Node Setup Guide

Solana Node Guide

Complete guide to setting up and running a Solana validator node with professional configuration and monitoring.

Start Setup Monitoring Guide

System Requirements

Hardware and software requirements for running a Solana validator node

Minimum Requirements

12 cores / 24 threads, 2.8GHz base clock

128GB RAM

PCIe Gen3 x4 NVME SSD, 500GB

Accounts: 500GB, Ledger: 1TB

1 GBPS up/down internet connection

Installation Steps

Step-by-step guide to install and configure your Solana validator

1

Install Solana CLI

First, install the Solana CLI tools on your system. Choose your operating system:

# Linux/macOS

sh -c "$(curl -sSfL https://release.solana.com/stable/install)"

# Update PATH

export PATH="$HOME/.local/share/solana/install/active_release/bin:$PATH"

# Verify installation

solana --version

2

Create Validator Identity

Generate your validator identity keypair and vote account:

# Create validator identity

solana-keygen new --outfile ~/validator-keypair.json

# Create vote account

solana-keygen new --outfile ~/vote-account-keypair.json

# Create authorized withdrawer

solana-keygen new --outfile ~/authorized-withdrawer-keypair.json

Security: Store these keypairs securely and create backups. Never share your private keys!

3

Configure Solana CLI

Set up your CLI configuration for mainnet-beta:

# Set cluster to mainnet-beta

solana config set --url https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com

# Set default keypair

solana config set --keypair ~/validator-keypair.json

# Check configuration

solana config get

# Check balance

solana balance

4

Create Vote Account

Create and configure your vote account on the network:

# Create vote account

solana create-vote-account ~/vote-account-keypair.json ~/validator-keypair.json ~/authorized-withdrawer-keypair.json

# Verify vote account

solana vote-account $(solana-keygen pubkey ~/vote-account-keypair.json)

5

Start Validator

Launch your Solana validator with optimized settings:

# Create validator startup script

#!/bin/bash

exec solana-validator \

  --identity ~/validator-keypair.json \

  --vote-account ~/vote-account-keypair.json \

  --rpc-port 8899 \

  --rpc-bind-address 0.0.0.0 \

  --gossip-port 8001 \

  --dynamic-port-range 8002-8020 \

  --entrypoint entrypoint.mainnet-beta.solana.com:8001 \

  --entrypoint entrypoint2.mainnet-beta.solana.com:8001 \

  --entrypoint entrypoint3.mainnet-beta.solana.com:8001 \

  --expected-genesis-hash 5eykt4UsFv8P8NJdTREpY1vzqKqZKvdpKuc147dw2N9d \

  --wal-recovery-mode skip_any_corrupted_record \

  --limit-ledger-size \

  --log ~/solana-validator.log \

  --accounts ~/validator-accounts \

  --ledger ~/validator-ledger

# Make script executable and run

chmod +x ~/start-validator.sh

~/start-validator.sh

Monitoring & Maintenance

Essential commands and tools for monitoring your Solana validator

Essential Commands

Check Validator Status

solana validators --sort-by stake

Monitor Vote Credits

solana vote-account $(solana-keygen pubkey ~/vote-account-keypair.json)

Check Catchup Status

solana catchup $(solana-keygen pubkey ~/validator-keypair.json)

View Logs

tail -f ~/solana-validator.log

Key Metrics

Vote Success Rate

Target: >95%

Skip Rate

Target: <5%

Root Distance

Target: <100

CPU Usage

Target: <80%

Validator Health Checklist

✓ Validator is visible in validator list
✓ Vote credits are increasing regularly
✓ Skip rate is below 5%
✓ Root distance is reasonable (<100 slots)
✓ System resources are not maxed out
✓ Network connectivity is stable

Need Help?

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