.. meta:: :description: This guide describes how to set up a Dash masternode. It also describes various options for hosting and different wallets :keywords: dash, guide, masternodes, trezor, dip3, setup, bls .. _masternode-setup: ================ Masternode Setup ================ Setting up a masternode requires a basic understanding of Linux and blockchain technology, as well as an ability to follow instructions closely. It also requires regular maintenance and careful security, particularly if you are not storing your Dash on a hardware wallet. There are some decisions to be made along the way, and optional extra steps to take for increased security. Commercial :ref:`masternode hosting services ` are available if you prefer to delegate day-to-day operation of your masternode to a professional operator. When using these hosting services, you retain full control of the 1000 DASH collateral and pay an agreed percentage of your reward to the operator. It is also possible to delegate your voting keys to a representative, see the :ref:`governance documentation ` for more information. Before you begin ================ This guide assumes you are setting up a single mainnet masternode for the first time. If you are updating a masternode, see :ref:`here ` instead. You will need: - 1000 Dash - A wallet to store your Dash, preferably a hardware wallet, although Dash Core wallet is also supported - A Linux server, preferably a Virtual Private Server (VPS) For information about hosted masternodes, see the documentation listed below: - :ref:`Information for users of hosted masternodes ` - :ref:`Information for operators of hosted masternodes ` This documentation describes the commands as if they were entered in the Dash Core GUI by opening the console from **Window > Console**, but the same result can be achieved on a masternode by entering the same commands and adding the prefix ``~/.dashcore/dash-cli`` to each command. Server configuration -------------------- Proper server configuration is essential to successful masternode operation for both security and performance reasons. Refer to the :hoverxref:`Server configuration ` page for details on preparing your server to host a masternode. Send the collateral =================== A Dash address with a single unspent transaction output (UTXO) of exactly 1000 DASH is required to operate a masternode. Once it has been sent, various keys regarding the transaction must be extracted for later entry in a configuration file and registration transaction as proof to write the configuration to the blockchain so the masternode can be included in the deterministic list. A masternode can be registered from a hardware wallet, the official Dash Core wallet, or a Dash Electrum wallet, although a hardware wallet is highly recommended to enhance security and protect yourself against hacking. This guide will describe the steps for both hardware wallets and Dash Core. .. note:: Details of registering a masternode with Dash Electrum can be found on the :ref:`Electrum - Advanced Functions page `. Option 1: Sending from a hardware wallet ---------------------------------------- Set up your Trezor using the Trezor wallet at https://wallet.trezor.io/ and send a test transaction to verify that it is working properly. For help on this, see :ref:`this guide ` - you may also choose to (carefully!) `add a passphrase `_ to your Trezor to further protect your collateral. Create a new account in your Trezor wallet by clicking **Add account**. Then click the **Receive** tab and send exactly 1000 DASH to the address displayed. If you are setting up multiple masternodes, send 1000 DASH to consecutive addresses within the same new account. You should see the transaction as soon as the first confirmation arrives, usually within a few minutes. .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-trezor.png :width: 400px Trezor Wallet Receive tab showing successfully received collateral of 1000 DASH Once the transaction appears, click the QR code on the right to view the transaction on the blockchain. Keep this window open as we complete the following steps, since we will soon need to confirm that 15 confirmations exist, as shown in the following screenshot. .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-blocks.png :width: 400px Trezor blockchain explorer showing 15 confirmations for collateral transfer While we are waiting for 15 confirmations, download the latest version of the Dash Masternode Tool (DMT) from the GitHub releases page `here `__. Unzip and run the file. The following window appears. .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-dmt-start.png :width: 400px Dash Masternode Tool startup screen Click the third button from the left **Check Dash Network Connection** in the top left corner of the main window to verify that the connection is working. Then connect your Trezor device and click the next button **Test Hardware Wallet Connection** to verify the Trezor connection is working. .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-connection.png :width: 100px .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-hardware.png :width: 180px Dash Masternode Tool successful connection confirmations We will now use DMT to enter some basic information about the masternode and extract the transaction ID. Carry out the following sequence of steps as shown in this screenshot: .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-dmt-steps.png :width: 400px Dash Masternode Tool configuration steps #. Click the **New** button. #. Enter a name for your masternode. The host name you specified for your VPS above is a good choice. #. Enter the IP address of your masternode. This was given to you by the VPS provider when you set up the server. Then enter the TCP port number. This should be 9999. #. Click **Locate collateral** to view unused collateral funding transactions available on the connected hardware wallet. Select the address to which you sent 1000 Dash and click **Apply**. The **Collateral address**, **path**, **Collateral TX hash** and **index** fields should be filled automatically. .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-dmt-ready.png :width: 400px Dash Masternode Tool with masternode configuration Leave DMT open and continue with the next step: :ref:`installing Dash Core on your VPS `. Option 2: Sending from Dash Core wallet --------------------------------------- Open Dash Core wallet and wait for it to synchronize with the network. It should look like this when ready: .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-dashcore.png :width: 400px Fully synchronized Dash Core wallet Click **Window > Console** to open the console. Type the following command into the console to generate a new Dash address for the collateral:: getnewaddress yiFfzbwiN9oneftd7cEfr3kQLRwQ4kp7ue Take note of the collateral address, since we will need it later. The next step is to secure your wallet (if you have not already done so). First, encrypt the wallet by selecting **Settings > Encrypt wallet**. You should use a strong, new password that you have never used somewhere else. Take note of your password and store it somewhere safe or you will be permanently locked out of your wallet and lose access to your funds. Next, back up your wallet file by selecting **File > Backup Wallet**. Save the file to a secure location physically separate to your computer, since this will be the only way you can access our funds if anything happens to your computer. For more details on these steps, see :ref:`here `. Now send exactly 1000 DASH in a single transaction to the new address you generated in the previous step. This may be sent from another wallet, or from funds already held in your current wallet. Once the transaction is complete, view the transaction in a `blockchain explorer `_ by searching for the address. You will need 15 confirmations before you can register the masternode, but you can continue with the next step at this point already: generating your masternode operator key. .. figure:: img/setup-collateral-blocks.png :width: 400px Trezor blockchain explorer showing 15 confirmations for collateral transfer .. _masternode-setup-install-dashcore: Install Dash Core ================= Dash Core is the software behind both the Dash Core GUI wallet and Dash masternodes. If not displaying a GUI, it runs as a daemon on your VPS (dashd), controlled by a simple command interface (dash-cli). Open PuTTY or a console again and connect using the username and password you just created for your new, non-root user. The following options are available for installing a Dash masternode: - Manual installation (this guide) - `xkcd's installation guide `__ Manual installation ----------------------------- To manually download and install the components of your Dash masternode, visit the `GitHub releases page `_ and copy the link to the latest ``x86_64-linux-gnu`` version. Go back to your terminal window and enter the following command, pasting in the address to the latest version of Dash Core by right clicking or pressing **Ctrl + V**:: cd /tmp wget https://github.com/dashpay/dash/releases/download/v21.1.1/dashcore-21.1.1-x86_64-linux-gnu.tar.gz Verify the authenticity of your download by checking its detached signature against the public key published by the Dash Core development team. All releases of Dash since 0.16.0 are signed using GPG with the following key: - Pasta (pasta) with the key ``5252 7BED ABE8 7984``, `verifiable on Keybase `__ (`download `__) :: curl https://keybase.io/pasta/pgp_keys.asc | gpg --import wget https://github.com/dashpay/dash/releases/download/v21.1.1/dashcore-21.1.1-x86_64-linux-gnu.tar.gz.asc gpg --verify dashcore-21.1.1-x86_64-linux-gnu.tar.gz.asc Create a working directory for Dash, extract the compressed archive and copy the necessary files to the directory:: mkdir ~/.dashcore tar xfv dashcore-21.1.1-x86_64-linux-gnu.tar.gz cp -f dashcore-21.1.1/bin/dashd ~/.dashcore/ cp -f dashcore-21.1.1/bin/dash-cli ~/.dashcore/ Create a configuration file using the following command:: nano ~/.dashcore/dash.conf An editor window will appear. We now need to create a configuration file specifying several variables. Copy and paste the following text to get started, then replace the variables specific to your configuration as follows:: #---- rpcuser=XXXXXXXXXXXXX rpcpassword=XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX rpcallowip=127.0.0.1 #---- listen=1 server=1 daemon=1 #---- #masternodeblsprivkey= externalip=XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX #---- Replace the fields marked with ``XXXXXXX`` as follows: - ``rpcuser``: enter any string of numbers or letters, no special characters allowed - ``rpcpassword``: enter any string of numbers or letters, no special characters allowed - ``externalip``: this is the IP address of your VPS Leave the ``masternodeblsprivkey`` field commented out for now. The result should look something like this: .. figure:: img/setup-manual-conf.png :width: 400px Entering key data in dash.conf on the masternode Press **Ctrl + X** to close the editor and **Y** and **Enter** save the file. You can now start running Dash on the masternode to begin synchronization with the blockchain:: ~/.dashcore/dashd You will see a message reading **Dash Core server starting**. Add dashd to crontab to make sure it runs every minute to check on your masternode:: crontab -e Choose nano as your editor and enter the following line at the end of the file:: * * * * * pidof dashd || ~/.dashcore/dashd Press enter to make sure there is a blank line at the end of the file, then press **Ctrl + X** to close the editor and **Y** and **Enter** save the file. We now need to wait for 15 confirmations of the collateral transaction to complete, and wait for the blockchain to finish synchronizing on the masternode. You can use the following commands to monitor progress:: ~/.dashcore/dash-cli mnsync status When synchronisation is complete, you should see the following response:: { "AssetID": 999, "AssetName": "MASTERNODE_SYNC_FINISHED", "AssetStartTime": 1558596597, "Attempt": 0, "IsBlockchainSynced": true, "IsSynced": true, "IsFailed": false } Continue with the next step to construct the ProTx transaction required to enable your masternode. .. _register-masternode: Register your masternode ======================== The three keys required for the different masternode roles are described briefly under :ref:`mn-concepts` in this documentation. Option 1: Registering from a hardware wallet -------------------------------------------- Go back to DMT and ensure that all fields from the previous step are still filled out correctly. Click **Generate new** for the three private keys required for a masternode: - Owner private key - Operator private key - Voting private key .. figure:: img/setup-dmt-full.png :width: 220px Dash Masternode Tool ready to register a new masternode Then click **Register masternode**. Optionally specify a different **Payout address** and/or **Operator reward**, then click **Continue**. Select **Remote Dash RPC Node (automatic method)**. (See `here `__ for documentation on using your own local RPC node.) and confirm the following two messages: .. figure:: img/setup-dmt-send.png :width: 220px .. figure:: img/setup-dmt-sent.png :width: 220px Dash Masternode Tool confirmation dialogs to register a masternode The BLS private key must be entered in the ``dash.conf`` file on the masternode. This allows the masternode to watch the blockchain for relevant Pro*Tx transactions, and will cause it to start serving as a masternode when the signed ProRegTx is broadcast by the owner, as we just did above. Log in to your masternode using ``ssh`` or PuTTY and edit the configuration file as follows:: nano ~/.dashcore/dash.conf The editor appears with the existing masternode configuration. Add or uncomment this lines in the file, replacing the key with your BLS private key generated above:: masternodeblsprivkey=24c1fa3c22c6ea6b1cc68a37be18acb51042b19465fe0a26301c8717bf939805 Press enter to make sure there is a blank line at the end of the file, then press **Ctrl + X** to close the editor and **Y** and **Enter** save the file. Note that providing a ``masternodeblsprivkey`` enables masternode mode, which will automatically force the ``txindex=1``, ``peerbloomfilters=1``, and ``prune=0`` settings necessary to provide masternode service. We now need to restart the masternode for this change to take effect. Enter the following commands, waiting a few seconds in between to give Dash Core time to shut down:: ~/.dashcore/dash-cli stop sleep 15 ~/.dashcore/dashd At this point you can monitor your masternode by entering ``~/.dashcore/dash-cli masternode status`` or using the **Get status** function in DMT. The final result should appear as follows: .. figure:: img/setup-dash-cli-start.png :width: 400px dash-cli masternode status output showing successfully registered masternode At this point you can safely log out of your server by typing ``exit``. Congratulations! Your masternode is now running. .. _dashcore-protx: Option 2: Registering from Dash Core wallet ------------------------------------------- Identify the funding transaction ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ If you used an address in Dash Core wallet for your collateral transaction, you now need to find the txid of the transaction. Click **Window > Console** and enter the following command:: masternode outputs This should return a string of characters similar to the following:: { "16347a28f4e5edf39f4dceac60e2327931a25fdee1fb4b94b63eeacf0d5879e3-1", } The first long string is your ``collateralHash``, while the last number is the ``collateralIndex``. .. _bls-generation: Generate a BLS key pair ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ A public/private BLS key pair is required to operate a masternode. The private key is specified on the masternode itself, and allows it to be included in the deterministic masternode list once a provider registration transaction with the corresponding public key has been created. If you are using a hosting service, they may provide you with their public key, and you can skip this step. If you are hosting your own masternode or have agreed to provide your host with the BLS private key, generate a BLS public/private keypair in Dash Core by clicking **Tools > Console** and entering the following command:: bls generate { "secret": "395555d67d884364f9e37e7e1b29536519b74af2e5ff7b62122e62c2fffab35e", "public": "99f20ed1538e28259ff80044982372519a2e6e4cdedb01c96f8f22e755b2b3124fbeebdf6de3587189cf44b3c6e7670e", "scheme": "legacy" } **These keys are NOT stored by the wallet and must be kept secure, similar to the value provided in the past by the** ``masternode genkey`` **command.** Add the private key to your masternode configuration ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ The public key will be used in following steps. The private key must be entered in the ``dash.conf`` file on the masternode. This allows the masternode to watch the blockchain for relevant Pro*Tx transactions, and will cause it to start serving as a masternode when the signed ProRegTx is broadcast by the owner (final step below). Log in to your masternode using ``ssh`` or PuTTY and edit the configuration file as follows:: nano ~/.dashcore/dash.conf The editor appears with the existing masternode configuration. Add or uncomment this line in the file, replacing the key with your BLS private key generated above:: masternodeblsprivkey=395555d67d884364f9e37e7e1b29536519b74af2e5ff7b62122e62c2fffab35e Press enter to make sure there is a blank line at the end of the file, then press **Ctrl + X** to close the editor and **Y** and **Enter** save the file. Note that providing a ``masternodeblsprivkey`` enables masternode mode, which will automatically force the ``txindex=1``, ``peerbloomfilters=1``, and ``prune=0`` settings necessary to provide masternode service. We now need to restart the masternode for this change to take effect. Enter the following commands, waiting a few seconds in between to give Dash Core time to shut down:: ~/.dashcore/dash-cli stop sleep 15 ~/.dashcore/dashd We will now prepare the transaction used to register the masternode on the network. Prepare a ProRegTx transaction ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ A pair of BLS keys for the operator were already generated above, and the private key was entered on the masternode. The public key is used in this transaction as the ``operatorPubKey``. First, we need to get a new, unused address from the wallet to serve as the **owner key address** (``ownerKeyAddr``). This is not the same as the collateral address holding 1000 Dash. Generate a new address as follows:: getnewaddress yfgxFhqrdDG15ZWKJAN6dQvn6dZdgBPAip This address can also be used as the **voting key address** (``votingKeyAddr``). Alternatively, you can specify an address provided to you by your chosen voting delegate, or simply generate a new voting key address as follows:: getnewaddress yfRaZN8c3Erpqj9iKnmQ9QDBeUuRhWV3Mg Then either generate or choose an existing address to receive the **owner's masternode payouts** (``payoutAddress``). It is also possible to use an address external to the wallet:: getnewaddress yjZVt49WsQd6XSrPVAUGXtJccxviH9ZQpN You can also optionally generate and fund another address as the **transaction fee source** (``feeSourceAddress``). If you selected an external payout address, you must specify a fee source address. Either the payout address or fee source address must have enough balance to pay the transaction fee, or the ``register_prepare`` transaction will fail. The private keys to the owner and fee source addresses must exist in the wallet submitting the transaction to the network. If your wallet is protected by a password, it must now be unlocked to perform the following commands. Unlock your wallet for 5 minutes:: walletpassphrase yourSecretPassword 300 We will now prepare an unsigned ProRegTx special transaction using the ``protx register_prepare`` command. This command has the following syntax:: protx register_prepare collateralHash collateralIndex ipAndPort ownerKeyAddr operatorPubKey votingKeyAddr operatorReward payoutAddress (feeSourceAddress) .. warning:: After v19 hard fork activation, ``protx register_prepare_legacy`` must be used if a legacy scheme BLS key is being used to register a masternode. It's recommended to instead generate a new basic scheme BLS key where possible. This can be done by following the :ref:`Generate a BLS key pair ` instructions. Open a text editor such as notepad to prepare this command. Replace each argument to the command as follows: - ``collateralHash``: The txid of the 1000 Dash collateral funding transaction - ``collateralIndex``: The output index of the 1000 Dash funding transaction - ``ipAndPort``: Masternode IP address and port, in the format ``x.x.x.x:yyyy`` - ``ownerKeyAddr``: The new Dash address generated above for the owner/voting address - ``operatorPubKey``: The BLS public key generated above (or provided by your hosting service) - ``votingKeyAddr``: The new Dash address generated above, or the address of a delegate, used for proposal voting - ``operatorReward``: The percentage of the block reward allocated to the operator as payment - ``payoutAddress``: A new or existing Dash address to receive the owner's masternode rewards - ``feeSourceAddress``: An (optional) address used to fund ProTx fee. ``payoutAddress`` will be used if not specified. Note that the operator is responsible for :ref:`specifying their own reward ` address in a separate ``update_service`` transaction if you specify a non-zero ``operatorReward``. The owner of the masternode collateral does not specify the operator's payout address. Example (remove line breaks if copying):: protx register_prepare 16347a28f4e5edf39f4dceac60e2327931a25fdee1fb4b94b63eeacf0d5879e3 1 45.76.230.239:19999 yfgxFhqrdDG15ZWKJAN6dQvn6dZdgBPAip 99f20ed1538e28259ff80044982372519a2e6e4cdedb01c96f8f22e755b2b3124fbeebdf6de3587189cf44b3c6e7670e yfRaZN8c3Erpqj9iKnmQ9QDBeUuRhWV3Mg 0 yjZVt49WsQd6XSrPVAUGXtJccxviH9ZQpN yR83WsikBaBaNusTnHZf28kAcL8oVmp1TE Output:: { "tx": "030001000175c9d23c2710798ef0788e6a4d609460586a20e91a15f2097f56fc6e007c4f8e0000000000feffffff01a1949800000000001976a91434b09363474b14d02739a327fe76e6ea12deecad88ac00000000d1010000000000e379580dcfea3eb6944bfbe1de5fa2317932e260acce4d9ff3ede5f4287a34160100000000000000000000000000ffff2d4ce6ef4e1fd47babdb9092489c82426623299dde76b9c72d9799f20ed1538e28259ff80044982372519a2e6e4cdedb01c96f8f22e755b2b3124fbeebdf6de3587189cf44b3c6e7670ed1935246865dce1accce6c8691c8466bd67ebf1200001976a914fef33f56f709ba6b08d073932f925afedaa3700488acfdb281e134504145b5f8c7bd7b47fd241f3b7ea1f97ebf382249f601a0187f5300", "collateralAddress": "yjSPYvgUiAQ9AFj5tKFA8thFLoLBUxQERb", "signMessage": "yjZVt49WsQd6XSrPVAUGXtJccxviH9ZQpN|0|yfgxFhqrdDG15ZWKJAN6dQvn6dZdgBPAip|yfRaZN8c3Erpqj9iKnmQ9QDBeUuRhWV3Mg|ad5f82257bd00a5a1cb5da1a44a6eb8899cf096d3748d68b8ea6d6b10046a28e" } Next we will use the ``collateralAddress`` and ``signMessage`` fields to sign the transaction, and the output of the ``tx`` field to submit the transaction. Sign the ProRegTx transaction ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ We will now sign the content of the ``signMessage`` field using the private key for the collateral address as specified in ``collateralAddress``. Note that no internet connection is required for this step, meaning that the wallet can remain disconnected from the internet in cold storage to sign the message. In this example we will again use Dash Core, but it is equally possible to use the signing function of a hardware wallet. The command takes the following syntax:: signmessage collateralAddress signMessage Example:: signmessage yjSPYvgUiAQ9AFj5tKFA8thFLoLBUxQERb yjZVt49WsQd6XSrPVAUGXtJccxviH9ZQpN|0|yfgxFhqrdDG15ZWKJAN6dQvn6dZdgBPAip|yfRaZN8c3Erpqj9iKnmQ9QDBeUuRhWV3Mg|ad5f82257bd00a5a1cb5da1a44a6eb8899cf096d3748d68b8ea6d6b10046a28e Output:: II8JvEBMj6I3Ws8wqxh0bXVds6Ny+7h5HAQhqmd5r/0lWBCpsxMJHJT3KBcZ23oUZtsa6gjgISf+a8GzJg1BfEg= Submit the signed message ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ We will now submit the ProRegTx special transaction to the blockchain to register the masternode. This command must be sent from a Dash Core wallet holding a balance on either the ``feeSourceAddress`` or ``payoutAddress``, since a standard transaction fee is involved. The command takes the following syntax:: protx register_submit tx sig Where: - ``tx``: The serialized transaction previously returned in the ``tx`` output field from the ``protx register_prepare`` command - ``sig``: The message signed with the collateral key from the ``signmessage`` command Example:: protx register_submit 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 II8JvEBMj6I3Ws8wqxh0bXVds6Ny+7h5HAQhqmd5r/0lWBCpsxMJHJT3KBcZ23oUZtsa6gjgISf+a8GzJg1BfEg= Output:: aba8c22f8992d78fd4ff0c94cb19a5c30e62e7587ee43d5285296a4e6e5af062 Your masternode is now registered and will appear on the Deterministic Masternode List after the transaction is mined to a block. You can view this list on the **Masternodes -> DIP3 Masternodes** tab of the Dash Core wallet, or in the console using the command ``protx list valid``, where the txid of the final ``protx register_submit`` transaction identifies your masternode. At this point you can go back to your terminal window and monitor your masternode by entering ``~/.dashcore/dash-cli masternode status`` or using the **Get status** function in DMT. At this point you can safely log out of your server by typing ``exit``. Congratulations! Your masternode is now running. .. _dashelectrum-protx: Option 3: Registering from Dash Electrum wallet ----------------------------------------------- Dash Electrum supports registering and managing masternodes. Details can be found on the :ref:`Electrum - Advanced Functions page `. If combined with Electrum's :ref:`multisig features ` the masternode collateral can be stored in a multisig wallet for increased security flexibility. .. warning:: Always exercise caution when using multisig accounts and verify that each mnemonic is backed up appropriately. See `this page `_ for the Dash Electrum documentation demonstrating how to configure a masternode using a multisig collateral.