Skip to main content

Linux VPS (Docker)

We will be using Docker software to make running a Minima node simple.

If you prefer not to use Docker, you can create a script to run Minima as a service.

Once your node is set up, you will be able to use Minima's decentralized applications.

What is Docker?

Docker is an open-source software platform that simplifies the process of running, testing and managing applications. It uses the operating system of the computer on which it’s installed to provide an independent computing environment for an application to run on.

Setup your Firewall​

By default Minima is installed on ports 9001-9005. Only ports 9001,9003,9004 need to be open to use Minima and the MiniDapp system.

The RPC Port (default 9005) must never be opened to incoming connections

custom ports

If you install Minima on custom ports, ensure the correct ports are open/closed.

For more information, see System Requirements.

For help on setting up your firewall, see Recommended Firewall settings

Start a new Minima node​

Remove nodes installed using the old script​

If you have been running a node using the install script provided, please remove these nodes following the instructions below.

If you are a new user, continue to Set up your firewall.

  1. Logon to your server as a non root user with sudo (admin) rights.
Check running nodes

To check which nodes you currently have running, use the command systemctl list-units --type=service.

VPS_checknodes

  1. To remove nodes which were installed using our install script, run the uninstall script below (all one line).

sudo wget -O minima_remove.sh https://raw.githubusercontent.com/minima-global/Minima/master/scripts/minima_remove.sh && sudo chmod +x minima_remove.sh && sudo ./minima_remove.sh -p 9001 -x

Multiple nodes?

If you started multiple nodes, run the uninstall script for each node changing the port number each time.

  1. Remove all existing folders: 
sudo rm -r /home/minima/
  1. Delete the existing minima user: 
sudo userdel minima
note

If there is an “unable to delete minima user, minima user using process xxxxxxx” error, please reboot the server, log back in as root then do userdel minima immediately on login.

If you are having problems and Minima is the only application on your server, please start with a fresh instance of your server and continue to Start your node.

Start your node​

  1. Log on as a non root user with sudo (admin) rights and add a new minima user, set a password and leave the remaining fields as default : 
sudo adduser minima

Please make a note of the password you set for the minima user, you may have to login as this user later.

VPS_adduser

  1. Confirm the new user with y
  2. Give sudo (admin) permissions to the minima user: 
sudo usermod -aG sudo minima

VPS_adduser2

  1. Switch to minima user: 
su - minima

VPS_loginnewuser

  1. Download the docker install script: 
sudo curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com/ -o get-docker.sh

VPS_getdocker

  1. Give the script permissions and run the installer for docker - this will take a few minutes to finish: 
sudo chmod +x ./get-docker.sh && ./get-docker.sh

VPS_installdocker

  1. Add the minima user to the Docker group: 
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
  1. Exit back to original user: 
exit
  1. Switch to minima user to refresh the groups: 
su - minima

VPS_switchuser

  1. Start your node:
SET YOUR PASSWORD

Make sure to change the password below from 123 to a long password using a-z and 0-9 characters only.
This will be the password to access your Minidapp Hub.

docker run -d -e minima_mdspassword=123 -e minima_server=true -v ~/minimadocker9001:/home/minima/data -p 9001-9004:9001-9004 --restart unless-stopped --name minima9001 minimaglobal/minima:latest

What do all the parameters mean?
  • -d: daemon mode, Minima will run in the background
  • -e minima_mdspassword=123 : sets the password for your MiniDapp system to 123. YOU MUST USE A LONG SECURE PASSWORD USING LOWERCASE LETTERS AND NUMBERS ONLY
  • -e minima_server=true : sets your node type as a server node that receives incoming connections
  • -v ~/minimadocker9001:/home/minima/data : creates a local folder called minimadocker9001 in your home directory and maps it to the /home/minima/data directory in Docker. The minimadocker9001 folder is where the Minima database and is also where your backups will be stored.
  • -p 9001-9004:9001-9004 : the port number mapping from your server to the Docker container
  • --restart unless-stopped : ensures your container automatically restarts unless you stop it
  • --name minima9001 : sets the name of your Minima container to minima9001
  • minimaglobal/minima:latest : specifies where to pull the Minima code from

VPS_startminima

  1. Ensure Docker starts up automatically when the server starts 
sudo systemctl enable docker.service
sudo systemctl enable containerd.service

Congratulations! Your Node is up and running. Continue to install the Watchtower to automatically update Minima.

Automate updates with Watchtower​

  1. Start a Watchtower container to automatically update Minima when a new version is available.
docker run -d --restart unless-stopped --name watchtower -e WATCHTOWER_CLEANUP=true -e WATCHTOWER_TIMEOUT=60s -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock containrrr/watchtower

Every 24 hours, the Watchtower will check whether there is a new version of Minima and will update if so.

VPS_startwatchtower

  1. Check Minima and the Watchtower containers are running
docker ps

Continue to access your MiniDapp hub and setup your Incentive Program account to start earning Rewards.

Access your MiniDapp hub​

The first time accessing your MiniDapp hub, you may need to pass through the security warning - see below - as the MiniDapp system currently uses self-signed certificates.

  1. Go to https://YourServerIP:9003/ in your web browser

Click on Advanced, then Proceed. Or in Google Chrome, you may have to click anywhere on the page and type thisisunsafe to proceed. Details for other browsers can be found here.

trouble accessing MDS?

If you are having trouble accessing https://YourServerIP:9003/, please first go to https://YourServerIP:9004/ and accept the security warning. Then return to https://YourServerIP:9003/.

You will see your MiniDapp System (MDS) login page.

mds_login

  1. Enter your password to login, if you don't remember, you can check here.

  2. You will see your MiniDapp hub!

Set up your Incentive Program account​

If you have registered for the Incentive Program you must connect your Incentive ID to your node to start receiving daily Rewards.

THE INCENTIVE PROGRAM IS NOW CLOSED

The Incentive Rewards Program is now closed to new users.

Existing users will continue to earn, however all Rewards due for 2023 will be received in March (prior to Token distribution) instead of daily, provided you continue to run your node.

  1. Open the Incentive Program minidapp

mds_IP

  1. Follow the instructions to login to the Incentive Program website and copy your Incentive ID

  2. Paste your Incentive ID into the field provided and click Update

mds_IP

  1. Check the Rewards page to check your balance!

mds_IP

FAQ​

Useful Docker commands​

The following commands can be run from your server command line, logged in as the minima user.

View the logs: docker logs minima9001

Stop Minima: docker stop minima9001

Remove your Minima container: docker rm minima9001

Start the Minima container: docker start minima9001

Restart the Minima container: docker restart minima9001

List all containers (Running and stopped): docker ps -a

List containers (Running only): docker ps

Stop containers listed: docker stop minima9001 minima8001 minima7001

Remove listed containers: docker rm minima9001 minima8001 minima7001

Help: docker --help

How to check the Status of your node​

To check the status of your node, you can either use the Minima Terminal via Docker (shown above) or log on to your MiniDapp hub and open the Minima Terminal minidapp.

With the Minima Terminal open, run the status command to see the latest status of your node including version, last block and chain details.

VPS_dockerterminal

checking your node is in sync

Having a recent block time is not a guarantee that you are on the right chain.
Consider cross checking your latest block with another node or checking the samechain response of your Maxima Contacts by running the maxcontacts command.

warning

If the time shown is significantly behind, you should restart your node to resync to the chain.
If you have been offline for a long time, you may need to restore your node from a backup.

How to check your MiniDapp System password​

You can use the Docker CLI/Terminal to interact with your node, for example to check your status, balance, password, incentive program setup or to create a backup.

The mds command will show details about the MiniDapp System (MDS) including your password and the MiniDapps installed on your node.

  1. Log on to your server as the minima user (if not already logged in)
  2. Start the Minima Terminal by running the command
docker exec -it minima9001 minima

VPS_dockerterminal

  1. Type mds to see your password

VPS_dockerterminal

Useful commands:
status - see the status of your node including version and chain details
incentivecash - check your Incentive Program balance
incentivecash uid: - setup your Incentive Program account by connecting your Incentive ID
help - show all commands

How to change your MiniDapp System password​

To change the password to login to your MiniDapp System (MDS), you must stop and remove your minima9001 container and restart it with a different password.

  1. Stop the minima9001 container
docker stop minima9001
  1. Remove the minima9001 container
docker rm minima9001
  1. Repeat step 10 from Start your node, with a different password. Your password should be long using a-z, 0-9 only.
important

Deleting the container will not delete the minimadocker9001 data folder so your coins will be safe during this process.

When starting the new container, you must use the same minimadocker9001 folder to ensure your coins and data are restored.

How to take a backup of your node​

Before backing up your node, consider encrypting your private keys. For more information, see Vault.

  1. Login to your Minima Hub at https://yourserverIP:9003/
  2. Open the Terminal MiniDapp
  3. Enter the backup command with a password containing lowercase letters and numbers only
backup password:
warning

This password cannot be retrieved at a later date, so remember it or write it down somewhere secure.

Auto backups​

You can create automatic backups every 24 hours however these backups cannot be password protected so we recommend encrypting your private keys before enabling auto backups.

backup auto:true

Your backups will go to the minimadocker9001 folder in your home directory.

backup parameters

password: set a password for your backup lowercase letters and numbers only, this will be required when restoring it

file: (optional) backup name

auto: (optional) true or false. Will set the backup to repeat every 24 hours.

How to restore your node from a backup​

Your backup must be in the minimadocker9001 folder in your home directory (as specified at start up).

  1. Login to your Minima Hub
  2. Open the Terminal MiniDapp
  3. Enter the restore command, completing the parameters
restore file: password:
restore parameters

file: the name of the backup to restore, e.g. mybackup.bak

password: (optional) the password of the backup. Can be left blank if restoring an auto backup or non password protected backup.

If successful, you will need to log out/log in from your Minima hub for the restore to take effect.

warning

If you encrypted your private keys before taking the backup that you are now restoring, your private keys will still be encrypted and you will be required to decrypt them or enter your Vault password when sending funds

How to start a second node in Docker​

To run a second node in Docker, you can create another container using different port numbers, file path and name.

  1. To create a node on port 8001:

docker run -d -e minima_mdspassword=123 -e minima_server=true -v ~/minimadocker8001:/home/minima/data -p 8001-8004:9001-9004 --restart unless-stopped --name minima8001 minimaglobal/minima:latest

  1. To access your MiniDapps on the second node, go to https://127.0.0.1:8003/ (8003 instead of 9003) and repeat the steps in Access your MiniDapp hub.

How to start a test node as a developer​

To create a private test node from Genesis on ports 10001-10004, use the following start up command:

docker run -d -e minima_mdspassword=123 -e minima_server=true -e minima_genesis=true -e minima_test=true -e minima_nop2p=true -v ~/minimadocker10001_dev:/home/minima/data -p 10001-10004:9001-9004 --restart unless-stopped --name minima10001_dev minimaglobal/minima:latest

test parameters

The additional test parameters used are:

-p 10001-10004:9001-9004 : Local ports 10001-10004 will be forwarded to 9001-9004 on Docker.
You can change 10001-10004 to another set of unused ports however the Docker ports must remain as 9001-9004.

-e minima_genesis=true : Start a node from the Genesis block

-e minima_test=true : Use test parameters e.g. blocks are automined and block times are faster

-e minima_nop2p=true : Do not start the p2p system

How to enable RPC (advanced users)​

warning

You should only enable RPC if you have correct firewalls in place blocking access to the Minima RPC port, 9005.
If you have multiple Minima nodes you will need to block all RPC ports (base port +4).

To enable RPC, replace -p 9001-9004:9001-9004 with -p 9001-9005:9001-9005 when starting your node.

On a second node, this would be: -p 8001-8005:9001-9005.

Example:

docker run -d -e minima_mdspassword=123 -e minima_server=true -v ~/minimadocker9001:/home/minima/data -p 9001-9005:9001-9005 --restart unless-stopped --name minima9001 minimaglobal/minima:latest

RPC commands​

By default Minima is installed on ports 9001-9005. The default RPC port is 9005.

You can send commands to your Minima node using curl to the RPC port.

To install curl: sudo apt install curl then y

For improved formatting: sudo apt install jq then y

Example: To check the status of your Minima node when logged on to the server:

curl 127.0.0.1:9005/status | jq

You will see the current block and other information about your node.

curl 127.0.0.1:9005/incentivecash | jq - shows your incentive cash balance
curl 127.0.0.1:9005/help | jq - shows the full list of commands

Using a firewall to secure your RPC port​

If you have enabled RPC, you must take steps to protect your server from external access.

warning

If you have other applications on your server other than Minima - please review your existing firewall settings before proceeding.

To install a firewall and secure your node:

  1. ssh into your server as non root user with sudo (admin) rights

  2. Install Uncomplicated Firewall (ufw)
    sudo apt-get install ufw

  3. Then immediately disable it, to first configure it
    sudo ufw disable

  4. Allow incoming/outgoing connections as default
    sudo ufw default allow

  5. Deny incoming connections to your RPC ports - 9005 (and other RPC if you have multiple nodes)
    sudo ufw deny in 9005
    sudo ufw deny in 8005 (optional)

  6. Ensure ssh is allowed
    sudo ufw allow ssh

  7. Enable the firewall
    sudo ufw enable

  8. Confirm
    y

Your firewall is now configured.

You will still be able to send rpc commands directly from your server using curl
e.g. curl 127.0.01:9005/status | jq

However, if you wish to check your node from an external computer, you must use SSH with each command.
e.g. ssh root@YourServerIP curl 127.0.0.1:9005/status

If you have jq installed on your computer (for improved formatting)
ssh root@YourServerIP curl 127.0.0.1:9005/status | jq

Each request will require your server password.

Lock it down.

How to remove a node​

important

Removing a node without taking a backup will delete all your coins! Only remove a node if you have taken a backup or are running a test node.

To remove a Docker node:

  1. Login as the minima user to your server
  2. Stop then delete the minima9001 container
docker stop minima9001
docker rm minima9001
  1. Delete the minimadocker9001 folder from your home directory by running
sudo rm -rf minimadocker9001

Next Steps​

Once your node running, learn about MiniDapps and start testing!

Stay up to date​

Check out our MiniDapp store to stay up to date with the latest MiniDapps.

Need help?​

See Using MiniDapps for more information or find us in Discord or Telegram.

Thank you for participating and contributing to our Testnet.