Description

If you already have a synced Bitcoin blockchain on one StartOS server, and would like to skip IBD on another StartOS server, follow this guide.


This is an advanced feature and should be used with caution. Start9 is not responsible for any damage you might cause through SSH access.

Instructions

  1. In this guide, we will refer to your synced node as synced.local and your unsynced node as unsynced.local. Simply replace these URLs with your own.

  2. In unsynced.local UI, install Bitcoin. Do not configure or start it.

  3. In synced.local UI:

    1. Ensure you have already have an SSH key.

    2. Stop Bitcoin.

  4. SSH into synced.local:

    ssh start9@synced.local

  5. Once inside the shell, run the following commands:

    sudo -i

    mkdir -m 0700 -p .ssh

    ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -N '' -f .ssh/temp.key

    chmod 600 .ssh/temp.key*

    cat .ssh/temp.key.pub

  6. Copy the output of the final cat command to your clipboard.

  7. In unsynced.local UI, go to System > SSH > Add New Key, and paste the value from above. Click "Submit"

  8. In synced.local shell, run the following commands, replacing unsynced.local in the second command with the correct URL:

    cd /embassy-data/package-data/volumes/bitcoind/data/main/

    rsync -e "ssh -i ~/.ssh/temp.key" -povgr --append-verify --rsync-path="sudo mkdir -p /embassy-data/package-data/volumes/bitcoind/data/main ; sudo rsync" ./{blocks,chainstate} start9@unsynced.local:/embassy-data/package-data/volumes/bitcoind/data/main/

  9. Wait some hours until the copy is complete. On a gigabit network, the limiting factor will be the write speed of your SSD on the unsynced server.

  10. When the copy is complete, in synced.local shell, run the following commands:

    rm .ssh/unsynced.key*

    exit

  11. In synced.local UI, restart Bitcoin.

  12. In unsynced.local UI:

    • configure and start Bitcoin for the first time. You should see it begin at 99%+ pre-synced!

    • Delete the temp.key SSH key we added above.