IxianDLT was tested on macOS 10.15 Catalina and newer

Installing an Ixian DLT Node on macOS

Prerequisites

• Operating system: macOS 10.15 or higher
• RAM: at least 16 GB
• CPU: i3/i5/i7/Xeon or M series
• Free Disk Space: 1.5 TB+, 2 TB+ Recommended
• Internet Connection Speed: 50 Mbps symmetrical or higher, 100 Mbps recommended

Additional requirements

• Ability to forward a port from the public internet to the machine running the DLT Node. (Default port is TCP 10234.)

Install required software

1. Install dotnet SDK for macOS from here: dotnet8.0 download.

2. Install git from the Git Download page

3. Prepare a directory for the Ixian Project. The commands should be executed in the Terminal:

mkdir ~/Ixian
cd ~/Ixian

4. Acquire the latest Ixian sources from github. Two repositories are required to build a DLT Master node:

git clone -b master https://github.com/ixian-platform/Ixian-Core.git
git clone -b master https://github.com/ixian-platform/Ixian-DLT.git

The directory structure should look like this:

.
..
Ixian-Core
Ixian-DLT

5. Switch into the Ixian-DLT directory and download the required NuGet packages:

cd Ixian-DLT
dotnet restore

6. Compile the DLT Node executable in the 'Release Configuration':

dotnet build --configuration Release

7. Ixian DLT Node requires the Argon2 library to function. In order to build one for your system, follow these steps: ..a. Obtain the Argon2 source code from github:

cd ~/Ixian
git clone https://github.com/P-H-C/phc-winner-argon2.git

..b. Compile the Argon2 source:

cd phc-winner-argon2
make

..c. Copy the resulting Argon2 library to the IxianDLT folder. Please note that the file should be renamed to 'libargon2.dylib':

cp libargon2.1.dylib ~/Ixian/Ixian-DLT/IxianDLT/bin/Release/net8.0/libargon2.dylib

8. Switch to the Ixian binaries folder:

cd ~/Ixian/Ixian-DLT/IxianDLT/bin/Release

The Ixian DLT node is now ready to start.

Running the software

Switch to the Ixian DLT binaries folder and issue the command to start the Ixian DLT software:

./IxianDLT

If you're on a console-only environment with no GUI, issue this command instead:

./IxianDLT --disableWebStart

Alternatively you can also start the Ixian DLT with this command:

dotnet IxianDLT.dll --disableWebStart

The output should look like this:

Creating a wallet

If this is the first time that you're starting Ixian DLT, a new wallet will be generated for you. You have to set your new wallet's password to proceed. This password will be used to encrypt the ixian.wal wallet file and will be required every time you start the Ixian DLT node.

It is recommended to periodically copy the wallet to a safe location, preferably to an offline media (USB Key), or a different machine. The file is encrypted using AES-256. The wallet file is called ixian.wal.

Verifying the status of the DLT Node

While the node is running, it will display a logo and some basic information in the command window. Please do not close this window, as closing it will cause the DLT Node to shut down.

When the Ixian DLT Node first starts, the status text will display synchronizing while the software is retrieving the required information from the DLT network. When this process has been completed, the status text will change to active.

If the DLT Node is shut down and later restarted, it will have to synchronize again, but since most of the data will already be stored on the local disk, the synchronization phase will be much shorter.

Using your Ixian wallet

In order to interact with the running DLT Node and use the built-in wallet software, open a web browser and navigate to http://localhost:8081.

If you have configured a different API Port, then change the port number in the link like so: http://localhost:PORT_NUMBER.

The Ixian built-in Wallet looks like this:

Upgrading the DLT Node software

When a new version is released, you can upgrade the software using the following checklist:

0. Save the ixian wallet file: cp ~/Ixian/Ixian-DLT/IxianDLT/bin/Release/net8.0/ixian.wal ~/ixian.wal.backup.
1. Shutdown the Ixian DLT Node.
2. Switch to the Ixian-Core directory: cd ~/Ixian/Ixian-Core.
3. Update the sources to the latest version: git pull.
4. Switch to the Ixian-DLT directory: cd ~/Ixian/Ixian-DLT.
5. Update the sources to the latest version: git pull.
6. Update nuget packages: dotnet restore.
7. Compile the new sources: dotnet build --configuration Release.
8. Start the Ixian DLT Node again. The node will use the existing wallet file and downloaded data, so it will not need to generate a new wallet or synchronize again.

Note: It is recommended to backup the wallet file ixian.wal before performing any upgrade or changing any settings on the command line.

Configuration

See DLT Node Configuration options for details.