Can you become a validator for ETH2.0?
Editor's Note: This article comes fromGolden Finance, reprinted by Odaily with authorization.
Editor's Note: This article comes from
Golden Finance
Golden Finance
, reprinted by Odaily with authorization.
At 21:00 on August 4, Beijing time, the Ethereum 2.0 multi-client test network Medalla has been officially launched. A total of 5 clients participated in the creation of Medalla, namely:
Teku (developed by ConsenSys);
Prysm (developed by Prysmatic Labs);
Nimbus (developed by Status);
Lodestar (developed by ChainSafeSystems);
Lighthouse (developed by SigmaPrime).
Previously, Ethereum multi-client testnet developer Afri Schoedon said that if there are no more serious errors in the client or protocol, it is expected to usher in Phase 0 of Ethereum 2.0 in November 2020. The launch of the multi-client testnet Medalla will be the last step in the launch of Ethereum 2.0 Phase 0.
An hour after the launch of the multi-client testnet Medalla, the testnet has still not reached the expected participation rate, and only when the participation rate exceeds 80% can it begin to have effective verification.
The developers expect this to be the case because many validators registered by staking 32 ETH, but were not running the validator software. The participation steps of the Medalla test network are divided into several key tasks. Only when all the tasks are successfully completed can it be effectively verified.
At around 3 am the next day (August 5), the participation rate exceeded 80%.
Moreover, on August 5, according to Bitfly (the parent company of the Ethermine mining pool), the current distribution of client nodes on the Ethereum 2.0 multi-client test network Medalla is as follows:
Prysm (developed by Prysmatic Labs) clients account for up to 63.6% of current nodes;
Lighthouse (developed by Sigma Prime) nodes accounted for 23.7%;
Other clients including Teku accounted for 12.8%.
After talking about the information that is difficult to understand without understanding the principle, let's dissect the participation of Medalla.
https://medalla.launchpad.ethereum.org
This is the last step in the opening of Ethereum 2.0. When Ethereum 2.0 is launched, it means that a new consensus has begun, and it also represents an improvement in performance. One ETH can participate, so the threshold for this matter is relatively low.
The relatively low mentioned here refers to the difficulty for participants to realize this process, which is relatively speaking.
Because the verifier will be mainly responsible for future verification and block generation, it means that the representative has block rewards, that is, staking, but because the block generation time is fixed, so the daily increase is limited, and the number of verifiers determines that a verifier can get How much block reward.
Let's take a look at the mysterious participation process.
This is the official participation URL for the Medalla testnet.
Ethereum has always used unicorns to draw pictures of itself, as if the logo of Ethereum is the horn of a unicorn, so regarding Ethereum 2.0, it may also be the mascot.
Enter the website and click get srarted, the goal of experimenting with Ethereum validators begins. This page has listed the process step by step.
From the introduction at the beginning, to generating the private key file, to uploading the verifier file, connecting the wallet, summarizing, and finally completing the transaction. Let's look at it step by step.
The entire introduction part is also divided into these 10 parts, and each part introduces the key points about Ethereum 2.0, which is like familiarizing yourself with the rules before participating. This is quite intimate, but it also represents a risk warning. Just click the "I Accept" button for each step, but each section needs to be reviewed.
We make a summary of this part of the label:
1. Deposit 32ETH
2. Actively participate in the consensus, offline will be punished. Unable to get any rewards. It is important that validators are online and updated.
3. There will be huge fines for malicious operations, that is, if there is a violation of the norms, or as a dishonest node.
4. The key for the authenticator is generated from a unique mnemonic or seed. So save your seed or mnemonic.
5. This operation launch platform, that is, this operation web page will help each validator create a key, the key will be stored in the keystore, and the validator needs to upload the key, which is the generate keys and upload validator phase.
6. The 32ETH mortgaged by the verifier cannot be transferred before phase 1, and cannot be transferred away before phase 2. The verifier should participate in the long-term at least to phase1.
7. Because the network and client are unstable, 32ETH may be fined.
8. To run the terminal on the computer.
The above is the part that all Ethereum 2.0 verifiers need to pay attention to. The principles involved are briefly explained:
1. The verifier needs to run the verification software, because the verifier needs computing power and needs to process tasks online at any time, which means that the software is online for a long time, which is the requirement of each network node.
2. To ensure long-term participation, verifiers who are not online for a long time will lose revenue and may be fined. This is how most pos networks operate on nodes.
Let's look at the participation method next, and the next step is to generate the key.
Entering this page, the first thing is to choose to establish several validator nodes, choose 1 to mortgage 32ETH, and then choose the client of your own computer to install the validator software.
It is worth noting that what needs to be paid is 32 Goerli ETH, that is, 32 ETH needs to be generated through the Goerli test network to generate Goerli ETH, which means that the subsequent connected wallet depositing ETH will also be a wallet supported by the Goerli test network.
keep looking down,
The next step is to download the executable file, that is, to find an executable execution tool. This tool is eth2.0-deposit-cli, which can be found in the official channel of the Ethereum Foundation on github.
Then you will need to use the python client to build an eth2.0-deposit-cli, which includes the following series of software operations and executing code commands in the corresponding software tools.
The operations involved in this process are specific operations such as installing python3.7 +, pip3, virtualenv, deposit-cli tools, and downloading and decompressing the source code of the master branch from GitHub. You need to be familiar with how the code commands of the above tools work.
These operations are for the final operation of generating and saving keys.
After saving, it is necessary to proceed to the next step, uploading the seed file.
After checking, click Continue.
Let's start uploading.
When we can't find the seed file, just find the json file in the folder we just saved. Folder diagrams are indicated. Because the author did not generate a specific file, I will find a previously generated json file for other networks to show you.
This json file will contain address information, key information, etc. In the above picture, the author deleted part of the key.
Going back to the process, because the author does not have Goerli ETH, so the step of uploading the json file did not pass, and then the part of connecting the wallet will not be able to participate, but the subsequent steps will be relatively simple, and the part of connecting the wallet should be connected The Goerli wallet is used to deposit ETH, and the subsequent summary part and transaction part are the final confirmation process.
Leaving the wallet and address is to deposit ETH and test block income.
Through the above steps, we will find that this step is not difficult, but requires a certain understanding of development tools. It is important to participate in the part of the Goerli testnet where the Goerli ETH is generated, the key is obtained, and the validator runs.
One thing to note here is that under normal circumstances, building a verification node also needs to be configured in the development tool, and this process is not reflected in this participation process. When the main network of Ethereum 2.0 is officially launched, there may be certain adjustments to the participation of validators, especially in terms of asset participation, the code operation is convenient and predictable.
