How To: sync the Cardano Node for Plutus Pioneer Program

Introduction

This guide assumes that nix is installed. Check the environment/build section: https://plutus-community.readthedocs.io/en/latest/Environment/ on how to install nix for your current OS if it is not already installed.

By default, nix-shell includes the cardano-node and the cardano-cli when run from the IOHK plutus-apps directory. Therefore, we only need the necessary config files to start syncing the cardano-node without actually installing the cardano-node.

Guide

First, let’s clone plutus-apps repo from IOHK if you do not already have it:

• Directory: totinj@penguin:~$

  git clone https://github.com/input-output-hk/plutus-apps.git
  

Next, let’s clone this cnode repo that already contains the sync scripts and config files:

• Directory: totinj@penguin:~$

  git clone https://github.com/Totes5706/cnode.git
  

  Head to the cnode directory to update the configuration files from IOHK:

• Directory: totinj@penguin:~/cnode$

  chmod +x start-mainnet-node.sh start-testnet-node.sh
  sudo ./update-config.sh
  

Head to the plutus-apps directory, and you can now run nix-shell. Run nix-shell:

• Directory: totinj@penguin:~/plutus-apps$

  nix-shell
  

If this is run for the first time, it will take some time to build (30min + for a non-workstation computer).

While in nix-shell, head to the node directory inside this repo that we just cloned:

• Directory: [nix-shell:~/cnode]$

These next two scripts are used to download either the testnet or the mainnet for the Cardano Blockchain. You must either be in nix-shell, or have the necessary dependencies to run cardano-node.

Here, you can now sync either the mainnet or testnet using the scripts:

Cardano Testnet Sync

• Directory: [nix-shell:~/cnode]$

  ./start-testnet-node.sh
  

Cardano Mainnet Sync

• Directory: [nix-shell:~/cnode]$

  ./start-mainnet-node.sh