Validator Setup

This guide takes you from a synced full node to a registered, bonded validator. Budget about 30 minutes once your node is synced — syncing itself takes considerably longer.

Prerequisites

1. A synced full node. The validator process is your full node — you are promoting an existing node, not installing new software. If you do not have one yet, set it up first:

curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pokt-network/poktroll/main/tools/scripts/full-node.sh
sudo bash full-node.sh

The script prompts for network, sync method, moniker, and external IP. See Hardware Requirements for sizing and pruning guidance, and the Provider Quickstart for a fuller walkthrough of the same script.

2. Confirm the node is fully synced. A validator created against a lagging node will start missing blocks immediately:

pocketd status

sync_info.catching_up must be false. Do not proceed until it is.

3. pocketd installed and, if you followed the full-node script, switch to the user running the node:

su - pocket

4. Enough POKT to self-bond, plus fees. There is no protocol minimum self-bond beyond min-self-delegation in your own config — but only the top 21 validators by total bonded stake are in the active set and earning. Check the current cut-off on explorer.pocket.network/validators before deciding an amount.

Create the Validator Account

pocketd keys add validator

This prints a new address and mnemonic. Save the mnemonic offline now — it is shown once.

Set Up Environment

Keep validator environment variables in their own file:

cat << 'EOT' > ~/.pocketrc
export QUERY_FLAGS="--network=main"
export TX_PARAM_FLAGS="--from validator --fees 200000upokt --network=main"
export ADDR=$(pocketd keys show validator -a)
export VALIDATOR_ADDR=$(pocketd keys show validator -a --bech val)
EOT

echo "source ~/.pocketrc" >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.pocketrc

Use --network=beta throughout if you are practising on Beta TestNet first, which is strongly recommended.

Fund the Account

echo "Validator address: $ADDR"

Beta TestNet: fund it from faucet.beta.pocket.network, or via the CLI:

pocketd faucet fund upokt validator --network=beta

Mainnet: transfer in from an existing account:

pocketd tx bank send <SOURCE_ADDRESS> $ADDR <AMOUNT>upokt $TX_PARAM_FLAGS

Confirm it arrived:

pocketd query bank balances $ADDR $QUERY_FLAGS

Back Up Your Keys

Get the Validator Public Key

pocketd comet show-validator

Output:

{ "@type": "/cosmos.crypto.ed25519.PubKey", "key": "YourPublicKeyHere" }

Copy this whole object — it goes into validator.json next.

Create validator.json

cat << 'EOF' > validator.json
{
  "pubkey": {
    "@type": "/cosmos.crypto.ed25519.PubKey",
    "key": "YdlQyhjtrq9pk7afmz6oQ275L4FElzjzEJvB1fj3e1w="
  },
  "amount": "1000000upokt",
  "moniker": "validator",
  "identity": "",
  "website": "",
  "security": "",
  "details": "",
  "commission-rate": "0.100000000000000000",
  "commission-max-rate": "0.200000000000000000",
  "commission-max-change-rate": "0.010000000000000000",
  "min-self-delegation": "1"
}
EOF

Fields to change:

Create the Validator

pocketd tx staking create-validator ./validator.json $TX_PARAM_FLAGS

You should get a transaction hash back. Look it up on explorer.pocket.network/txs to confirm it succeeded.

Verify

pocketd query staking validator $VALIDATOR_ADDR $QUERY_FLAGS

Check that status reads BOND_STATUS_BONDED. Anything else means you are registered but not in the active set:

Your validator should also appear at explorer.pocket.network/validators within a block or two.

Staying in the Active Set

Set membership is recalculated every block against total bonded stake — self-bond plus delegations. You can be displaced without any fault of your own, simply by another validator attracting more stake. Watch your position rather than assuming it holds.

To increase your self-bond:

pocketd tx staking delegate $VALIDATOR_ADDR <amount>upokt $TX_PARAM_FLAGS

Jailing and Recovery

A validator is jailed for missing too many blocks — specifically, signing fewer than 10% of the last 200 blocks. The minimum time in jail is 600s.

While jailed you earn nothing, and neither do your delegators. Fix the underlying problem — usually a desynced, overloaded, or stopped node — then confirm the node is caught up:

pocketd status

Once catching_up is false and the jail period has elapsed:

pocketd tx slashing unjail $TX_PARAM_FLAGS

Then re-verify status as above.

Upgrades

Validators run the same binary as full nodes and follow the same upgrade path, coordinated through Cosmovisor. Missing a scheduled upgrade halts your node and gets you jailed. Track announcements in Discord and see Upgrades.

Security Practices

• Never share or expose mnemonics or private keys; store them offline.
• Never run two nodes with the same priv_validator_key.json.
• Monitor signing and sync continuously — downtime is the realistic failure mode.
• Keep enough balance in the validator account to pay transaction fees, including unjail transactions.
• Practise the whole flow on Beta TestNet before committing mainnet stake.

Related Pages

• Validators — active set and reward mechanics
• Delegation — how delegators bond to you
• Hardware Requirements — sizing and pruning
• Monitoring — alerting setup
• Upgrades — Cosmovisor upgrade path