Automated Node Setup

Experimental Feature

The automated node setup is an experimental feature that simplifies Reth and Lighthouse installation. It is functional and actively maintained, but still being refined.

Prerequisites

You must have the following steps completed before using automated node setup:

• Deployed a StakeWise Vault. See the Deployed Vault →.
• Installed the Operator Service. See the Installation →.
• Generated validator keys. See the Validator Keys →.
• Configured the Validators Manager. See the Validators Manager →.

Workflow

The Operator Service includes built-in commands to automatically install and manage Reth ↗ (execution) and Lighthouse ↗ (consensus) clients.

1. Run node-install --network=mainnet to download Reth and Lighthouse
2. Run node-start --vault=YOUR_VAULT to start syncing
3. Run node-status --vault=YOUR_VAULT to monitor sync progress

node-install

Installs Reth and Lighthouse binaries to the data directory.

./operator node-install --network=mainnet

Options:

Flag	Description
--network	Network for your vault: mainnet, hoodi, or gnosis (required)
--data-dir	Path where node data will be placed. Default: ~/.stakewise
--lighthouse-version	Lighthouse version to install. Default: v8.0.0
--reth-version	Reth version to install. Default: v1.8.2

node-start

Recommendation

It is recommended to start the nodes together with the Operator Service using the --run-nodes flag in the start command. For more details, see the Running the Operator Service →.

To start the node services and begin syncing:

./operator node-start \
  --vault=0x834F27bC8670491b75af512d943f01D5383F87Cf

Options:

Flag	Description
--vault	Your Vault contract address (required)
--data-dir	Path where node data will be placed. Default: ~/.stakewise
--print-execution-logs	Print execution node logs
--print-consensus-logs	Print consensus node logs
--print-validator-logs	Print validator node logs
--no-confirm	Skip confirmation messages

node-status

Displays sync status of execution and consensus clients, plus validator information.

./operator node-status \
  --vault=0x834F27bC8670491b75af512d943f01D5383F87Cf

Options:

Flag	Description
--vault	Your Vault contract address (required)
--data-dir	Path where node data is located. Default: ~/.stakewise
--output-format	Output format: text or json. Default: text
-v, --verbose	Enable debug mode
--enable-file-logging	Log output to file in nodes directory

Example Output

Consensus node status:
  Is syncing: True
  Head slot: 1914271
  Sync distance: 15562
  Estimated time to sync: 1h 26m 12s
Execution node status:
  Is syncing: True
  Block number: 1769633
  Sync distance: 27305
  Estimated time to sync: 9h 20m 38s
Validator activity:
  Active validators: 0
  Total validators: 10