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Setting up Cosmovisor

Configuring Cosmovisor is generally uncomplicated. Nonetheless, it requires the setup of specific environment variables and a designated folder structure. Cosmovisor facilitates the advance downloading of binaries for chain upgrades, enabling upgrades with minimal or no downtime. This feature is particularly beneficial if a chain upgrade is scheduled at an inconvenient time due to time zone differences. Instead of performing challenging operational tasks late at night, Cosmovisor aims to automate these processes, offering a more streamlined solution.

Install​

First install cosmovisor:

go install github.com/cosmos/cosmos-sdk/cosmovisor/cmd/cosmovisor@v1.0.0

Your installation can be confirmed with:

which cosmovisor

This will return something like:

/home/<your-user>/go/bin/cosmovisor

Add environment variables to your shell​

n the .profile file, usually located at ~/.profile, add:

export DAEMON_NAME=soarchaind
export DAEMON_HOME=$HOME/.soarchain

Then source your profile to have access to these variables:

source ~/.profile

Set up folder structure​

Cosmovisor expects a certain folder structure:

.
├── current -> genesis or upgrades/<name>
├── genesis
│   └── bin
│       └── $DAEMON_NAME
└── upgrades
    └── <name>
        └── bin
            └── $DAEMON_NAME

set up this folder structure: 

mkdir -p $DAEMON_HOME/cosmovisor/genesis/bin && mkdir -p $DAEMON_HOME/cosmovisor/upgrades

Set up genesis binary​

Cosmovisor needs to know which binary to use at genesis. We put this in $DAEMON_HOME/cosmovisor/genesis/bin.

First, find the location of the binary you want to use:

which soarchaind

Then use the path returned to copy it or use $HOME to the directory Cosmovisor expects. 

cp $(which soarchaind) $DAEMON_HOME/cosmovisor/genesis/bin

Set up service​

Commands sent to Cosmovisor are sent to the underlying binary. For example, cosmovisor version is the same as typing soarchaind version.

Nevertheless, just as we would manage soarchaind using a process manager, we would like to make sure Cosmovisor is automatically restarted if something happens, for example an error or reboot.

First, create the service file:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/soarchaind.service

Add these fileds: 

[Unit]
Description=Soarchain Daemon (cosmovisor)
After=network-online.target

[Service]
User=<your-ubuntu-user-name>
ExecStart=/home/<your-ubuntu-user-name>/go/bin/cosmovisor start --log_level info --minimum-gas-prices=0.0001utsoar
Restart=always
RestartSec=3
LimitNOFILE=4096
Environment="DAEMON_NAME=soarchaind"
Environment="DAEMON_HOME=/home/<your-ubuntu-user-namer>/.soarchain"
Environment="DAEMON_ALLOW_DOWNLOAD_BINARIES=false"
Environment="DAEMON_RESTART_AFTER_UPGRADE=true"
Environment="DAEMON_LOG_BUFFER_SIZE=512"

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

A description of what the environment variables do can be found here.

Start Cosmovisor​

Enable the service and start it:

sudo -S systemctl daemon-reload
sudo -S systemctl enable soarchaind

check config one last time before starting!

sudo systemctl start soarchaind

Check it is running using:

sudo systemctl status soarchaind

If you need to monitor the service after launch, you can view the logs using:

journalctl -fu soarchaind

If you fail in any step please contact with us through Discord or our other channels.

After setting up your Cosmovisor, please continue with the Become a Validator step.