Nym Node Setup & Run

This documentation page provides a guide on how to set up and run a NYM NODE, along with explanations of available flags, commands, and examples.

Current version

nym-node 
Binary Name:        nym-node
Build Timestamp:    2024-09-30T14:46:17.684077495Z
Build Version:      1.1.8
Commit SHA:         1202a2f5f4f12d4a1a2e287f69e5f18ae64cc24e
Commit Date:        2024-09-30T14:42:11.000000000Z
Commit Branch:      develop
rustc Version:      1.81.0
rustc Channel:      stable
cargo Profile:      release

Summary

Any syntax in <> brackets is a user’s unique variable. Exchange with a corresponding name without the <> brackets.

To run a new node, you can simply execute the nym-node command without any flags. By default, the node will set necessary configurations. If you later decide to change a setting, you can use the -w flag.

The most crucial aspect of running the node is specifying the --mode, which can be one of three: mixnode, entry-gateway, and exit-gateway.

Currently the nym-node binary can only be run in a single --mode at any one time. In the future however, operators will be able to specify multiple modes that a single nym-node binary can run. Our goal is to have as many nodes as possible enabling multiple modes, and allow the Nym API to position the node according the network’s needs in the beginning of each epoch.

Every exit-gateway mode is basically an entry-gateway with NR (Network Requester) and IPR (IP Packet Router) enabled. This means that every exit-gateway is automatically seen as an entry-gateway but not the opposite.

Gateway operators can check out the node performance, connectivity and much more in our new tool harbourmaster.nymtech.net.

To determine which mode your node is running, you can check the :8080/api/v1/roles endpoint. For example:

# sustitude <NODE_IP_ADDRESS> or <NODE_DOMAIN> with a real one
# for http
http://<NODE_IP_ADDRESS>:8080/api/v1/roles
# or
http://<NODE_IP_ADDRESS>/api/v1/roles

# for reversed proxy/WSS
https://<NODE_DOMAIN>/api/v1/roles

Everything necessary will exist on your node by default. For instance, if you’re running a mixnode, you’ll find that a NR (Network Requester) and IPR (IP Packet Router) address exist, but they will be ignored in mixnode mode.

For more information about available endpoints and their status, you can refer to:

# sustitude <NODE_IP_ADDRESS> or <NODE_DOMAIN> with a real one
# for http
http://<NODE_IP_ADDRESS>:8080/api/v1/swagger/#/
# or
http://<NODE_IP_ADDRESS>/api/v1/swagger/#/

# for reversed proxy/WSS
https://<NODE_DOMAIN>/api/v1/swagger/#/

Usage

Help Command

There are a few changes from the individual binaries used in the past. For example by default run command does init function as well, local node --id will be set by default unless specified otherwise etcetera.

Run ./nym-node --help to see all available commands:

Usage: nym-node [OPTIONS] <COMMAND>

Commands:
  build-info           Show build information of this binary
  bonding-information  Show bonding information of this node depending on its currently selected mode
  node-details         Show details of this node
  migrate              Attempt to migrate an existing mixnode or gateway into a nym-node
  run                  Start this nym-node
  sign                 Use identity key of this node to sign provided message
  help                 Print this message or the help of the given subcommand(s)

Options:
  -c, --config-env-file <CONFIG_ENV_FILE>
          Path pointing to an env file that configures the nym-node and overrides any preconfigured values [env: NYMNODE_CONFIG_ENV_FILE_ARG=]
      --no-banner
          Flag used for disabling the printed banner in tty [env: NYMNODE_NO_BANNER=]
  -h, --help
          Print help
  -V, --version
          Print version

To list all available flags for each command, run ./nym-node <COMMAND> --help for example ./nym-node run --help:

Start this nym-node

Usage: nym-node run [OPTIONS]

Options:
      --id <ID>
          Id of the nym-node to use [env: NYMNODE_ID=] [default: default-nym-node]
      --config-file <CONFIG_FILE>
          Path to a configuration file of this node [env: NYMNODE_CONFIG=]
      --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions
          Explicitly specify whether you agree with the terms and conditions of a nym node operator as defined at <https://nymtech.net/terms-and-conditions/operators/v1.0.0> [env: NYMNODE_ACCEPT_OPERATOR_TERMS=]
      --deny-init
          Forbid a new node from being initialised if configuration file for the provided specification doesn't already exist [env: NYMNODE_DENY_INIT=]
      --init-only
          If this is a brand new nym-node, specify whether it should only be initialised without actually running the subprocesses [env: NYMNODE_INIT_ONLY=]
      --local
          Flag specifying this node will be running in a local setting [env: NYMNODE_LOCAL=]
      --mode <MODE>
          Specifies the current mode of this nym-node [env: NYMNODE_MODE=] [possible values: mixnode, entry-gateway, exit-gateway]
  -w, --write-changes
          If this node has been initialised before, specify whether to write any new changes to the config file [env: NYMNODE_WRITE_CONFIG_CHANGES=]
      --bonding-information-output <BONDING_INFORMATION_OUTPUT>
          Specify output file for bonding information of this nym-node, i.e. its encoded keys. NOTE: the required bonding information is still a subject to change and this argument should be treated only as a preview of future features [env: NYMNODE_BONDING_INFORMATION_OUTPUT=]
  -o, --output <OUTPUT>
          Specify the output format of the bonding information (`text` or `json`) [env: NYMNODE_OUTPUT=] [default: text] [possible values: text, json]
      --public-ips <PUBLIC_IPS>
          Comma separated list of public ip addresses that will be announced to the nym-api and subsequently to the clients. In nearly all circumstances, it's going to be identical to the address you're going to use for bonding [env: NYMNODE_PUBLIC_IPS=]
      --hostname <HOSTNAME>
          Optional hostname associated with this gateway that will be announced to the nym-api and subsequently to the clients [env: NYMNODE_HOSTNAME=]
      --location <LOCATION>
          Optional **physical** location of this node's server. Either full country name (e.g. 'Poland'), two-letter alpha2 (e.g. 'PL'), three-letter alpha3 (e.g. 'POL') or three-digit numeric-3 (e.g. '616') can be provided [env: NYMNODE_LOCATION=]
      --http-bind-address <HTTP_BIND_ADDRESS>
          Socket address this node will use for binding its http API. default: `0.0.0.0:8080` [env: NYMNODE_HTTP_BIND_ADDRESS=]
      --landing-page-assets-path <LANDING_PAGE_ASSETS_PATH>
          Path to assets directory of custom landing page of this node [env: NYMNODE_HTTP_LANDING_ASSETS=]
      --http-access-token <HTTP_ACCESS_TOKEN>
          An optional bearer token for accessing certain http endpoints. Currently only used for prometheus metrics [env: NYMNODE_HTTP_ACCESS_TOKEN=]
      --expose-system-info <EXPOSE_SYSTEM_INFO>
          Specify whether basic system information should be exposed. default: true [env: NYMNODE_HTTP_EXPOSE_SYSTEM_INFO=] [possible values: true, false]
      --expose-system-hardware <EXPOSE_SYSTEM_HARDWARE>
          Specify whether basic system hardware information should be exposed. default: true [env: NYMNODE_HTTP_EXPOSE_SYSTEM_HARDWARE=] [possible values: true, false]
      --expose-crypto-hardware <EXPOSE_CRYPTO_HARDWARE>
          Specify whether detailed system crypto hardware information should be exposed. default: true [env: NYMNODE_HTTP_EXPOSE_CRYPTO_HARDWARE=] [possible values: true, false]
      --mixnet-bind-address <MIXNET_BIND_ADDRESS>
          Address this node will bind to for listening for mixnet packets default: `0.0.0.0:1789` [env: NYMNODE_MIXNET_BIND_ADDRESS=]
      --nym-api-urls <NYM_API_URLS>
          Addresses to nym APIs from which the node gets the view of the network [env: NYMNODE_NYM_APIS=]
      --nyxd-urls <NYXD_URLS>
          Addresses to nyxd chain endpoint which the node will use for chain interactions [env: NYMNODE_NYXD=]
      --wireguard-enabled <WIREGUARD_ENABLED>
          Specifies whether the wireguard service is enabled on this node [env: NYMNODE_WG_ENABLED=] [possible values: true, false]
      --wireguard-bind-address <WIREGUARD_BIND_ADDRESS>
          Socket address this node will use for binding its wireguard interface. default: `0.0.0.0:51822` [env: NYMNODE_WG_BIND_ADDRESS=]
      --wireguard-private-ip <WIREGUARD_PRIVATE_IP>
          Private IP address of the wireguard gateway. default: `10.1.0.1` [env: NYMNODE_WG_IP=]
      --wireguard-announced-port <WIREGUARD_ANNOUNCED_PORT>
          Port announced to external clients wishing to connect to the wireguard interface. Useful in the instances where the node is behind a proxy [env: NYMNODE_WG_ANNOUNCED_PORT=]
      --wireguard-private-network-prefix <WIREGUARD_PRIVATE_NETWORK_PREFIX>
          The prefix denoting the maximum number of the clients that can be connected via Wireguard. The maximum value for IPv4 is 32 and for IPv6 is 128 [env: NYMNODE_WG_PRIVATE_NETWORK_PREFIX=]
      --verloc-bind-address <VERLOC_BIND_ADDRESS>
          Socket address this node will use for binding its verloc API. default: `0.0.0.0:1790` [env: NYMNODE_VERLOC_BIND_ADDRESS=]
      --entry-bind-address <ENTRY_BIND_ADDRESS>
          Socket address this node will use for binding its client websocket API. default: `0.0.0.0:9000` [env: NYMNODE_ENTRY_BIND_ADDRESS=]
      --announce-ws-port <ANNOUNCE_WS_PORT>
          Custom announced port for listening for websocket client traffic. If unspecified, the value from the `bind_address` will be used instead [env: NYMNODE_ENTRY_ANNOUNCE_WS_PORT=]
      --announce-wss-port <ANNOUNCE_WSS_PORT>
          If applicable, announced port for listening for secure websocket client traffic [env: NYMNODE_ENTRY_ANNOUNCE_WSS_PORT=]
      --enforce-zk-nyms <ENFORCE_ZK_NYMS>
          Indicates whether this gateway is accepting only coconut credentials for accessing the mixnet or if it also accepts non-paying clients [env: NYMNODE_ENFORCE_ZK_NYMS=] [possible values: true, false]
      --mnemonic <MNEMONIC>
          Custom cosmos wallet mnemonic used for zk-nym redemption. If no value is provided, a fresh mnemonic is going to be generated [env: NYMNODE_MNEMONIC=]
      --upstream-exit-policy-url <UPSTREAM_EXIT_POLICY_URL>
          Specifies the url for an upstream source of the exit policy used by this node [env: NYMNODE_UPSTREAM_EXIT_POLICY=]
      --open-proxy <OPEN_PROXY>
          Specifies whether this exit node should run in 'open-proxy' mode and thus would attempt to resolve **ANY** request it receives [env: NYMNODE_OPEN_PROXY=] [possible values: true, false]
  -h, --help
          Print help

Terms & Conditions

There has been a long ongoing discussion whether and how to apply Terms and Conditions for Nym network operators, with an aim to stay aligned with the philosophy of Free Software and provide legal defense for both node operators and Nym developers. To understand better the reasoning behind this decision, you can listen to the first Nym Operator Town Hall introducing the T&Cs or to Operator AMA with CEO Harry Halpin from June 4th, 2024, explaining pros and cons of T&Cs implementation.

Accepting T&Cs is done via a flag --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions added explicitly to nym-node run command every time. If you use systemd automation, add the flag to your service file’s ExecStart line.

To check whether any node has T&Cs accepted or not can be done by querying Swagger API endpoint /auxiliary_details via one of these ports (depending on node setup):

# sustitude <NODE_IP_ADDRESS> or <NODE_DOMAIN> with a real one
http://<NODE_IP_ADDRESS>:8080/api/v1/auxiliary_details
https://<NODE_DOMAIN>/api/v1/auxiliary_details
http://<NODE_IP_ADDRESS>/api/v1/auxiliary_details

# substitude <NODE_IP_ADDRESS> with a real one
curl -X 'GET' \
  'http://<NODE_IP_ADDRESS>:8080/api/v1/auxiliary-details' \
  -H 'accept: application/json'

{
  "location": "Kurdistan",
  "accepted_operator_terms_and_conditions": true
}

Commands & Examples

nym-node introduces a default human readible ID (local only) default-nym-node, which is used if there is not an explicit custom --id <ID> specified. All configuration is stored in ~/.nym/nym-nodes/default-nym-node/config/config.toml or ~/.nym/nym-nodes/<ID>/config/config.toml respectively.

Initialise & Run

When we use run command the node will do init as well, unless we specify with a flag --deny-init. Below are some examples of initialising and running nym-node with different modes (--mode) like mixnode, entry-gateway, exit-gateway.

Please keep in mind that currently you can run only one functionality (--mode) per a nym-node instance. We are yet to finalise implement the multi-functionality solution under one node bonded to one Nyx account. Every exit-gateway can function as entry-gateway by default, not vice versa.

There is a simple default command to initialise and run your node: ./nym-node run --mode <MODE>, however there quite a few parameters to be configured. When nym-node gets to be run, these parameters are read by the binary from the configuration file located at .nym/nym-nodes/<ID>/config/config.toml.

If an operator specifies any paramteres with optional flags alongside run command, these parameters passed in the option will take place over the ones in config.toml but they will not overwrite them by default. To overwrite them with the values passed with run command, a flag -w (--write-changes) must be added.

Alternatively operators can just open a text editor and change these values manually. After saving the file,don’t forget to restart the node or reload and restart the service. If all values are setup correctly in config.toml, then operator can use as simple command as nym-node run --mode <MODE> --accept-operators-terms-and-conditions, or alternatively paste this command with a correct path to your binary to your ExecStart line into a systemd nym-node.service config file.

Essential Parameters & Variables

Running a nym-node in a mixnode mode requires less configuration than a full exit-gateway setup, we recommend operators to still follow through with all documented configuration. Before you scroll down to syntax examples for the mode of your choice: mixnode, exit-gateway, or `entry-gateway, please familiarise yourself with the essential paramters and variables convention we use in the guide.

Substitute any variables in <> brackets your own value, without <> brackets. Here is a list of important options and variables.

Mode: exit-gateway

If you run a nym-node for the first time, you will need to specify a few parameters, please read the section Essential Parameters & Variables before you start and make sure that your nym-node is up to date with the latest version.

Initialise and run in one command:

To initialise and test run your node, use this command:

./nym-node run --id <ID> --mode exit-gateway --public-ips "$(curl -4 https://ifconfig.me)" --hostname "<HOSTNAME>" --http-bind-address 0.0.0.0:8080 --mixnet-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1789 --location <LOCATION> --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions --wireguard-enabled true

If you prefer to have a generic local identifier set to default-nym-node, skip --id option.

We highly recommend to setup reverse proxy and WSS for nym-node. If you haven’t configured any of that, skip --hostname flag.

In any case --public-ips is a necessity for your node to bond to API and communicate with the internet.

Initialise only without running the node with --init-only command:

Adding --init-only option results in nym-node initialising a configuration file config.toml without running - a good option for an initial node setup. Remember that if you using this flag on a node which already has a config file, this will not over-write the values, unless used with a specified flag --write-changes (-w) - a good option for introducing changes to your config.toml file.

./nym-node run --id <ID> --init-only --mode exit-gateway --public-ips "$(curl -4 https://ifconfig.me)" --hostname "<HOSTNAME>" --http-bind-address 0.0.0.0:8080 --mixnet-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1789 --location <LOCATION> --wireguard-enabled true

In the example above we dropped --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions as the flag must be added to a running command explicitly and it is not stored in the config, --init-only will not run the node.

Deny init

--deny-init was introduced as an additional safety for migration from legacy binaries to nym-node to prevent operators initialise over existing nodes. For most of the operators, this flag is not needed.

In this example we run the node with custom --id without initialising, using --deny-init command:

./nym-node run --id <ID> --deny-init --mode exit-gateway --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions

Mode: entry-gateway

If you run a nym-node for the first time, you will need to specify a few parameters, please read the section Essential Parameters & Variables before you start and make sure that your nym-node is up to date with the latest version.

Initialise and run:

To initialise and test run with yur node with all needed options, use this command:

./nym-node run --id <ID> --mode entry-gateway --public-ips "$(curl -4 https://ifconfig.me)" --hostname "<HOSTNAME>" --http-bind-address 0.0.0.0:8080 --mixnet-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1789 --location <LOCATION> --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions --wireguard-enabled true

If you prefer to have a generic local identifier set to default-nym-node, skip --id option.

We highly recommend to setup reverse proxy and WSS for nym-node. If you haven’t configured any of that, skip --hostname flag.

In any case --public-ips is a necessity for your node to bond to API and communicate with the internet.

Initialise only without running the node with --init-only command :

Adding --init-only option results in nym-node initialising a configuration file config.toml without running - a good option for an initial node setup. Remember that if you using this flag on a node which already has a config file, this will not over-write the values, unless used with a specified flag --write-changes (-w) - a good option for introducing changes to your config.toml file.

./nym-node run --id <ID> --init-only --mode entry-gateway --public-ips "$(curl -4 https://ifconfig.me)" --hostname "<HOSTNAME>" --http-bind-address 0.0.0.0:8080 --mixnet-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1789 --location <LOCATION> --wireguard-enabled true

In the example above we dropped --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions as the flag must be added to a running command explicitly and it is not stored in the config, --init-only will not run the node.

Deny init

--deny-init was introduced as an additional safety for migration from legacy binaries to nym-node to prevent operators initialise over existing nodes. For most of the operators, this flag is not needed.

In this example we run the node with custom --id without initialising, using --deny-init command:

./nym-node run --id <ID> --deny-init --mode entry-gateway --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions

Mode: mixnode

Initialise and run:

./nym-node run --mode mixnode --mixnet-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1789 --verloc-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1790 --http-bind-address 0.0.0.0:8080 --public-ips "$(curl -4 https://ifconfig.me)" --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions

Init only

Adding --init-only option results in nym-node initialising a configuration file config.toml without running - a good option for an initial node setup. Remember that if you using this flag on a node which already has a config file, this will not over-write the values, unless used with a specified flag --write-changes (-w) - a good option for introducing changes to your config.toml file.

Initialise only with a custom --id and --init-only command:

./nym-node run --mode mixnode --id <ID> --init-only --mixnet-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1789 --verloc-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1790 --http-bind-address 0.0.0.0:8080 --public-ips "$(curl -4 https://ifconfig.me)" --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions

If you prefer to have a generic local identifier set to default-nym-node, skip --id option.

Deny init

--deny-init was introduced as an additional safety for migration from legacy binaries to nym-node to prevent operators initialise over existing nodes. For most of the operators, this flag is not needed.

In this example we run the node with custom --id without initialising, using --deny-init command:

./nym-node run --mode mixnode --id <ID> --deny-init --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions

Migrate

Operators who are about to migrate their nodes need to configure their VPS and setup nym-node which can be downloaded as a pre-built binary or compiled from source.

To migrate a nym-mixnode or a nym-gateway to nym-node is fairly simple, use the migrate command with --config-file flag pointing to the original config.toml file, with a conditional argument defining which type of node this configuration belongs to. Examples are below.

Make sure to use --deny-init flag to prevent initialisation of a new node.

Mode: mixnode

# move relevant infor from config.toml
./nym-node migrate --config-file ~/.nym/mixnodes/<MIXNODE_ID>/config/config.toml mixnode

# initialise with the new nym-node config
./nym-node run --mode mixnode --id <NYM-NODE_ID> --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions

Mode: entry-gateway and exit-gateway

# move relevant infor from config.toml
./nym-node migrate --config-file ~/.nym/gateways/<GATEWAY_ID>/config/config.toml gateway

# initialise with the new nym-node config - entry-gateway
./nym-node run --mode entry-gateway --id <NYM-NODE_ID> --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions

# or as exit-gateway
./nym-node run --id <NYM-NODE_ID> --mode exit-gateway --public-ips "$(curl -4 https://ifconfig.me)" --hostname "<YOUR_DOMAIN>" --http-bind-address 0.0.0.0:8080 --mixnet-bind-address 0.0.0.0:1789 --location <COUNTRY_FULL_NAME> --accept-operator-terms-and-conditions --wireguard-enabled false

Next steps

If there are any problems checkout the troubleshooting section or report an issue.

Follow up with configuration page for automation, reversed proxy setup and other tweaks, then head straight to bonding page to finalise your setup.