Getting ready to install the Cardano Node (v10.6.2)

Prepare your server for Cardano Node 10.6.2 installation.

This page prepares a clean Ubuntu/Debian server for cardano-node 10.6.2.

Recommended approach for operators: install official release binaries first (fast, reproducible), then move to source builds only if you need custom patches.

1) System update + required packages

sudo apt-get update -y
sudo apt-get upgrade -y
sudo apt-get install -y \
  curl wget jq git tmux htop nload unzip xz-utils \
  build-essential pkg-config libffi-dev libgmp-dev libssl-dev \
  libsystemd-dev zlib1g-dev libncursesw5 libtool autoconf automake \
  libsodium-dev

2) Directory layout and env vars

Run as your cardano user:

mkdir -p $HOME/.local/bin

# canonical cnode layout (kept for compatibility with existing users)
cd $HOME
mkdir -p cnode
cd cnode
mkdir -p config db sockets keys logs scripts

grep -q 'export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"' $HOME/.bashrc || \
  echo 'export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"' >> $HOME/.bashrc
source $HOME/.bashrc

3) Verify architecture

uname -m

Expected values:

• x86_64 → use linux-amd64 artifact

• aarch64 → use linux-arm64 artifact

Why this matters: if architecture and binary mismatch, the node will not start (Exec format error). Always verify uname -m before downloading.

4) (Optional) Source-build prerequisites

If you build from source instead of binary artifacts:

• Use GHC 9.6

• Use Cabal 3.8+ or 3.12

• Use libblst 0.3.14 (required for 10.6.2 source builds)

For most operators, binary artifacts are preferred for speed and consistency.

5) Firewall (recommended for production, optional for lab testing)

By default, many Ubuntu/Debian servers have UFW inactive. Check first:

sudo ufw status verbose

If you are doing a quick local/lab test, you can keep firewall setup for later.

If this is a production relay, enable UFW now with only required ports:

# allow SSH (change if your SSH port is custom)
sudo ufw allow 22/tcp
# allow relay port (default in this guide: 6000)
sudo ufw allow 6000/tcp

sudo ufw enable
sudo ufw status verbose

For a block producer, do NOT expose BP port publicly. Keep BP reachable only from your relays (private network, WireGuard, or strict IP allowlist).

6) Quick sanity checks

df -h
free -h
nproc

Before syncing mainnet, ensure storage headroom is healthy (300+ GB). 350+ GB is safer for long-term growth.

If RAM pressure is high, swap can prevent crashes, but swap is much slower than real RAM. If you constantly hit swap, upgrade memory instead of relying on swap as a permanent fix.