Run a baker node on Docker#

This guide describes how to configure and manage baking on a Docker/Linux node.

Prerequisites#

Install and run the node
Generate baker keys for the account you want to bake

Configure a node as a baker#

To run a node as baker, you first have to generate baker keys and then register the keys on an account. Depending on whether you are using Desktop Wallet or Concordium Wallet for Mobile / Concordium Legacy Wallet, the process to generate baker keys differs. For information about the process for each type of wallet, see Bakers. You then need to move the generated baker keys file to a location accessible by the node, and finally specify this location in the service file for the Concordium Node.

To register the keys in the network you need to be running a node and send a baker add transaction to the network:

$concordium-client baker add <keys-file>.json --sender bakerAccount --stake <amount-to-stake> --out <concordium-data-dir>/baker-credentials.json

where you replace

<amount-to-stake> with the CCD amount for the baker’s initial stake
<concordium-data-dir> with the directory specified as the volume mount for the node database. In the sample configuration file this is /var/lib/concordium-testnet for the testnet node, and /var/lib/concordium-mainnet for the mainnet node.

Warning

Do not stake all of your funds or you will not have enough funds to cover transaction fees.

Provide a --no-restake flag to avoid automatically adding the rewards to the staked amount on the baker. Read more about this behavior in the section Restake earnings.

To start the node with these baker keys and bake blocks do the following.

Stop the currently running node. To do this, press Ctrl + C on the terminal where the node is running or run
```
$docker stop testnet-node
```
or
```
$docker stop mainnet-node
```
depending on the environment.
Update the configuration file for the node by adding
```
- CONCORDIUM_NODE_BAKER_CREDENTIALS_FILE=/mnt/data/baker-credentials.json
```
into the environment section of the node service section of the file.

When you’ve placed the file in the appropriate directory, start the node again in the same way as the first time, e.g., docker-compose -f testnet-node.yaml up. The node will automatically start baking when the baker is included in the bakers for the current epoch.

In the Desktop Wallet, Concordium Wallet for Mobile, and Concordium Legacy Wallet, a bread icon is added to the account associated with the baker node. The bread icon appears as soon as the transaction has been submitted. That is, before the two epochs have elapsed.

Run a baker node on Ubuntu

Become a baker using the Concordium Client