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Linux

Setup a new host on Linux
This guide will walk you through setting up hostd on Linux. At the end of this guide, you should have the following:
  • Installed Sia hostd software
  • Functional hostd Node
  • Created a hostd wallet

Pre-requisites

  • Network Access: hostd interacts with the Sia network, so you need a stable internet connection and open network access to connect to the Sia blockchain.
  • Operating System Compatibility: Ensure your Linux version is compatible with the hostd software. Check releases supported Linux versions.
  • System Updates: Ensure that your Linux is up to date with the latest system updates, as these updates can contain important security fixes and improvements.
Your machine must meet the minimum requirements for hosting on Sia. Not meeting these requirements may result in not receiving contracts from renters or risk losing Siacoins as a penalty. Hosting on Sia is a commitment that requires some technical knowledge and a stable setup such as:
  • A Linux distro with systemd (Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, Arch, etc)
  • A quad-core CPU
  • 8GB of RAM
  • An SSD with at least 100GB of free space.
  • Additional storage space to rent out

Getting hostd

Remember to check which version to download to ensure it works correctly with your operating system. To do this, run uname -m in your Terminal Emulator.
  • x86_64 - Linux AMD64
  • aarch64 - Linux ARM64
  1. 1.
    Download the latest version of hostd for your operating system from the official website. For this guide, we'll be downloading the Linux version of hostd. Open the Terminal Emulator and run the following command:
If you are installing hostd on a Raspberry Pi or other ARM64 architecture, or you intend to use the Zen Testnet. Make sure to download the correct binary for your system.
AMD64
ARM64
Zen AMD64
Zen ARM64
wget https://sia.tech/downloads/latest/hostd_linux_amd64.zip
wget https://sia.tech/downloads/latest/hostd_linux_arm64.zip
wget https://sia.tech/downloads/latest/hostd_zen_linux_amd64.zip
wget https://sia.tech/downloads/latest/hostd_zen_linux_arm64.zip
  1. 2.
    Now that we have downloaded hostd, we can unzip and extract the hostd binary to our /usr/local/bin directory
AMD64
ARM64
Zen AMD64
Zen ARM64
unzip -j hostd_linux_amd64.zip hostd &&\
sudo mv -t /usr/local/bin hostd &&\
rm -rf hostd_linux_amd64.zip
unzip -j hostd_linux_amd64.zip hostd &&\
sudo mv -t /usr/local/bin hostd &&\
rm -rf hostd_linux_arm64.zip
unzip -j hostd_zen_linux_amd64.zip hostd &&\
sudo mv -t /usr/local/bin hostd &&\
rm -rf hostd_zen_linux_amd64.zip
unzip -j hostd_zen_linux_amd64.zip hostd &&\
sudo mv -t /usr/local/bin hostd &&\
rm -rf hostd_zen_linux_arm64.zip

Creating a wallet

hostd uses BIP-39 12-word recovery phrases. It does not support legacy 28/29-word siad seeds. If you already have a 12-word seed, skip this step. Run the following command to generate a new wallet recovery phrase:
hostd seed
After pressing enter, a new 12-word recovery phrase will be generated. Please write down this phrase and keep it in a safe place. You will need this phrase to recover your wallet. If you lose this phrase, you will lose access to your wallet and funds. You will also see the wallet's funding address. You can send Siacoin to this address to fund your host.
hostd 5a7489b
Network Mainnet
Recovery Phrase: poet never rifle awake lunar during ocean eight dial gospel crazy response
Address addr:333d10486632f11c4c5b907c2e45d31478522dec525649712697404b4253e92ea5a84227187d

Setting up a systemd service

Now that you have a recovery phrase, we will create a new system user and systemd service to securely run hostd on startup.
First, we will create a new system user with useradd and disable the creation of a home directory. This is a security precaution that will isolate hostd from any unauthorized access to our system. We will then use usermod to lock the account and prevent anyone from logging in under the account.
sudo useradd -M hostd &&\
sudo usermod -L hostd
Now we will create a new folder under /var/lib/ titled hostd and give it the appropriate permissions. This folder will be utilized specifically to store data related to the hostd software. Open the Terminal Emulator and run the following commands:
sudo mkdir /var/lib/hostd &&\
sudo chown hostd:hostd /var/lib/hostd &&\
sudo chmod o-rwx /var/lib/hostd
Next, create a file name hostd.yml file under /var/lib/hostd/
sudo nano /var/lib/hostd/hostd.yml
Now, modify the file to add your wallet seed and API password. The recovery phrase is the 12-word phrase you generated in the previous step. Type it carefully, with one space between each word, or copy it from the previous step. The password is used to unlock the hostd UI; it should be something secure and easy to remember.
Mainnet
Testnet
recoveryPhrase: your seed phrase goes here
http:
password: your_password
recoveryPhrase: your seed phrase goes here
http:
password: your_password
Once you have added your recovery phrase and password, save the file with ctrl+s and exit with ctrl+x.
Next, we'll create a new system service to run hostd on startup:
sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/hostd.service
Once the editor loads, copy and paste the following into it.
[Unit]
Description=hostd
After=network.target
​
[Service]
Type=simple
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/hostd
WorkingDirectory=/var/lib/hostd
Restart=always
RestartSec=15
User=hostd
​
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
Alias=hostd.service
You can now save the file with ctrl+s and exit with ctrl+x.
If you are using external USB drives to store renter data, you will need to ensure that your drives are mounted during system boot. Not doing so could result in failed contracts and the loss of collateral.

Running hostd

Now it is time to start the service
sudo systemctl start hostd
Your hostd service should now be running. You can check the status of the service by running the following command:
sudo systemctl status hostd
If the service was set up correctly, it should say "active (running)."

Accessing the UI

For users with a desktop environment, you can open a browser to http://localhost:9980 to access the hostd UI.
If you do not have a desktop environment:
  1. 1.
    Find your server's LAN IP using ip addr, ifconfig, etc.
  2. 2.
    Switch to another computer in your LAN and open the browser
  3. 3.
    Type your LAN IP followed by :9980 in the address bar (e.g. http://192.168.1.50:9980)
hostd login

Updating

It is very important to keep your host up to date. New versions of hostd are released regularly and contain bug fixes and performance improvements.
To update:
  1. 1.
    Download the latest version of hostd from the official website.
  2. 2.
    Stop the hostd service with Crtl+C.
  3. 3.
    Unzip and replace hostd with the new version.
  4. 4.
    Restart hostd.
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Last modified 1d ago