bin/tezos_constants.sh of this repository to the BAKER_INSTALLATION_DIR directory of your machine.
• Make sure all the two files above are executable by the user intended to run them.
• Create a file BAKER_INSTALLATION_DIR/tezos-env.sh by copying the file usr/local/bin/tezos-env.sh.template of this repository. Some variables need configuration and should persist over upgrades while the others may optionally be adjusted. Those that require configuration follow:
  • BAKER_ARCH: The hardware architecture you use for baking. Currently, the supported values are amd64 (x86_64) and arm64. Default: amd64.
  • BUILD_DIR: The working directory where files will be downloaded by the installation scripts of this repository. Default: /tmp/build-tezos-baker.
  • INSTALL_DIR: The directory BAKER_INSTALLATION_DIR where executables files will be stored. Default: /usr/local/bin.
  • DATA_DIR: The directory where the data needed by octez and Tezpay will be stored (requires large storage space).
  • NODE_MODE: The history mode of your node (full, rolling, or rolling:<number_of_extra_cycles>). See https://tezos.gitlab.io/user/history_modes.html for more details. Default: rolling.
  • KEY_BAKER: The friendly name you would like to use as an alias for your baker address when managing your baker. This name is not shared publicly; it is only used locally.
  • BAKER_ACCOUNT_HASH: The tzXXX address of your baker.
  • BAKER_LIQUIDITY_BAKING_SWITCH: The liquidity baking vote (off, on, or pass). See https://tezos.gitlab.io/active/liquidity_baking.html for more details. Default: pass.
  • BAKER_LIMIT_STAKING_OVER_BAKING: How many times your stake, ranging from 0 (no staking) to 5 (max allowed by the protocol), you allow others to stake with your baker. Defaut: 5.
  • BAKER_EDGE_BAKING_OVER_STAKING: Proportion from 0 (0%) to 1 (100%) of the reward that your baker receives from the amount staked by stakers. Default: 0.1 (10%).
  • Should you wish to pay your delegators, the following variables also need configuring. They can be ignored otherwise:
    • TEZPAY_ACCOUNT_HASH: The tzYYY address of your payout account.
    • TEZPAY_FEES: The baking fee you wish to charge your delegators, ranging from 0 (0%) to 1 (100%). Default: 0.1 (10%).
• Make BAKER_INSTALLATION_DIR/tezos-env.sh executable by the user intended to run it.
• Run install-tezos-baker.sh.
• Next, follow the step-by-step instructions in the initial-setup.sh file from this repository. Don't execute this file as a script! Instead, copy and run the instructions one at a time, as you'll be prompted to take several actions throughout the process. These actions are described in the comments appearing in this file.

Upgrade from the previous version

• Modify your BAKER_INSTALLATION_DIR/tezos-env.sh file to:
  • add the environment variable export NODE_MODE=full a line before the already existing environment variable NODE_SNAPSHOT_URL. full is the history mode used by former versions of tezos-baker. ATTENTION: Should you wish to switch from full to rolling to optimize performances and/or disk space, there is a specific procedure to follow (see Maintenance section below). Do NOT set NODE_MODE to rolling at that stage unless you have already applied this procedure before this upgrade!
  • set the NODE_SNAPSHOT_URL environment variable the following way:
    export NODE_SNAPSHOT_URL="https://lambsonacid-octez.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/mainnet/${NODE_MODE%%:*}/tezos.snapshot"
• Run the 'Upgrade octez' procedure from the Maintenance section below. There is no protocol upgrade with this version.

Maintenance

The maintenance-cheat-sheet.sh file includes the following sections:

• Restart/Reboot: Instructions for when you need to restart, possibly due to reasons such as Linux distribution maintenance.
• Upgrade octez: Steps for updating when a new version of octez is released. This section also covers Tezos protocol upgrades.
• Upgrade TezPay: Should you wish to pay your delegators: procedures for when a new version of TezPay or payouts-substitutor is available.
• Stake and payouts management: Guidelines on setting your baker's stake parameters and optionnaly replenishing your payout account.
• Voting process: Help on how to vote at the various stages of the Tezos amendment and voting process (https://tezos.gitlab.io/active/voting.html).
• Switch history mode from full to rolling: Help on how to optimize performances and disk space by switching the node history mode from full to rolling.

Don't execute this file as a script! Instead, copy and run the instructions of the section that interests you one at a time, as you'll be prompted to take several actions throughout the process. These actions are described in the comments appearing in this file.

Should you wish to support us

You can send a donation:

• to our baker's address: tz1aJHKKUWrwfsuoftdmwNBbBctjSWchMWZY
• or to its Tezos domain name: laboulange.tez

Or just click here:

 

This is not mandatory, but it is greatly appreciated!

Contact

Feel free to contact us with any questions or suggestions. We can be reached through the following channels:

• MailChain: laboulange@mailchain
• E-mail: la.boulange.tezos@gmail.com
• TwitterX: https://x.com/LaBoulangeTezos
• Telegram: https://t.me/laboulangetezos

We are also active in various Telegram and Discord groups related to Tezos.