Masternode Setup Guide

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Masternode Setup Guide

Last Updated OnJune 2, 2020 by Ambassador

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Contents

Introduction

This tutorial will guide you in detail through the steps necessary to setup a DCNTR masternode on Ubuntu 18.04 64-bit remote server (VPS) that is controlled via your local Control wallet. Your local wallet is not required to be kept open and you can store it as a cold wallet whilst still collecting masternode payments. There are other ways to setup masternode, but this one is highly recommended as it’s one of the most secure ways. If you need any additional help, feel free to join DCNTR Discord and ask for a help in #support channel. DO NOT receive any help or assistance through private messages, because there are many impersonators showing up as DCNTR team members that are trying to steal coins from you! They might look legit, but it’s high likely they are scammers. No one ever from DCNTR team will contact you privately and offer you help. Every help will be offered in public support channel!

Basic requirements:
  1. Local system – your everyday computer, which will run Control wallet and hold the masternode coins
  2. Remote VPS with Ubuntu Server 18.04 64-bit OS installed with unique IP address that is running 24/7
  3. Minimum VPS specs: 50 GB of storage space, 2 GB of RAM, 1 dedicated CPU core
  4. Latest DCNTR Core wallet release: v4.1.1
  5. 10,000 DCNTR (good to have 10,001 to make sure you can cover transaction fee)

(NOTE: You will need a different IP address for each masternode you plan to host.)

Configuration of your Control wallet

Step 1 – Download DCNTR wallet

Download the most recent version of the DCNTR Core wallet here:

https://github.com/DCNTR-Project/DCNTR/releases/latest

Step 2 – Extract and install the wallet

Choose the proper version for your operating system. Extract it, install and run the wallet. After starting the wallet for the first time, it will offer you to make a default DCNTR data directory. Depending on your operating system, the default directory should be similar to:

C:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Roaming\DCNTR

The above example of default directory is Windows based, for other operating systems, check HERE or HERE.

If you choose your own location ensure that you record where that is.

Step 3 – Download the latest snapshot (OPTIONAL!)

This is entirely OPTIONAL step. It is always recommended not to trust, but to verify the blockchain yourself. However, since this would take longer than downloading the latest blockchain snapshot, there is a way to speed up the synchronization by downloading the latest snapshot. It can be downloaded from: https://snapshots.DCNTR.org. Tutorial how to use it is also there.

Step 4 – Create a Masternode using Creation Wizard

First of all, make sure that you have 10,000 PIV in your wallet (in fact, 10,001 PIV to make sure you are able to cover the transaction fees).

  1. Unlock the wallet.
  2. Go to “Masternodes” tab.
  3. Click “Create Masternode Controller“.
  4. Masternode Creation Wizard intro window will open. It just reminds you that you need to have 10,000 PIV in your wallet in order to create a Masternode. Just click the “Next” button.
  5. Now you need to type the Masternode name as per your wish (i.e. “Masternode01”) and then click “Next” button again.
  6. Now you will be asked to type the IP address of your VPS (it might look similar to “182.214.90.12”), and then click “Next” button again.
  7. If everything went successful, you should get a message “Master node created!”.
  8. Status of the newly created Masternode will be “MISSING”. That is normal in this phase.

We will get back here to Control wallet little bit later after we setup VPS.

VPS Remote wallet installation

These procedures are for a clean server install. If you have an existing installation then some steps may not be required. Performing the steps is unlikely to have any effect on the system. Securing the server has NOT been included in this tutorial. That is your responsibility. Although it’s not required, a great guide can be found here to assist you.

To be able to access a VPS, you need a software/SSH client like PuTTY for example. You can choose between alternatives as well, but this tutorial will not include installation of such software. After you successfully login to your VPS, follow the further steps.

Step 1 – Install most recent security patches

A clean server install will likely need some software updates. Enter the following command which will bring the system up to date:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get -y upgrade

Step 2 – Download and extract DCNTR Core wallet for Linux

Enter the following command lines one by one to download and extract DCNTR wallet:

cd ~ && wget https://github.com/DCNTR-Project/DCNTR/releases/download/v4.1.1/DCNTR-4.1.1-x86_64-linux-gnu.tar.gz
tar -zxvf DCNTR-4.1.1-x86_64-linux-gnu.tar.gz && sudo rm -f DCNTR-4.1.1-x86_64-linux-gnu.tar.gz

Masternode Configuration

Step 3 – Create the masternode configuration file and populate

Before the node can operate as a masternode a custom configuration file needs to be created. Since we have not loaded the wallet yet, we will create the necessary directories and the configuration file by typing the following command lines one by one:

mkdir ~/.DCNTR&& cd ~/.DCNTR && sudo apt-get install nano && touch DCNTR.conf && nano DCNTR.conf

This command has created a blank DCNTR configuration file where we will enter our masternode configuration variables. Now we should properly setup configuration settings.

Paste the following configuration settings into the editor (using PuTTY, paste is being done simply by right mouse click):

rpcuser=<YOUR_OWN_RPC_USERNAME>
rpcpassword=<YOUR_OWN_RPC_PASSWORD>
rpcallowip=127.0.0.1
server=1
daemon=1
logtimestamps=1
maxconnections=256
  • <YOUR_OWN_RPC_USERNAME> – Set this to a custom username. i.e. rpcuser
  • <YOU_OWN_RPC_PASSWORD> – Set this to a STRONG password. i.e. password <– NO!!! Use something more complex for your own safety!
  • Now go back to Control wallet in Masternode tab, click on the 3 dots next to Masternode you created few steps above and then click “Info“.
  • Now click icon next to “Export data to run the Masternode on a remote server“.
  • It will now ask you for a confirmation to export required data to run a Masternode. Click “OK” button.
  • Now you will get a message that required info was successfully exported (copied to your clipboard) and now you should paste it in your DCNTR.conf file on your VPS under the maxconnections=256 line in DCNTR.conf file.

After all, your DCNTR.conf file on your VPS should look like:

rpcuser=root
rpcpassword=PasswordOfYourChoice
rpcallowip=127.0.0.1
server=1
daemon=1
logtimestamps=1
maxconnections=256
masternode=1
externalip=101.168.87.207
masternodeaddr=101.168.87.207:51472
masternodeprivkey=87haGjw6ABVZfZTcMNX5c1E3HUVH4qWcdc823RBDHsGC5P8FohW

Save and exit the editor by pressing CTRL-O and Enter to save and CTRL-X to exit the editor.

Step 4 – Download the latest snapshot

Same as couple steps earlier, this step is entirely OPTIONAL. It is always recommended not to trust, but to verify the blockchain yourself. If you still don’t want to go slower, but best and safest way, you can download the latest snapshot from https://snapshots.DCNTR.org. Find the latest snapshot there and copy its link address:

Now you can download it. To download it, type wget and paste the link address afterwards that you copied earlier and press enter, it should look similar to:

wget https://snapshots.projectmerge.org/snapshot/DCNTR//DCNTRSnapshot2222222.zip

Wait for the snapshot to download completely. It might take from 30 minutes to couple hours, depending on your VPS download speed. DCNTR blockchain is around 18 GBs. After the download is complete, you have to unzip the file. Easy way is to type unzip and just copy-paste the name extracted from the end of link address used earlier above:

unzip DCNTRSnapshot2222222.zip

After it’s successfully extracted, it is recommended to remove the .zip file to free some space on VPS:

rm DCNTRSnapshot2222222.zip

Start your masternode

Step 5 – Load the masternode

With the configuration created we are now ready to load the masternode and sync to the network. Load the masternode by typing the following command:

cd ~/DCNTR-4.1.1/bin && ./DCNTRd

You will get the message “DCNTR server starting”. To follow the progress until the wallet is fully loaded and synchronized, type:

tail -f ~/.DCNTR/debug.log

Wait until you see the message similar to:
2020-01-10 13:31:01 CMasternodeSync::GetNextAsset – Sync has finished
2020-01-10 13:31:01 CActiveMasternode::ManageStatus() – not capable: Hot node, waiting for remote activation.

Once you get this message, you are completely synced and masternode is ready to be started. Press CTRL-C to get back to command line.

*EXTRA STEP ONLY IF YOU DON’T SEE THESE 2 LINES/MESSAGES ANYWHERE:

./DCNTR-cli getbestblockhash

You will get back hash that will look like:
1ab2a12a1a1a121a1212ab1aba121212121ab1a1a12a12121aba1a1abab1212aa1

Paste the number you get after ./DCNTR-cli reconsiderblock command like this:

./DCNTR-cli reconsiderblock 1ab2a12a1a1a121a1212ab1aba121212121ab1a1a12a12121aba1a1abab1212aa1

Finally, type:

./DCNTR-cli clearbanned

Before you exit the editor, there are 3 parameters that you need to update with your own settings. These are:

Now go back to your Control wallet -> Masternodes -> Click “Start Inactive/s”
Status will change from MISSING -> ACTIVE.

Now go back to your VPS and type:

./DCNTR-cli startmasternode local false

If everything went well, you should receive the following message:

“Masternode successfully started”

Congratulations! You have successfully started your masternode!

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

1) if the output of getmasternodestatus is fine, then you are perfectly fine. But have in mind that it can take up to 2 hours for masternode to change status from ACTIVE to ENABLED in the masternode list.
2) First masternode reward requires a longer waiting period. It usually takes 3-5 days to receive a first masternode reward.
3) You can close the Control wallet, as it is not needed. Only VPS should be working 24/7.

  • If you have any troubles or issues, feel free to join DCNTR Discord and post your question in #support channel. Again, DO NOT ever receive any help or assistance through private messages, as there are many scammers out there trying to steal your coins, even if they look the same as developers, admins or support staff. Every help ever will be provided through public channels.

Shutting down a Masternode

1) How do I stop running masternode on my VPS and delete masternode from my DCNTR Control wallet?

a) In Control wallet in Masternode tab click on Masternode you wish to shutdown and click “Delete”.
b) Restart the wallet.
c) Your 10,000 coins are now unlocked and spendable.

2) How do I get the 10,000 DCNTR back that I’ve send to my Masternode address at the beginning?

You don’t need to “get it back” as it is already in your wallet.
Being in the different address is not an issue as that’s also your address.

3) Can I use this 10,000 DCNTR normally on my wallet then again, and sell it or stake it normally like before?

Yes! If your wallet is unlocked for staking, it will automatically stake these 10,000 coins and you can spend them at any time.