Getting Started

This guide covers everything needed to run a VIZ Ledger node — from installing dependencies to initial synchronization.

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Prerequisites

Requirement	Minimum	Recommended
OS	Ubuntu 20.04 LTS	Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
RAM	4 GB	8 GB+
Disk	20 GB	50 GB+ SSD
CPU	2 cores	4+ cores
Network	Public IP, open port 2001	Stable connection

Ports used:

Port	Protocol	Purpose
2001	TCP	P2P peer connections
8090	TCP	HTTP JSON-RPC
8091	TCP	WebSocket JSON-RPC

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Option A: Docker (Recommended for Quick Start)

1. Pull the production image

docker pull vizblockchain/vizd:latest

2. Run the node

docker run -d \
  --name vizd \
  -p 2001:2001 \
  -p 8090:8090 \
  -p 8091:8091 \
  -v /data/vizd:/var/lib/vizd \
  vizblockchain/vizd:latest

3. Follow logs

docker logs -f vizd

You should see peer connections and block sync progress within a few minutes.

Environment variables (Docker)

Variable	Purpose	Example
VIZD_WITNESS	Validator name (if validator node)	alice
VIZD_PRIVATE_KEY	Validator signing key (WIF)	5J...

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Option B: Build from Source

1. Install dependencies (Linux)

git clone --recursive https://github.com/VIZ-Blockchain/viz-cpp-node
cd viz-cpp-node
chmod +x install-deps-linux.sh
sudo ./install-deps-linux.sh

2. Build

chmod +x build-linux.sh
./build-linux.sh

For a low-memory build (validators and seed nodes — excludes indexing plugins):

./build-linux.sh -l

The binary is placed at build/programs/vizd/vizd.

3. macOS

chmod +x build-mac.sh
./build-mac.sh

4. Windows (MinGW)

set BOOST_ROOT=C:\Boost
set OPENSSL_ROOT_DIR=C:\OpenSSL-Win64
build-mingw.bat

See Building for detailed platform instructions and CMake options.

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Initial Configuration

Copy the mainnet config template:

cp share/vizd/config/config.ini /data/vizd/config.ini

Minimum edits for a public node:

# P2P
p2p-endpoint = 0.0.0.0:2001
p2p-seed-node = seed1.viz.world:2001
p2p-seed-node = seed2.viz.world:2001
p2p-seed-node = seed3.viz.world:2001

# RPC
webserver-http-endpoint = 0.0.0.0:8090
webserver-ws-endpoint   = 0.0.0.0:8091

# Shared memory — adjust to available disk
shared-file-size = 4G

# Plugins (full node)
plugin = chain p2p webserver json_rpc database_api network_broadcast_api
plugin = account_history

For a validator node, see Validator Node.

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Starting the Node

./vizd --config-file /data/vizd/config.ini --data-dir /data/vizd

Or with Docker, pass the data directory as a volume (see Option A above).

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Verifying Sync

Query the node via HTTP RPC:

curl -s -X POST http://localhost:8090 \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"call","params":["database_api","get_dynamic_global_properties",[]],"id":1}' \
  | python3 -m json.tool

Check head_block_number — it should increase every 3 seconds once synced.

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Node Types

Type	Config template	Description
Full node	config.ini	All plugins, public RPC endpoints
Validator	config_witness.ini	Block production, RPC on localhost only
Testnet	config_testnet.ini	Development and testing
Low-memory	config.ini + LOW_MEMORY_NODE build flag	Consensus only, no history indexes

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Next Steps

• Configuration reference — all config options explained
• Docker deployment — production Docker setup
• Validator node — run a block-producing validator
• Snapshots — fast-sync using state snapshots