• Acki Nacki Instructions
• Block Keeper System Requirements
• (Completed) Joining the Acki Nacki Network from the Genesis Block
  • Stage 1. Preparation Checklist
    • For License Owner
    • For Node Owner
  • Stage 2. Zerostate Formation
  • Stage 3. Launch After the GOSH Team Signal
• (Current Phase) Joining the Acki Nacki Network After Launch
  • Join As a License Owner
  • Join As a BK Node Owner
• Block Keeper Documentation
  • Block Keeper Wallet Deployment
    • Prerequisites
    • Configure tvm-cli
    • Deploy
    • Updating the license whitelist in the BK Node Wallet
  • Delegating License
  • Block Keeper Deployment with Ansible
    • Prerequisites
    • Key Variables
    • Prepare Your Inventory
    • Run the Ansible Playbook
    • Run Multiple BK Nodes on a Single Server
  • Block Keeper Node Management
    • Graceful Shutdown of a BK Node
    • Graceful shutdown using Ansible playbook
    • Upgrading Block Keeper to a new image or configuration
    • Stopping node with data cleanup
    • Starting back a stopped node without configuration changes
  • Running Staking with Ansible
    • Prerequisites
    • Run the Script
    • Graceful Shutdown for Staking
    • Debug
  • Check Node Status
  • Changing the IP Address of a BK Node
    • 1. Calculate the Time You Have for Migration
      • 1.1  Get the Current Epoch Contract Address
      • 1.2  Determine the Epoch Length
    • 2. Stop Staking (Graceful Shutdown)
    • 3. Stop Node (Graceful Shutdown)
    • 4. Deploy BK Software on the New Node
    • 5. Start Staking on the New IP Address
    • 6. Check Node Status
  • Troubleshooting
    • Recovery from Corrupted BK State
• Block Manager Documentation
  • System Requirements
  • Deployment with Ansible
    • Prerequisites
    • Generate Keys and Deploy Block Manager Wallet
      • Manually (applies if you don’t have a license number)
      • Using the Script (if you already have a license number)
    • Create an Ansible Inventory
    • Test the Ansible Playbook
    • Run the Ansible Playbook
    • Verify the Deployment
  • Updating the Whitelist and Delegating the License to the BM Wallet
• Proxy Documentation
  • System Requirements
  • Deployment with Ansible
    • Prerequisites
    • How Deployment Works
    • Key Variables
    • Prepare Your Inventory
    • Run the Ansible Playbook
    • Upgrading proxy configuration or image

During this phase, information is being collected to form the Zerostate and nodes are being prepared for the network launch. If you want to join the network right from the start, you need to take part in this phase.

If you delegate license to your own nodes, you act simultaneously as a License Owner and Node Owner.

• ✅ You must delegate the licenses that you want to be included in the Zerostate. See the instruction

  ℹ️ Note: Even if you, as the License Owner, plan to delegate licenses to your own nodes, you still need to generate a Node Provider Key Pair (using this instruction) for security reasons and complete the steps required for Node Owners (described below).

• ✅ At this stage, you are also acting as a Node Provider, so make sure to generate Node Provider Key Pair (using this instruction) and send the public key to the License Owner for delegation.

• ✅ Generate Node Owner and BLS keys for each of your nodes. Instructions are here.

• ✅ Collect all the required signatures to properly configure the Igniter DNSP client using the instruction

  • ✔️ obtain the Delegation Signature
  • ✔️ obtain the License Proof Signature
  • ✔️ generate the Confirmation Signatures

  🚨 Important: Do this for every delegated license on each node.

• ✅ Create a config.yaml configuration file for running the Igniter.

• ✅ There is a proxies parameter in the config file. If you have more than 1 Node - to reduce network traffic - you will need to deploy at least 2 Proxy services for your nodes or use the existing ones. Do not start proxies now, but publish their IP addresses and certificates to config.yaml.

• ✅ Start the Igniter for each node.

Full Igniter Instruction is here

🚨 Important:

• The Igniter must be run for each node with the same server IP addresses and Proxy IP addresses where the BK will later be deployed.
• The Igniter must use the same keys and licenses that will be used for deploying the BK.

After starting the Igniter, you can verify your node data (licenses, BLS keys, Proxy IPs, BK public key, etc.) at: http://<your-node-IP>:10001 (for example: http://94.156.178.1:10001)

Example of how node information is displayed in DNSP

Data collected by the Igniters will be used to form the zerostate.

At network launch, the Zerostate will include:

• all BK wallets with their corresponding whitelists,
• all license contracts, and mappings to the contracts of the Node Owners’ wallets to which they were delegated.

The Gosh team has announced the exact network launch time (day, hour, minute). So, either set up an automatic launch of the deployment scripts and staking on each server where the Igniter was running, or launch them manually at the specified time

• BK deployment instructions
• Proxy deployment instructions

🚨 Important: The BK and Proxy IP addresses must match those used when starting the Igniter.

You can change a node’s ip-adress after the network launch. see instruction

A guide for Proxy IP migration will be added soon.

In this phase, BK nodes that did not participate in the previous network launch phase will be able to join.

ℹ️ Note: If you delegate license to your own node, you act simultaneously as a License Owner and a Node Owner.

To join the network, follow these steps:

Step 1. After purchasing a license, register in the dashboard using this guide to get license details (number and contract address).

Step 2. Provide your license number to the chosen Node Owner so they can add it to their BK wallet whitelist.

Step 3. After confirmation from the Node Owner, delegate your license to the chosen BK using the BK Node Owner’s public key:

• via the dashboard see instruction, or
• manually via tvm-cli see instruction.

Now wait for your BK to add your stake to the staking pool.

🚨 Important: If you delegate to your own BK node, keep in mind that you have only half an epoch to submit the stake.

ℹ️ Note: To check your rewards:

• Call getDetails in the BK wallet (see the balance field in the license mapping)
  You can find more details here

• You can also view your rewards using the dashboard.

🚨 Important: Condition for receiving the maximum reward: continuous operation and not locking the license on the wallet.

Step 1. To deploy a BK wallet with a whitelist (license numbers received from License Owners), follow this guide.

ℹ️ Note: The whitelist can be updated at any time.

Step 2. Share the BK wallet’s public key with the License Owner so they can delegate their licenses.

Step 3. If you run multiple nodes and your network card is under 2 Gbps, set up a Proxy service using the instruction for stable operation, or use existing deployed proxies.

Step 4. Start the node and staking: After at least one license is delegated, the Node Owner deploys BK software and starts staking on the server using the instruction.

🚨 Important: After delegating the license to the BK wallet, you have only half an epoch to submit the stake.

Step 5. Check the node status.

Now let’s go through all these steps in detail.

• The tvm-cli command-line tool must be installed.

• A deployed license contract with obtained license numbers. Refer to the Working with Licenses section for details.

For this example, we are using the Shellnet network.

To set the appropriate network, use the following command:

tvm-cli config -g --url shellnet.ackinacki.org/graphql

To deploy Block Keeper Wallet, use the shell script scripts/create_block_keeper_wallet.sh.

To run the script, you need to provide the following arguments:

• -nk – Path to the Block Keeper Node Owners keys file.

  • If the file exists, the script will use the existing keys;
  • If not, new keys will be generated and saved in this file.

• -l – A list of License numbers to add to the Block Keeper Wallet whitelist. (Use , as a delimiter without spaces).

  • These license numbers must be obtained from the License Owners.

For example:

cd scripts
./create_block_keeper_wallet.sh -nk ../bk_wallet/bk_wallet.keys.json -l 6,7

After the script completes successfully, make sure to save:

• Your Node ID
• The path to the BK Node Owner keys file

These will be required later when running the Ansible playbook.

The Node Owner can update the license whitelist at any time. However, the changes will only take effect at the beginning of the next Epoch.

To do this, call the setLicenseWhiteList(mapping(uint256 => bool)) method in your Block Keeper Node Wallet contract, passing the license numbers received from the License Owners.

Where:

• uint256 (key) – the license number;
• bool (value) – set to true to add the license on the whitelist, or false to remove it.

Example command:

tvm-cli call <BK_NODE_WALLET_ADDR> setLicenseWhiteList \
  '{"whiteListLicense": {"1": true, "2": true, "5": true}}' \
  --abi contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/AckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWallet.abi.json \
  --sign BK_NODE_OWNER_KEYS

Before starting staking, a node must have at least one delegated license. However, no more than 20 (twenty) licenses can be delegated to a single node.

Learn more about working with licenses.

If the BK Node Owner is also a License Owner, they must use the addBKWallet(uint256 pubkey) method in the License contract to delegate their licenses to their node. (This must be done for each license contract).

Where:

• pubkey – the public key of the BK node wallet.
• License.abi.json – the ABI of the License contract.
• License.keys.json – the keys obtained by the License Owner during registration in the dashboard.

For example:

tvm-cli -j callx --addr 0:7f2f945faaae4cce286299afe74dac9460893dd5cba1ac273b9e91f55f1141ec --abi contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/License.abi.json --keys license_onwer/license.keys.json --method addBKWallet '{"pubkey": "0xfa4edc8b63c4e66241a57c11e0a522769ca4a4f106692512fc92f2d658169bcc"}'

🚨 Important: After delegating the license to the BK wallet, you have only half an epoch to submit the stake.

• SSH access to servers.
• Docker with the compose plugin must be installed.

AUTH_TOKEN: This token is used to authorize access to the BK API. You can specify any arbitrary string.

Node ID: The unique identifier of the Block Keeper within the network. It corresponds to the BK wallet address without the 0: prefix. This identifier is required when creating a new Block Keeper.

HOST_PUBLIC_IP: The public IP address of the host. Make sure that the ports do not conflict with other services.

HOST_PRIVATE_IP: Specify the private IP address of the host, (e.g., 127.0.0.1). Ensure that the ports do not overlap.

ℹ️ Note: Providing Access Information to the Block Manager To enable proper interaction with the Block Manager (BM), you must provide the BM Owner with the following information:

• Authorization Token (AUTH_TOKEN) – the access token required for interacting with the BK API.
• Node Public IP Address (HOST_PUBLIC_IP) – the public IP address of your node.

PROXIES: List the IP addresses of the Proxies that will be used to broadcast blocks across the network. If the Block Keeper will operate without a Proxy, this variable is not required.

ℹ️ Note: If you want to deploy a Proxy, refer to the Proxy deployment guide or use an existing Proxy service. To use an existing Proxy, please contact the corresponding Proxy provider representative for details.

Here is a basic inventory for Shellnet node deployment:

all:
  vars:
    ansible_port: 22
    ansible_user: ubuntu
    ROOT_DIR: /home/user/deployment # path to store deployment files
    MNT_DATA: /home/user/data       # path to store data
    BIND_PORT: 8500                 # this port must be open
    BIND_API_PORT: 8600             # this port must be open
    BIND_MESSAGE_ROUTER_PORT: 8700
    BIND_GOSSIP_PORT: 10000         # this port must be open
    BLOCK_MANAGER_PORT: 12000
    NODE_IMAGE: teamgosh/ackinacki-node:<latest-release-tag>      # i.e. teamgosh/ackinacki-node:v0.3.3
    GQL_IMAGE: teamgosh/ackinacki-gql-server:<latest-release-tag> # i.e. teamgosh/ackinacki-gql-server:v0.3.3
    BK_DIR: "{{ ROOT_DIR }}/block-keeper"
    BK_DATA_DIR: "{{ MNT_DATA }}/block-keeper"
    BK_LOGS_DIR: "{{ MNT_DATA }}/logs-block-keeper"
    LOG_ROTATE_AMOUNT: 20   # maximum number of log files to keep
    LOG_ROTATE_SIZE: 5G     # minimum size of the log file to rotate
    LOG_ROTATE_SPEC: "*/2 *"  # period of rotation in cron "minute hour" format
    STAKING_IMAGE: teamgosh/ackinacki-staking:<latest-release-tag>
    STAKING_TIME: 600
    TVM_ENDPOINT: shellnet.ackinacki.org
    NETWORK_NAME: shellnet
    THREAD_COUNT_SOFT_LIMIT: 4
    AUTH_TOKEN: my-secret-token    # the access token required for interacting with the BK API
    AEROSPIKE_PORT: 4000           # Aerospike DB listening port
    AEROSPIKE_FABRIC_PORT: 4001    # port for intra-cluster communication (migration, replication, etc.)
    AEROSPIKE_HEARTBEAT_PORT: 4002 # port used to maintain database cluster health (heartbeat)
    AEROSPIKE_IMAGE: "aerospike/aerospike-server:latest"
    NODE_GROUP_ID: ""
    OTEL_COLLECTOR: no
    OTEL_SERVICE_NAME: ""
    GOSSIP_SEEDS:
      - shellnet0.ackinacki.org:10000
      - shellnet1.ackinacki.org:10000
      - shellnet2.ackinacki.org:10000
      - shellnet3.ackinacki.org:10000
      - shellnet4.ackinacki.org:10000
    NODE_OWNER_KEY: PATH_TO_NODE_OWNER_KEY
    NODE_CONFIGS:
      - "zerostate"
    # Remove this variable from the inventory before upgrading nodes to avoid unnecessary steps.
    # However, it is required when starting new nodes without existing data,
    # especially if they are running behind your own proxy servers.
    BOOTSTRAP_BK_SET_URL: http://shellnet0.ackinacki.org:8600/v2/bk_set_update

block_keepers:
  hosts:

    YOUR-NODE-ADDRESS:
      NODE_ID: NODE_ID
      HOST_PUBLIC_IP: YOUR-NODE-PUBLIC-ADDRESS
      HOST_PRIVATE_IP: YOUR-NODE-PRIVATE-ADDRESS
      PROXIES: # delete this section if the BK operates without a Proxy
        - PROXY_IP:8085

BOOTSTRAP_BK_SET_URL should be set to the provided URL to correctly retrieve the initial BK set, ensuring that the node connects properly to the network and proxy server. When upgrading, this variable should be removed to avoid unnecessary logic execution.

LOG_ROTATE_SPEC defines the log rotation schedule in cron format (minute hour).

For example, the default value "0 *" means that log files will be rotated every hour at the 0th minute.

If rotated log files are too large, you may want to shorten the rotation period.

For example, the value "*/5 *" means that log files will be rotated every 5 minutes.

NODE_GROUP_ID, OTEL_COLLECTOR, and OTEL_SERVICE_NAME are optional and related to node metrics integration.

They can be used to send metrics to a specified collector server. NODE_GROUP_ID identifies the node group and should be the same across all nodes in your deployment.

Make sure to add your configuration data to the inventory before running the playbook.

For testing, you can use an Ansible dry run:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-deployment.yaml --check --diff

If everything looks good, run Ansible:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-deployment.yaml

Upon completion of the script, BLS keys will be generated and saved in the file block_keeper{{ NODE_ID }}_bls.keys.json in the {{ BK_DIR }}/bk-configs/ folder on the remote server, along with the node.

BLS keys - the keys used by Block Keeper (BK) to sign blocks. The keys have a lifespan of one Epoch. New BLS keys are generated during restaking. Each BK maintains a list of BLS public keys from other BKs (for the current Epoch), which are used to verify attestations on blocks.

🚨 Important: Back up your BLS keys every time they are regenerated.

During the deployment of a BK node, the staking script will also be automatically started.

Check the Docker containers.

docker ps
#OR
docker compose ps

Verify that the containers using the specified images are in the UP status:

teamgosh/ackinacki-node
teamgosh/ackinacki-staking
aerospike/aerospike-server
stakater/logrotate

Check node logs

tail -f $MNT_DATA/logs-block-keeper/node.log

Important: Make sure your server has enough resources to run multiple BK nodes.

To run multiple BK nodes on a single server, assign each BK node to a different ports and create a separate Docker Compose configuration for each one. A single inventory file can be used.

Example inventory file for running two BK nodes on a single server (Shellnet):

all:
  vars:
    ansible_port: 22
    ansible_user: ubuntu
    ansible_host: SERVER_IP_TO_CONNECT
    NODE_IMAGE: teamgosh/ackinacki-node:<latest-release-tag>      # i.e. teamgosh/ackinacki-node:v0.3.3
    GQL_IMAGE: teamgosh/ackinacki-gql-server:<latest-release-tag> # i.e. teamgosh/ackinacki-gql-server:v0.3.3
    BK_DIR: "{{ ROOT_DIR }}/block-keeper"
    BK_DATA_DIR: "{{ MNT_DATA }}/block-keeper"
    BK_LOGS_DIR: "{{ MNT_DATA }}/logs-block-keeper"
    LOG_ROTATE_AMOUNT: 20
    LOG_ROTATE_SIZE: 5G
    LOG_ROTATE_SPEC: "*/2 *"
    STAKING_IMAGE: teamgosh/ackinacki-staking:<latest-release-tag>
    STAKING_TIME: 600
    TVM_ENDPOINT: shellnet.ackinacki.org
    NETWORK_NAME: shellnet
    THREAD_COUNT_SOFT_LIMIT: 4
    AUTH_TOKEN: my-secret-token    # the access token required for interacting with the BK API
    AEROSPIKE_PORT: 4000           # Aerospike DB listening port
    AEROSPIKE_FABRIC_PORT: 4001    # port for intra-cluster communication (migration, replication, etc.)
    AEROSPIKE_HEARTBEAT_PORT: 4002 # port used to maintain database cluster health (heartbeat)
    AEROSPIKE_IMAGE: "aerospike/aerospike-server:latest"
    NODE_GROUP_ID: ""
    OTEL_COLLECTOR: no
    OTEL_SERVICE_NAME: ""

    GOSSIP_SEEDS:
      - shellnet0.ackinacki.org:10000
      - shellnet1.ackinacki.org:10000
      - shellnet2.ackinacki.org:10000
      - shellnet3.ackinacki.org:10000
      - shellnet4.ackinacki.org:10000
    NODE_CONFIGS:
      - "zerostate"
      - "blockchain.conf.json"

block_keepers:
  vars:
    HOST_PUBLIC_IP: YOUR-NODE-PUBLIC-ADDRESS
    HOST_PRIVATE_IP: YOUR-NODE-PRIVATE-ADDRESS
    PROXIES: # delete this section if the BK operates without a Proxy
      - PROXY_IP:8085
  hosts:
    YOUR-NODE-NAME:
      NODE_ID: NODE_ID
      ROOT_DIR: /home/user/deployment # path to store deployment files
      MNT_DATA: /home/user/data       # path to store data
      BIND_PORT: 8500
      BIND_API_PORT: 8600
      BIND_MESSAGE_ROUTER_PORT: 8700
      BIND_GOSSIP_PORT: 10000
      BLOCK_MANAGER_PORT: 12000
      AEROSPIKE_PORT: 4000
      AEROSPIKE_FABRIC_PORT: 4001
      AEROSPIKE_HEARTBEAT_PORT: 4002
      NODE_OWNER_KEY: PATH_TO_NODE_OWNER_KEY

    YOUR-NODE-NAME-2:
      NODE_ID: SECOND_NODE_ID
      ROOT_DIR: /home/user/deployment-2 # path to store deployment files
      MNT_DATA: /home/user/data-2       # path to store data
      BIND_PORT: 8501
      BIND_API_PORT: 8601
      BIND_MESSAGE_ROUTER_PORT: 8701
      BIND_GOSSIP_PORT: 10001
      BLOCK_MANAGER_PORT: 12001
      AEROSPIKE_PORT: 4010
      AEROSPIKE_FABRIC_PORT: 4011
      AEROSPIKE_HEARTBEAT_PORT: 4012
      NODE_OWNER_KEY: PATH_TO_NODE_OWNER_KEY_2

To safely stop a Block Keeper (BK) node without risking data corruption, you can perform a graceful shutdown using the Ansible playbook. This approach can also be used when you need to gracefully shut down multiple nodes at once.

Use the following command to do this:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-stopping.yml

Keep an eye on the output of the command to make sure that everything was successful and nothing timed out.

• Check the logs to ensure shutdown has completed. You should see a message similar to:

2025-08-21T11:21:08.761169Z TRACE ThreadId(01) monit: Shutdown finished

and no new logs should appear afterward.

To upgrade the node or config vars to the new version, update the inventory correspondingly and use the following command:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-upgrading.yml

However, it is strongly recommended to check the output first:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-upgrading.yml --check --diff

Make sure that nothing in the docker compose or configuration files changed that was not intended to be changed. For example, if you only upgrade the image, make sure that configuration variables have not changed.

If you need to clean up a node database because of data corruption or if some upgrade explicitly requires it, you can use the following command to stop the node and clean up the data:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-clean-data.yml

Afterward, you can use the node upgrading script or node startup script as necessary. If you have all required keys on hand, then you can use main BK deployment script (using --check --diff first is recommended).

If you stopped a node for some reason (with or without data clean), and want to just restart it without any configuration changes (or if you do not have the necessary keys or other files on hand), you can use the following command:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-starting.yml

Staking is deployed as a Docker container using Docker Compose. Docker Compose, in turn, is deployed via Ansible using the node-deployment.yaml playbook.

The staking script performs the following tasks:

• Sends stakes
• Rotates Epochs
• Collects rewards

Staking runs as a background daemon inside a container, and its output is redirected to the BK_LOGS_DIR. The staking container is part of the Docker Compose setup and runs alongside the Block Keeper node.

ℹ️ Note: Stakes and rewards are denominated in NACKL tokens. Node receives rewards per each License delegated to it. Maximum number of licenses delegated per node is 20.

As a Block Keeper with an active license, you can participate in staking under special conditions: if your BK wallet balance is below the minimum stake, you can still place a stake as long as you continue staking without interruptions and do not withdraw the received rewards.

If your stake exceeds the maximum stake, the excess amount will be automatically returned to your wallet.

To check the current minimum and maximum stake in the network, run the following commands:

tvm-cli -j run 0:7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777 getMinStakeNow {} --abi contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/BlockKeeperContractRoot.abi.json

tvm-cli -j run 0:7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777 getMaxStakeNow {} --abi contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/BlockKeeperContractRoot.abi.json

You will need the ABI file BlockKeeperContractRoot.abi.json to run these commands.

• BK Node Owner keys file
• BLS keys file

The BLS keys file can be found in the {{ BK_DIR }}/bk-configs/ directory, where BK_DIR is a variable defined in the Ansible inventory. The BLS keys file format - block_keeper{{ NODE_ID }}_bls.keys.json

The staking script requires the following parameters:

• STAKING_IMAGE – the Docker image used to run the staking script
• STAKING_TIME (in seconds) – defines the interval between staking script executions. Use 120 seconds for Shellnet.
• TVM_ENDPOINT – the TVM endpoint for connecting to enable staking

Specify these parameters in the inventory file.

ℹ️ Note: Ensure that the BLS keys file has both read and write permissions.

All neccessary keys are passed to staking container iside Docker compose file.

docker compose up -d staking

The staking process supports a graceful shutdown.

During shutdown:

• The continue staking option will be disabled;
• Any ongoing continue staking requests will be automatically canceled;
• The staked tokens from these canceled requests will be returned to your wallet.

1. Disable upcoming stakes

Disabling upcoming stakes ensures that no new Epoch will start while you shut down.

• Change to the Block Keeper directory:

cd {{ ROOT_DIR }}/block-keeper

• Send SIGHUP to the staking process:

docker compose exec staking /bin/bash -c 'pkill --signal 1 -f staking.sh'

You should see log entries similar to:

[2025-01-01T00:00:00+00:00] SIGHUP signal has been recieved. Disabling continue staking
[2025-01-01T00:00:00+00:00] Active Stakes - "0xe5651dad30f31448443a894b81260d49caa13879ab9aee2dbe648fea3c85565c"
[2025-01-01T00:00:00+00:00] Stakes count - 1
[2025-01-01T00:00:00+00:00] Epoch in progress - "0xe5651dad30f31448443a894b81260d49caa13879ab9aee2dbe648fea3c85565c"

After that script will not send continue staking and you can shutdown staking service. During shutdown the script touches the active Epoch (if any) and returns any excess tokens.

ℹ️ Note: Do not worry if the log reports that an Epoch “is being continued”—this means it had already started before you sent the SIGHUP signal. There is no need to send SIGHUP again. Simply wait for the active epoch to complete, as described in the next step.

Example:

[2025-01-01T00:00:00+00:00] Epoch with address "0:4744f0af70056f31183c24c980fa624ef33ed031fbab51c2d20bb20000615c98" is being continued: true

2. Pick the right moment to stop

To avoid losing rewards and your reputation score when stopping staking, you must wait for the current epoch to end before stopping the staking service. Therefore, before shutting down the container, make sure the current Epoch is ready to be finished.

• Find seqNoFinish for the Epoch that is still active:

tvm-cli -j runx --abi contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/AckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWallet.abi.json --addr <BK_NODE_WALLET_ADDR> -m getDetails| jq -r '.activeStakes[] | select(.status == "1") | .seqNoFinish'

You will need the ABI file AckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWallet.abi.json to run this command.

ℹ️ Note: The address of the BK node wallet can be retrieved from the logs, or by calling the getAckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWalletAddress(uint256 pubkey) method in the BlockKeeperContractRoot system contract, where pubkey - the public key of your BK node wallet.

Example:

tvm-cli -j runx --abi ../contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/BlockKeeperContractRoot.abi.json --addr 0:7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777 -m getAckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWalletAddress '{"pubkey": "0x1093c528ac2976c6b7536ef25e1c126db9dc225f77cd596d2234613eb9cad9b9"}'

• Get the current network seq_no:

tvm-cli -j query-raw blocks seq_no --limit 1 --order '[{"path":"seq_no","direction":"DESC"}]' | jq '.[0].seq_no'

🚨 Important: When the current seq_no is greater than seqNoFinish, the active Epoch is already complete and you can stop the container safely.

3. Additional method to check readiness for Shutdown

You can also verify whether it's safe to stop staking by calling the getDetails() method on the Block Keeper wallet contract and inspecting the activeStakes field.

• If any stakes have status 0 or 1, do not stop the staking process. These statuses indicate that the stake is either in the Pre-Epoch phase (0) or the active Epoch (1).

• You can proceed with the shutdown only when all stakes have status 2 (i.e., the Cooler phase has started) or when the activeStakes list is empty.

To check the current state:

tvm-cli -j runx --abi contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/AckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWallet.abi.json --addr <BK_NODE_WALLET_ADDR> -m getDetails

Example output when there are no active stakes:

{
  "pubkey": "0x15538499c83886367c07b0d30a8446bd6487da6c8a1da9bf5658ec01864a6fb3",
  "root": "0:7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777",
  "balance": "0x000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000003fcd6cf278b",
  "activeStakes": {},
  "stakesCnt": "0",
  "licenses": {
    "0x0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000": {
      "reputationTime": "129",
      "status": "0",
      "isPrivileged": true,
      "stakeController": null,
      "last_touch": "1751275067",
      "balance": "0",
      "lockStake": "0",
      "lockContinue": "0",
      "lockCooler": "0",
      "isLockToStake": false
}

4. Stop the staking container

To gracefully stop the staking container, run:

docker compose down staking --timeout 60

Where:

• timeout sets the graceful shutdown timeout in seconds.

Example shutdown log excerpt:

[2025-01-01T10:00:00+00:00] Signal has been recieved. Trying to shutdown gracefully
[2025-01-01T10:00:00+00:00] Current wallet balance - 843303030953
{
  "message_hash": "9748f89fd4e482ec9984e5af70176ee57c943746e8984baa6d299b992cbf92a4",
  "block_hash": "c292bc0ba0900224987b1dc7fb0ef058357a4c5d7fc317e99471398b92793baf",
  "tx_hash": "7cf5e9d9b085f57149211a6fa60591a8b25c7be7f9b2d5be8a89fc5e655d4edb",
  "return_value": null,
  "aborted": false,
  "exit_code": 0,
  "thread_id": "00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000",
  "producers": [
    "147.135.77.79:8600"
  ],
  "current_time": "1750428189973"
}
[2025-01-01T10:00:00+00:00] Balance after canceling continue staking - 854318121984
[2025-01-01T10:00:00+00:00] Exiting...

To debug the staking script, enable command tracing by adding the -x flag:

set -xeEuo pipefail

This will print each command as it executes, helping to identify issues during script execution.

To get the node's status by blocks, use the node_sync_status.sh script:

node_sync_status.sh path/to/log

To move a Block Keeper (BK) node to a new IP address without losing your reputation score, follow these rules:

• Wait until the current Epoch ends and do not apply for the next one.
• Start staking on the new node within half an Epoch after the current Epoch finishes.

Step‑by‑Step Guide:

• Find the address of the currently Epoch:

tvm-cli -j runx --abi contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/AckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWallet.abi.json --addr <BK_NODE_WALLET_ADDR> -m getEpochAddress| jq -r -e '.epochAddress'

ℹ️ Note: The address of the BK node wallet can be retrieved from the logs, or by calling the getAckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWalletAddress(uint256 pubkey) method in the BlockKeeperContractRoot system contract, where:

• pubkey - the public key of your BK node wallet.

Example:

tvm-cli -j runx --abi ../contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/BlockKeeperContractRoot.abi.json --addr 0:7777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777777 -m getAckiNackiBlockKeeperNodeWalletAddress '{"pubkey": "0x1093c528a...............d9b9"}'

Query getDetails on the Epoch contract to obtain its approximate duration in seconds:

tvm-cli -j run <epochAddress> \
--abi contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/BlockKeeperEpochContract.abi.json \
getDetails {} \
| jq -r '((.seqNoFinish - .seqNoStart) * 3 / 10 | tostring) + " seconds"'

🚨 Important: You must launch staking on the new node in less than half of this time.

To avoid losing rewards and reputation, wait for the current Epoch to end before stopping staking. Use the procedure described in the Graceful Shutdown for Staking section.

Use the procedure described in the Graceful Shutdown of a BK node section.

ℹ️ Note: You must reuse your existing key files (BK Node Owner keys, BLS keys) and the same BK Wallet.

Update the node’s IP address in your Ansible inventory. Follow the instructions in BK Deployment with Ansible.

Run the playbook:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-deployment.yaml

Follow the staking launch guide

Your BK node should now be operating on the new IP address. To get the node's status by blocks, use the node_sync_status.sh script:

node_sync_status.sh path/to/log

Node may end up with a corrupted state after restart without graceful shutdown. It may fail with a panic like this:

thread 'main' panicked at node/src/repository/repository_impl.rs:460:22:
Failed to get last finalized state: get_block_from_repo_or_archive: failed to load block: 87d520d75b051a37b7821c5e8236f65afb0371edec2f5afada2647445c870ea5
note: run with `RUST_BACKTRACE=1` environment variable to display a backtrace

Follow these steps to restore the node (it will resync):

Steps

1. Stop the BK node and clean up the data

   ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-clean-data.yml

2. Restart services

   ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/node-starting.yml

3. Verify service status Ensure that node, staking, and aerospike services are running without restarts or crashes:

   docker compose ps

   Ensure the following containers are running (status: UP):

   teamgosh/ackinacki-node
   teamgosh/ackinacki-gql-server
   teamgosh/ackinacki-staking
   aerospike/aerospike-server:latest
   

4. Check the node logs Verify that the node logs are active and contain no errors:

   tail -f $MNT_DATA/logs-block-keeper/node.log

   Additionally, you can check the container logs:

   docker compose logs -f node{{ NODE_ID }}

5. Check staking logs Review the staking logs. They must not contain errors and should display information about stakes, Epochs, and related activities:

   tail -f $MNT_DATA/logs-block-keeper/staking.log

   Additionally, you can check the container logs:

   docker compose logs -f staking

6. Wait for synchronization It may take around 20+ minutes for synchronization. Once complete, the seq_no should begin to increase, indicating successful recovery.

   🚨 Important: If the node does not synchronize, it usually means there was an incorrect setup. Possible causes include:

   • Misconfigured config file
   • Incorrect or corrupted key files

If you notice an error like this in the logs:

[2025-09-25T03:58:04+00:00] Epoch with address "0:7f73cb8939cd302418b79b86e64837675c283af95c37aec9bff673011ce38fe1" is being continued: false [2025-09-25T03:59:05+00:00] Active Stakes - "0x5c5c7dc12c5cb21e6969a3d6c44173c682fd1e7dac8dcc9b1fb70ea64cf1678e" [2025-09-25T03:59:05+00:00] Stakes count - 1 [2025-09-25T03:59:05+00:00] Epoch in progress - "0x5c5c7dc12c5cb21e6969a3d6c44173c682fd1e7dac8dcc9b1fb70ea64cf1678e" [2025-09-25T03:59:06+00:00] There is active stake with epoch address "0:7f73cb8939cd302418b79b86e64837675c283af95c37aec9bff673011ce38fe1" [2025-09-25T03:59:06+00:00] Current epoch is not being continued. Sending continue stake... [2025-09-25T03:59:06+00:00] Trying signer index: 2577 [2025-09-25T03:59:07+00:00] Found proper signer index for continue: 2577 [2025-09-25T03:59:07+00:00] Sending continue stake - 10917648873105 { "Error": { "code": 621, "message": "Failed to execute the message. Error occurred during the compute phase.", "data": { "core_version": "2.22.3", "node_error": { "extensions": { "code": "TVM_ERROR", "message": "Failed to execute the message. Error occurred during the compute phase.", "details": { "producers": [ "94.156.233.53:8601" ], "message_hash": "2174189543433f1e1a2c77e078fc3cf53da8d99956fde1751eda1f941c65844f", "exit_code": 300, "current_time": "1758772748099", "thread_id": "00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000" } } }, "ext_message_token": null } } } [2025-09-25T03:59:08+00:00] Error with sending continue stake request. Go to the next step [2025-09-25T03:59:08+00:00] Epoch with address "0:7f73cb8939cd302418b79b86e64837675c283af95c37aec9bff673011ce38fe1" is being continued: false [2025-09-25T04:00:08+00:00] Active Stakes - "0x5c5c7dc12c5cb21e6969a3d6c44173c682fd1e7dac8dcc9b1fb70ea64cf1678e" [2025-09-25T04:00:08+00:00] Stakes count - 1 [2025-09-25T04:00:09+00:00] Epoch in progress - "0x5c5c7dc12c5cb21e6969a3d6c44173c682fd1e7dac8dcc9b1fb70ea64cf1678e" [2025-09-25T04:00:09+00:00] There is active stake with epoch address "0:7f73cb8939cd302418b79b86e64837675c283af95c37aec9bff673011ce38fe1" [2025-09-25T04:00:09+00:00] Current epoch is not being continued. Sending continue stake...

This error occurs because messages are being sent to the wallet or license contract too frequently.
When messages are sent too often, the system doesn’t have enough time to process previous transactions, leading to a compute-phase execution error TVM_ERROR, exit_code = 300.

✅ What to Do

1. Do nothing if this error appears occasionally — it will stabilize on its own.
2. If the error occurs frequently:

• Ensure your node or script is not sending “continue stake” too often.
• Verify that the interval between messages is at least 200 blocks.

3. Once the interval is adjusted, the error will disappear automatically.

🚨 Important: After purchasing a BM License, it must be delegated.

You can delegate it to a Provider via the dashboard by following this instruction.

Alternatively, you can delegate it to your own BM wallet if you plan to deploy the BM service yourself.
In that case, you must first complete the BM License Pre-Deployment Verification using this guide. Once the verification is complete, you will receive the address of license contract and number, which are required for the delegation process.

Steps for deploying the BM service:

1. Identify the Block Keeper that your Block Manager service will work with, and request the following information from its owner:

• Authorization Token (BK_API_TOKEN) – access token required for interacting with the BK API.
• BK Public IP Address (NODE_IP)
• The BK must also open a port for connections to the block streaming service

2. Deploy the Block Manager Wallet
3. Prepare an Ansible inventory file for the Block Manager deployment, specifying all required variables (see example below).
4. Run the Ansible playbook against your inventory to deploy the Block Manager node.

• A dedicated server for the Block Manager with SSH access.
• Docker with the Compose plugin installed.

You can manually generate the keys and deploy the wallet:

tvm-cli genphrase --dump block_manager.keys.json
tvm-cli genphrase --dump block_manager_signing.keys.json

You will need to specify these keys in the inventory file.
To deploy the Block Manager wallet, extract the keys from the files created above and run:

ℹ️ Note:
if you don’t have a license number, leave the whiteListLicense field empty ({}).

tvm-cli --abi ../contracts/0.79.3_compiled/bksystem/BlockManagerContractRoot.abi.json --addr 0:6666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666 -m deployAckiNackiBlockManagerNodeWallet '{"pubkey": "0xYOUR_PUB_KEY", "signerPubkey": "0xYOUR_SIGNING_KEY", "whiteListLicense": {"YOUR_LICENSE_NUMBER": true}}'

Before deploying a Block Manager, you need to create two key pairs:

• One key pair for operating the Block Manager wallet..
• Another for signing external message authentication tokens.

If you already have your license number, create a wallet by running:

create_block_manager_wallet.sh block_manager_wallet.keys.json block_manager_wallet_signing.keys.json 1 tvm-endpoint-address.org

Below is a sample inventory for Block Manager deployment. Make sure to include the block_manager host group.

all:
  vars:
    ansible_port: 22
    ansible_user: ubuntu
    ROOT_DIR: /home/user/deployment # path to store deployment files
    MNT_DATA: /home/user/data       # path to store data
    BM_IMAGE: "teamgosh/ackinacki-block-manager:<latest-release-tag>" # i.e. teamgosh/ackinacki-block-manager:v0.3.3
    GQL_IMAGE: "teamgosh/ackinacki-gql-server:<latest-release-tag>"   # i.e. teamgosh/ackinacki-gql-server:v0.3.3
    NGINX_IMAGE: "teamgosh/ackinacki-nginx"
    BM_DIR: "{{ ROOT_DIR }}/block-manager"
    BM_DATA_DIR: "{{ MNT_DATA }}/block-manager"
    BM_LOGS_DIR: "{{ MNT_DATA }}/logs-block-manager"
    BM_WALLET_KEYS: block_manager.keys.json
    BM_SIGNER_KEYS: block_manager_signing.keys.json
    BK_API_TOKEN: my-secret-token # access token required for the BK API
    LOG_ROTATE_AMOUNT: 30
    LOG_ROTATE_SIZE: 1G

block_manager:
  hosts:

    YOUR-BM-HOST:
      NODE_IP: NODE_IP_ADDRESS         # BK node address for block streaming.
      HOST_PUBLIC_IP: HOST_IP_PUBLIC   # public IP for external access
      HOST_PRIVATE_IP: HOST_IP_PRIVATE # private IP for internal network access

To validate your inventory and playbook syntax, use dry run and check mode:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/block-manager-deployment.yaml --check --diff

If validation passes, run the playbook to deploy the Block Manager:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/block-manager-deployment.yaml

To check running Docker containers:

docker ps
#OR
docker compose ps

Ensure the following containers are running (status: UP):

teamgosh/ackinacki-block-manager
teamgosh/logrotate
teamgosh/ackinacki-nginx
teamgosh/ackinacki-gql-server

To follow Block Manager logs:

tail -f $MNT_DATA/logs-block-manager/block-manager.log

Before delegating, the license must be added to the BM wallet whitelist.
To do this, run:

tvm-cli -j callx --addr BM_WALLET_ADDR --abi contracts/bksystem/AckiNackiBlockManagerNodeWallet.abi.json --keys block_manager.keys.json --method setLicenseWhiteList '{"whiteListLicense": {"YOUR_LICENSE_NUMBER": true}}'

To delegate the license to the BM wallet, run:

tvm-cli -j callx --addr LICENSE_ADDR --abi contracts/bksystem/LicenseBM.abi.json --keys BM_LICENSE_OWNER.keys.json --method addBMWallet '{"pubkey": "0xBM_WALLET_PUB_KEY"}'

Broadcast Proxy is a specialized network service designed to optimize block exchange between participants in the Acki Nacki network. Its primary purpose is to reduce the overall network traffic between nodes operated by different Node Providers, while also improving the network’s scalability and stability.

Read more about the motivation behind the Proxy here.

🚨 Important: To ensure stable operation, proxy servers must be deployed in pairs (one master and one failover).

• A dedicated server for the Proxy.
• Docker with the Compose plugin installed.
• A file containing the Block Keeper Node Owner keys (required to sign the TLS certificate).
• Ansible for deployment

ℹ️ Note: The TLS certificate for the Proxy will only be accepted by other Block Keepers after the Block Keeper whose keys were used to generate this certificate has joined the BK‑set.

• All deployment is automated with Ansible. You can learn how to deploy the Proxy without Ansible here.
• Docker Compose files and Proxy configuration are generated automatically.
• Since the QUIC+TLS protocol is used to communicate with the Proxy, the Proxy requires a TLS key and a TLS certificate. These will also be created automatically during deployment. For more details on how the certificates are generated, see the link.
• Place BK Node Owner keys to ansible folder
• You only need to prepare an Ansible inventory with the required variables (see example below).

SEEDS: A list of seed addresses for the Gossip protocol between the Proxy and Block Keeper nodes. This list must include at least three addresses.

For example:

SEEDS:
  - BK_IP:10002
  - BK_IP:10000
  - BK_IP:10001

NETWORK_NAME: A string that defines the cluster ID in the Gossip network. It must match the NETWORK_NAME used by both the Proxy and Block Keeper nodes.

For example:

NETWORK_NAME: shellnet

PROXY_BIND: The IP address on the host machine to bind the Proxy.

PROXY_ADDR: The address used by the Gossip protocol and Block Keepers to communicate with the Proxy.

ℹ️ Note: PROXY_BIND and PROXY_ADDR must be set to the same IP address.

🚨 Important: You must add Proxy addresses to the Block Keeper configuration. Otherwise, the Block Keeper will not be able to connect to the Proxy.

Example:

block_keeper_host:
  NODE_ID: 99999
  PROXIES:
    - PROXY_IP:8085

When the Proxy starts, a certificate is created for communication with Block Keepers. Specify the Block Keepers’ signing keys in your inventory. Block Keepers must be included in the Block Keeper set.

🚨 Important: The Proxy certificate must be signed with the key of the BK located behind this Proxy. Using a key from another BK may disrupt routing and lead to data loss.

Below is an example of a basic Ansible inventory for deploying a Proxy:

all:
  vars:
    PROXY_IMAGE: "teamgosh/ackinacki-proxy:proxy_version"
    PROXY_PORT: 8085
    PROXY_DIR: /opt/depl/proxy
    NETWORK_NAME: shellnet
    PROXY_BK_ADDRS:
    - Your_first_BK_IP:8600
    - Your_second_BK_IP:8600
    - Your_third_BK_IP:8600
    SEEDS:
    - shellnet0.ackinacki.org:10000
    - shellnet1.ackinacki.org:10000
    - shellnet2.ackinacki.org:10000
    - shellnet3.ackinacki.org:10000
    - shellnet4.ackinacki.org:10000
    NODE_GROUP_ID: ""
    OTEL_COLLECTOR: no
    OTEL_SERVICE_NAME: ""

proxy:
  hosts:
    YOUR-PROXY-HOST:
      PROXY_ID: 1
      HOST_PUBLIC_IP: HOST_IP_PUBLIC
      # Add signing keys to proxy for generating certificates
      # Use several for reliability, but using different set for each proxy is recommended
      PROXY_SIGNING_KEYS:
      - "block-keeper-1.keys.json"
      - "block-keeper-2.keys.json"
      - "block-keeper-3.keys.json"

PROXY_SIGNING_KEYS list contains path to Block Keeper keys. Better to store them in the same folder with proxy deployment playbook. Also you can specify absolute path.

Note that the PROXY_BK_ADDRS variable must include at least several of your Block Keepers. Actually, updating the BK set is not a computationally intensive operation, so it is recommended to include all your Block Keepers in the list.

To publish metrics to your collector, you should set the variables OTEL_COLLECTOR, OTEL_SERVICE_NAME and NODE_GROUP_ID to similar ones as in the Block Keeper deployment. Also, in such case, make sure that each host has a unique PROXY_ID variable set.

To test the deployment with a dry run:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/proxy-deployment.yaml --check --diff

If everything looks correct, proceed with the actual deployment:

ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/proxy-deployment.yaml

To view the Proxy logs:

tail -f $PROXY_DIR/logs-proxy/proxy.log

Depending on whether you need to regenerate the proxy certificate (for example, if you changed the PROXY_SIGNING_KEYS variable), you need to use either ansible/proxy-deployment.yaml or ansible/proxy-upgrade.yaml playbook.`

If you need to regenerate the proxy certificate, you need to run the ansible/proxy-deployment.yaml playbook.

If you need to upgrade the proxy image or other parameters without changing the keys (regenerating certificates), you need to run the ansible/proxy-upgrade.yaml playbook.

# This will regenerate the proxy certificate and requires BK keys
ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/proxy-deployment.yaml

# This will stop, update compose and config, and restart proxy WITHOUT regenerating keys
ansible-playbook -i test-inventory.yaml ansible/proxy-upgrade.yaml