Node Configs & Flags

You can specify the configuration of a node with the arguments below.

Data Directory​

--data-dir (string)​

Sets the base data directory where default sub-directories will be placed unless otherwise specified. Defaults to $HOME/.avalanchego.

Config File​

--config-file (string)​

Path to a JSON file that specifies this node's configuration. Command line arguments will override arguments set in the config file. This flag is ignored if --config-file-content is specified.

Example JSON config file:

--config-file-content (string)​

As an alternative to --config-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded config content.

--config-file-content-type (string)​

Specifies the format of the base64 encoded config content. JSON, TOML, YAML are among currently supported file format (see here for full list). Defaults to JSON.

--acp-support (array of integers)​

The --acp-support flag allows an AvalancheGo node to indicate support for a set of Avalanche Community Proposals.

--acp-object (array of integers)​

The --acp-object flag allows an AvalancheGo node to indicate objection for a set of Avalanche Community Proposals.

APIs​

--api-admin-enabled (boolean)​

If set to true, this node will expose the Admin API. Defaults to false. See here for more information.

--api-health-enabled (boolean)​

If set to false, this node will not expose the Health API. Defaults to true. See here for more information.

--index-enabled (boolean)​

If set to true, this node will enable the indexer and the Index API will be available. Defaults to false. See here for more information.

--api-info-enabled (boolean)​

If set to false, this node will not expose the Info API. Defaults to true. See here for more information.

--api-keystore-enabled (boolean)​

If set to true, this node will expose the Keystore API. Defaults to false. See here for more information.

--api-metrics-enabled (boolean)​

If set to false, this node will not expose the Metrics API. Defaults to true. See here for more information.

--http-shutdown-wait (duration)​

Duration to wait after receiving SIGTERM or SIGINT before initiating shutdown. The /health endpoint will return unhealthy during this duration (if the Health API is enabled.) Defaults to 0s.

--http-shutdown-timeout (duration)​

Maximum duration to wait for existing connections to complete during node shutdown. Defaults to 10s.

Bootstrapping​

--bootstrap-beacon-connection-timeout (duration)​

Timeout when attempting to connect to bootstrapping beacons. Defaults to 1m.

--bootstrap-ids (string)​

Bootstrap IDs is a comma-separated list of validator IDs. These IDs will be used to authenticate bootstrapping peers. An example setting of this field would be --bootstrap-ids="NodeID-7Xhw2mDxuDS44j42TCB6U5579esbSt3Lg,NodeID-MFrZFVCXPv5iCn6M9K6XduxGTYp891xXZ". The number of given IDs here must be same with number of given --bootstrap-ips. The default value depends on the network ID.

--bootstrap-ips (string)​

Bootstrap IPs is a comma-separated list of IP:port pairs. These IP Addresses will be used to bootstrap the current Avalanche state. An example setting of this field would be --bootstrap-ips="127.0.0.1:12345,1.2.3.4:5678". The number of given IPs here must be same with number of given --bootstrap-ids. The default value depends on the network ID.

--bootstrap-retry-enabled (boolean)​

If set to false, will not retry bootstrapping if it fails. Defaults to true.

--bootstrap-retry-warn-frequency (uint)​

Specifies how many times bootstrap should be retried before warning the operator. Defaults to 50.

--bootstrap-ancestors-max-containers-sent (uint)​

Max number of containers in an Ancestors message sent by this node. Defaults to 2000.

--bootstrap-ancestors-max-containers-received (unit)​

This node reads at most this many containers from an incoming Ancestors message. Defaults to 2000.

--bootstrap-max-time-get-ancestors (duration)​

Max Time to spend fetching a container and its ancestors when responding to a GetAncestors message. Defaults to 50ms.

State Syncing​

--state-sync-ids (string)​

State sync IDs is a comma-separated list of validator IDs. The specified validators will be contacted to get and authenticate the starting point (state summary) for state sync. An example setting of this field would be --state-sync-ids="NodeID-7Xhw2mDxuDS44j42TCB6U5579esbSt3Lg,NodeID-MFrZFVCXPv5iCn6M9K6XduxGTYp891xXZ". The number of given IDs here must be same with number of given --state-sync-ips. The default value is empty, which results in all validators being sampled.

--state-sync-ips (string)​

State sync IPs is a comma-separated list of IP:port pairs. These IP Addresses will be contacted to get and authenticate the starting point (state summary) for state sync. An example setting of this field would be --state-sync-ips="127.0.0.1:12345,1.2.3.4:5678". The number of given IPs here must be the same with the number of given --state-sync-ids.

Partial Sync Primary Network​

--partial-sync-primary-network (string)​

Partial sync enables non-validators to optionally sync only the P-chain on the primary network.

Chain Configs​

Some blockchains allow the node operator to provide custom configurations for individual blockchains. These custom configurations are broken down into two categories: network upgrades and optional chain configurations. AvalancheGo reads in these configurations from the chain configuration directory and passes them into the VM on initialization.

--chain-config-dir (string)​

Specifies the directory that contains chain configs, as described here. Defaults to $HOME/.avalanchego/configs/chains. If this flag is not provided and the default directory does not exist, AvalancheGo will not exit since custom configs are optional. However, if the flag is set, the specified folder must exist, or AvalancheGo will exit with an error. This flag is ignored if --chain-config-content is specified.

Network upgrades are passed in from the location: chain-config-dir/blockchainID/upgrade.*. Upgrade files are typically json encoded and therefore named upgrade.json. However, the format of the file is VM dependent. After a blockchain has activated a network upgrade, the same upgrade configuration must always be passed in to ensure that the network upgrades activate at the correct time.

The chain configs are passed in from the location chain-config-dir/blockchainID/config.*. Upgrade files are typically json encoded and therefore named upgrade.json. However, the format of the file is VM dependent. This configuration is used by the VM to handle optional configuration flags such as enabling/disabling APIs, updating log level, etc. The chain configuration is intended to provide optional configuration parameters and the VM will use default values if nothing is passed in.

Full reference for all configuration options for some standard chains can be found in a separate chain config flags document.

Full reference for subnet-evm upgrade configuration can be found in a separate Customize an Avalanche L1 document.

--chain-config-content (string)​

As an alternative to --chain-config-dir, chains custom configurations can be loaded altogether from command line via --chain-config-content flag. Content must be base64 encoded.

Example:

cchainconfig="$(echo -n '{"log-level":"trace"}' | base64)"
chainconfig="$(echo -n "{\"C\":{\"Config\":\"${cchainconfig}\",\"Upgrade\":null}}" | base64)"
avalanchego --chain-config-content "${chainconfig}"

--chain-aliases-file (string)​

Path to JSON file that defines aliases for Blockchain IDs. Defaults to ~/.avalanchego/configs/chains/aliases.json. This flag is ignored if --chain-aliases-file-content is specified. Example content:

{
  "q2aTwKuyzgs8pynF7UXBZCU7DejbZbZ6EUyHr3JQzYgwNPUPi": ["DFK"]
}

The above example aliases the Blockchain whose ID is "q2aTwKuyzgs8pynF7UXBZCU7DejbZbZ6EUyHr3JQzYgwNPUPi" to "DFK". Chain aliases are added after adding primary network aliases and before any changes to the aliases via the admin API. This means that the first alias included for a Blockchain on an Avalanche L1 will be treated as the "Primary Alias" instead of the full blockchainID. The Primary Alias is used in all metrics and logs.

--chain-aliases-file-content (string)​

As an alternative to --chain-aliases-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded aliases for Blockchains.

--chain-data-dir (string)​

Chain specific data directory. Defaults to $HOME/.avalanchego/chainData.

Database​

--db-dir (string, file path)​

Specifies the directory to which the database is persisted. Defaults to "$HOME/.avalanchego/db".

--db-type (string)​

Specifies the type of database to use. Must be one of LevelDB or memdb. memdb is an in-memory, non-persisted database.

Database Config​

--db-config-file (string)​

Path to the database config file. Ignored if --config-file-content is specified.

--db-config-file-content (string)​

As an alternative to --db-config-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded database config content.

LevelDB Config​

A LevelDB config file must be JSON and may have these keys. Any keys not given will receive the default value.

{
	// BlockCacheCapacity defines the capacity of the 'sorted table' block caching.
	// Use -1 for zero.
	//
	// The default value is 12MiB.
	"blockCacheCapacity": int

	// BlockSize is the minimum uncompressed size in bytes of each 'sorted table'
	// block.
	//
	// The default value is 4KiB.
	"blockSize": int

	// CompactionExpandLimitFactor limits compaction size after expanded.
	// This will be multiplied by table size limit at compaction target level.
	//
	// The default value is 25.
	"compactionExpandLimitFactor": int

	// CompactionGPOverlapsFactor limits overlaps in grandparent (Level + 2)
	// that a single 'sorted table' generates.  This will be multiplied by
	// table size limit at grandparent level.
	//
	// The default value is 10.
	"compactionGPOverlapsFactor": int

	// CompactionL0Trigger defines number of 'sorted table' at level-0 that will
	// trigger compaction.
	//
	// The default value is 4.
	"compactionL0Trigger": int

	// CompactionSourceLimitFactor limits compaction source size. This doesn't apply to
	// level-0.
	// This will be multiplied by table size limit at compaction target level.
	//
	// The default value is 1.
	"compactionSourceLimitFactor": int

	// CompactionTableSize limits size of 'sorted table' that compaction generates.
	// The limits for each level will be calculated as:
	//   CompactionTableSize * (CompactionTableSizeMultiplier ^ Level)
	// The multiplier for each level can also fine-tuned using CompactionTableSizeMultiplierPerLevel.
	//
	// The default value is 2MiB.
	"compactionTableSize": int

	// CompactionTableSizeMultiplier defines multiplier for CompactionTableSize.
	//
	// The default value is 1.
	"compactionTableSizeMultiplier": float

	// CompactionTableSizeMultiplierPerLevel defines per-level multiplier for
	// CompactionTableSize.
	// Use zero to skip a level.
	//
	// The default value is nil.
	"compactionTableSizeMultiplierPerLevel": []float

	// CompactionTotalSize limits total size of 'sorted table' for each level.
	// The limits for each level will be calculated as:
	//   CompactionTotalSize * (CompactionTotalSizeMultiplier ^ Level)
	// The multiplier for each level can also fine-tuned using
	// CompactionTotalSizeMultiplierPerLevel.
	//
	// The default value is 10MiB.
	"compactionTotalSize": int

	// CompactionTotalSizeMultiplier defines multiplier for CompactionTotalSize.
	//
	// The default value is 10.
	"compactionTotalSizeMultiplier": float

	// DisableSeeksCompaction allows disabling 'seeks triggered compaction'.
	// The purpose of 'seeks triggered compaction' is to optimize database so
	// that 'level seeks' can be minimized, however this might generate many
	// small compaction which may not preferable.
	//
	// The default is true.
	"disableSeeksCompaction": bool

	// OpenFilesCacheCapacity defines the capacity of the open files caching.
	// Use -1 for zero, this has same effect as specifying NoCacher to OpenFilesCacher.
	//
	// The default value is 1024.
	"openFilesCacheCapacity": int

	// WriteBuffer defines maximum size of a 'memdb' before flushed to
	// 'sorted table'. 'memdb' is an in-memory DB backed by an on-disk
	// unsorted journal.
	//
	// LevelDB may held up to two 'memdb' at the same time.
	//
	// The default value is 6MiB.
	"writeBuffer": int

	// FilterBitsPerKey is the number of bits to add to the bloom filter per
	// key.
	//
	// The default value is 10.
	"filterBitsPerKey": int

	// MaxManifestFileSize is the maximum size limit of the MANIFEST-****** file.
	// When the MANIFEST-****** file grows beyond this size, LevelDB will create
	// a new MANIFEST file.
	//
	// The default value is infinity.
	"maxManifestFileSize": int

	// MetricUpdateFrequency is the frequency to poll LevelDB metrics in
	// nanoseconds.
	// If <= 0, LevelDB metrics aren't polled.
	//
	// The default value is 10s.
	"metricUpdateFrequency": int
}

Genesis​

--genesis-file (string)​

Path to a JSON file containing the genesis data to use. Ignored when running standard networks (Mainnet, Fuji Testnet), or when --genesis-content is specified. If not given, uses default genesis data.

These are the main properties in the JSON file:

• networkID: A unique identifier for the blockchain, must be a number in the range [0, 2^32).
• allocations: The list of initial addresses, their initial balances and the unlock schedule for each.
• startTime: The time of the beginning of the blockchain, it must be a Unix timestamp and it can't be a time in the future.
• initialStakeDuration: The stake duration, in seconds, of the validators that exist at network genesis.
• initialStakeDurationOffset: The offset, in seconds, between the start times of the validators that exist at genesis.
• initialStakedFunds: A list of addresses that own the funds staked at genesis (each address must be present in allocations as well)
• initialStakers: The validators that exist at genesis. Each element contains the rewardAddress, NodeID and the delegationFee of the validator.
• cChainGenesis: The genesis info to be passed to the C-Chain.
• message: A message to include in the genesis. Not required.

For an example of a JSON representation of genesis data, see genesis_local.json.

--genesis-file-content (string)​

As an alternative to --genesis-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded genesis data to use.

HTTP Server​

--http-host (string)​

The address that HTTP APIs listen on. Defaults to 127.0.0.1. This means that by default, your node can only handle API calls made from the same machine. To allow API calls from other machines, use --http-host=. You can also enter domain names as parameter.

--http-port (int)​

Each node runs an HTTP server that provides the APIs for interacting with the node and the Avalanche network. This argument specifies the port that the HTTP server will listen on. The default value is 9650.

--http-tls-cert-file (string, file path)​

This argument specifies the location of the TLS certificate used by the node for the HTTPS server. This must be specified when --http-tls-enabled=true. There is no default value. This flag is ignored if --http-tls-cert-file-content is specified.

--http-tls-cert-file-content (string)​

As an alternative to --http-tls-cert-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded content of the TLS certificate used by the node for the HTTPS server. Note that full certificate content, with the leading and trailing header, must be base64 encoded. This must be specified when --http-tls-enabled=true.

--http-tls-enabled (boolean)​

If set to true, this flag will attempt to upgrade the server to use HTTPS. Defaults to false.

--http-tls-key-file (string, file path)​

This argument specifies the location of the TLS private key used by the node for the HTTPS server. This must be specified when --http-tls-enabled=true. There is no default value. This flag is ignored if --http-tls-key-file-content is specified.

--http-tls-key-file-content (string)​

As an alternative to --http-tls-key-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded content of the TLS private key used by the node for the HTTPS server. Note that full private key content, with the leading and trailing header, must be base64 encoded. This must be specified when --http-tls-enabled=true.

--http-read-timeout (string)​

Maximum duration for reading the entire request, including the body. A zero or negative value means there will be no timeout.

Maximum duration to read request headers. The connection's read deadline is reset after reading the headers. If --http-read-header-timeout is zero, the value of --http-read-timeout is used. If both are zero, there is no timeout.

--http-write-timeout (string)​

Maximum duration before timing out writes of the response. It is reset whenever a new request's header is read. A zero or negative value means there will be no timeout.

--http-idle-timeout (string)​

Maximum duration to wait for the next request when keep-alives are enabled. If --http-idle-timeout is zero, the value of --http-read-timeout is used. If both are zero, there is no timeout.

--http-allowed-origins (string)​

Origins to allow on the HTTP port. Defaults to * which allows all origins. Example: "https://*.avax.network https://*.avax-test.network"

--http-allowed-hosts (string)​

List of acceptable host names in API requests. Provide the wildcard ('*') to accept requests from all hosts. API requests where the Host field is empty or an IP address will always be accepted. An API call whose HTTP Host field isn't acceptable will receive a 403 error code. Defaults to localhost.

File Descriptor Limit​

--fd-limit (int)​

Attempts to raise the process file descriptor limit to at least this value and error if the value is above the system max. Linux default 32768.

Logging​

--log-level (string, {verbo, debug, trace, info, warn, error, fatal, off})​

The log level determines which events to log. There are 8 different levels, in order from highest priority to lowest.

• off: No logs have this level of logging. Turns off logging.
• fatal: Fatal errors that are not recoverable.
• error: Errors that the node encounters, these errors were able to be recovered.
• warn: A Warning that might be indicative of a spurious byzantine node, or potential future error.
• info: Useful descriptions of node status updates.
• trace: Traces container (block, vertex, transaction) job results. Useful for tracing container IDs and their outcomes.
• debug: Debug logging is useful when attempting to understand possible bugs in the code. More information that would be typically desired for normal usage will be displayed.
• verbo: Tracks extensive amounts of information the node is processing. This includes message contents and binary dumps of data for extremely low level protocol analysis.

When specifying a log level note that all logs with the specified priority or higher will be tracked. Defaults to info.

--log-display-level (string, {verbo, debug, trace, info, warn, error, fatal, off})​

The log level determines which events to display to stdout. If left blank, will default to the value provided to --log-level.

--log-format (string, {auto, plain, colors, json})​

The structure of log format. Defaults to auto which formats terminal-like logs, when the output is a terminal. Otherwise, should be one of {auto, plain, colors, json}

--log-dir (string, file path)​

Specifies the directory in which system logs are kept. Defaults to "$HOME/.avalanchego/logs". If you are running the node as a system service (ex. using the installer script) logs will also be stored in $HOME/var/log/syslog.

--log-disable-display-plugin-logs (boolean)​

Disables displaying plugin logs in stdout. Defaults to false.

--log-rotater-max-size (uint)​

The maximum file size in megabytes of the log file before it gets rotated. Defaults to 8.

--log-rotater-max-files (uint)​

The maximum number of old log files to retain. 0 means retain all old log files. Defaults to 7.

--log-rotater-max-age (uint)​

The maximum number of days to retain old log files based on the timestamp encoded in their filename. 0 means retain all old log files. Defaults to 0.

--log-rotater-compress-enabled (boolean)​

Enables the compression of rotated log files through gzip. Defaults to false.

Network ID​

--network-id (string)​

The identity of the network the node should connect to. Can be one of:

• --network-id=mainnet -> Connect to Mainnet (default).
• --network-id=fuji -> Connect to the Fuji test-network.
• --network-id=testnet -> Connect to the current test-network. (Right now, this is Fuji.)
• --network-id=local -> Connect to a local test-network.
• --network-id=network-{id} -> Connect to the network with the given ID. id must be in the range [0, 2^32).

OpenTelemetry​

AvalancheGo supports collecting and exporting OpenTelemetry traces. This might be useful for debugging, performance analysis, or monitoring.

--tracing-enabled (boolean)​

If true, enable OpenTelemetry tracing. Defaults to false.

--tracing-endpoint (string)​

The endpoint to export trace data to. Defaults to localhost:4317.

--tracing-insecure (string)​

If true, don't use TLS when exporting trace data. Defaults to true.

--tracing-sample-rate (float)​

The fraction of traces to sample. If >= 1, always sample. If <= 0, never sample. Defaults to 0.1.

--tracing-exporter-type(string)​

Type of exporter to use for tracing. Options are [grpc,http]. Defaults to grpc.

Public IP​

Validators must know one of their public facing IP addresses so they can enable other nodes to connect to them.

By default, the node will attempt to perform NAT traversal to get the node's IP according to its router.

--public-ip (string)​

If this argument is provided, the node assume this is its public IP.

--public-ip-resolution-frequency (duration)​

Frequency at which this node resolves/updates its public IP and renew NAT mappings, if applicable. Default to 5 minutes.

--public-ip-resolution-service (string)​

When provided, the node will use that service to periodically resolve/update its public IP. Only acceptable values are ifconfigCo, opendns or ifconfigMe.

Staking​

--staking-port (int)​

The port through which the network peers will connect to this node externally. Having this port accessible from the internet is required for correct node operation. Defaults to 9651.

--sybil-protection-enabled (boolean)​

Avalanche uses Proof of Stake (PoS) as sybil resistance to make it prohibitively expensive to attack the network. If false, sybil resistance is disabled and all peers will be sampled during consensus. Defaults to true. Note that this can not be disabled on public networks (Fuji and Mainnet).

Setting this flag to false does not mean "this node is not a validator." It means that this node will sample all nodes, not just validators. You should not set this flag to false unless you understand what you are doing.

--sybil-protection-disabled-weight (uint)​

Weight to provide to each peer when staking is disabled. Defaults to 100.

--staking-tls-cert-file (string, file path)​

Avalanche uses two-way authenticated TLS connections to securely connect nodes. This argument specifies the location of the TLS certificate used by the node. By default, the node expects the TLS certificate to be at $HOME/.avalanchego/staking/staker.crt. This flag is ignored if --staking-tls-cert-file-content is specified.

--staking-tls-cert-file-content (string)​

As an alternative to --staking-tls-cert-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded content of the TLS certificate used by the node. Note that full certificate content, with the leading and trailing header, must be base64 encoded.

--staking-tls-key-file (string, file path)​

Avalanche uses two-way authenticated TLS connections to securely connect nodes. This argument specifies the location of the TLS private key used by the node. By default, the node expects the TLS private key to be at $HOME/.avalanchego/staking/staker.key. This flag is ignored if --staking-tls-key-file-content is specified.

--staking-tls-key-file-content (string)​

As an alternative to --staking-tls-key-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded content of the TLS private key used by the node. Note that full private key content, with the leading and trailing header, must be base64 encoded.

Avalanche L1s​

Avalanche L1 Tracking​

--track-subnets (string)​

Comma separated list of Avalanche L1 SubnetIDs that this node would track if added to. Defaults to empty (will only validate the Primary Network).

Avalanche L1 Configs​

It is possible to provide parameters for Avalanche L1s. Parameters here apply to all chains in the specified Avalanche L1s. Parameters must be specified with a {subnetID}.json config file under --subnet-config-dir. AvalancheGo loads configs for Avalanche L1s specified in --track-subnets parameter.

Full reference for all configuration options for an Avalanche L1 can be found in a separate Avalanche L1 Configs document.

--subnet-config-dir (string)​

Specifies the directory that contains Avalanche L1 configs, as described above. Defaults to $HOME/.avalanchego/configs/subnets. If the flag is set explicitly, the specified folder must exist, or AvalancheGo will exit with an error. This flag is ignored if --subnet-config-content is specified.

Example: Let's say we have an Avalanche L1 with ID p4jUwqZsA2LuSftroCd3zb4ytH8W99oXKuKVZdsty7eQ3rXD6. We can create a config file under the default subnet-config-dir at $HOME/.avalanchego/configs/subnets/p4jUwqZsA2LuSftroCd3zb4ytH8W99oXKuKVZdsty7eQ3rXD6.json. An example config file is:

{
  "validatorOnly": false,
  "consensusParameters": {
    "k": 25,
    "alpha": 18
  }
}

--subnet-config-content (string)​

As an alternative to --subnet-config-dir, it allows specifying base64 encoded parameters for an Avalanche L1.

Version​

--version (boolean)​

If this is true, print the version and quit. Defaults to false.

Advanced Options​

The following options may affect the correctness of a node. Only power users should change these.

Gossiping​

--consensus-accepted-frontier-gossip-validator-size (uint)​

Number of validators to gossip to when gossiping accepted frontier. Defaults to 0.

--consensus-accepted-frontier-gossip-non-validator-size (uint)​

Number of non-validators to gossip to when gossiping accepted frontier. Defaults to 0.

--consensus-accepted-frontier-gossip-peer-size (uint)​

Number of peers to gossip to when gossiping accepted frontier. Defaults to 15.

--consensus-accepted-frontier-gossip-frequency (duration)​

Time between gossiping accepted frontiers. Defaults to 10s.

--consensus-on-accept-gossip-validator-size (uint)​

Number of validators to gossip to each accepted container to. Defaults to 0.

--consensus-on-accept-gossip-non-validator-size (uint)​

Number of non-validators to gossip to each accepted container to. Defaults to 0.

--consensus-on-accept-gossip-peer-size (uint)​

Number of peers to gossip to each accepted container to. Defaults to 10.

Benchlist​

--benchlist-duration (duration)​

Maximum amount of time a peer is benchlisted after surpassing --benchlist-fail-threshold. Defaults to 15m.

--benchlist-fail-threshold (int)​

Number of consecutive failed queries to a node before benching it (assuming all queries to it will fail). Defaults to 10.

--benchlist-min-failing-duration (duration)​

Minimum amount of time queries to a peer must be failing before the peer is benched. Defaults to 150s.

Consensus Parameters​

--consensus-shutdown-timeout (duration)​

Timeout before killing an unresponsive chain. Defaults to 5s.

--create-asset-tx-fee (int)​

Transaction fee, in nAVAX, for transactions that create new assets. Defaults to 10000000 nAVAX (.01 AVAX) per transaction. This can only be changed on a local network.

--create-subnet-tx-fee (int)​

Transaction fee, in nAVAX, for transactions that create new Avalanche L1s. Defaults to 1000000000 nAVAX (1 AVAX) per transaction. This can only be changed on a local network.

--create-blockchain-tx-fee (int)​

Transaction fee, in nAVAX, for transactions that create new blockchains. Defaults to 1000000000 nAVAX (1 AVAX) per transaction. This can only be changed on a local network.

--transform-subnet-tx-fee (int)​

Transaction fee, in nAVAX, for transactions that transform Avalanche L1s. Defaults to 1000000000 nAVAX (1 AVAX) per transaction. This can only be changed on a local network.

--add-primary-network-validator-fee (int)​

Transaction fee, in nAVAX, for transactions that add new primary network validators. Defaults to 0. This can only be changed on a local network.

--add-primary-network-delegator-fee (int)​

Transaction fee, in nAVAX, for transactions that add new primary network delegators. Defaults to 0. This can only be changed on a local network.

--add-subnet-validator-fee (int)​

Transaction fee, in nAVAX, for transactions that add new Avalanche L1 validators. Defaults to 10000000 nAVAX (.01 AVAX).

--add-subnet-delegator-fee (int)​

Transaction fee, in nAVAX, for transactions that add new Avalanche L1 delegators. Defaults to 10000000 nAVAX (.01 AVAX).

--min-delegator-stake (int)​

The minimum stake, in nAVAX, that can be delegated to a validator of the Primary Network.

Defaults to 25000000000 (25 AVAX) on Mainnet. Defaults to 5000000 (.005 AVAX) on Test Net. This can only be changed on a local network.

--min-delegation-fee (int)​

The minimum delegation fee that can be charged for delegation on the Primary Network, multiplied by 10,000 . Must be in the range [0, 1000000]. Defaults to 20000 (2%) on Mainnet. This can only be changed on a local network.

--min-stake-duration (duration)​

Minimum staking duration. The Default on Mainnet is 336h (two weeks). This can only be changed on a local network. This applies to both delegation and validation periods.

--min-validator-stake (int)​

The minimum stake, in nAVAX, required to validate the Primary Network. This can only be changed on a local network.

Defaults to 2000000000000 (2,000 AVAX) on Mainnet. Defaults to 5000000 (.005 AVAX) on Test Net.

--max-stake-duration (duration)​

The maximum staking duration, in hours. Defaults to 8760h (365 days) on Mainnet. This can only be changed on a local network.

--max-validator-stake (int)​

The maximum stake, in nAVAX, that can be placed on a validator on the primary network. Defaults to 3000000000000000 (3,000,000 AVAX) on Mainnet. This includes stake provided by both the validator and by delegators to the validator. This can only be changed on a local network.

--stake-minting-period (duration)​

Consumption period of the staking function, in hours. The Default on Mainnet is 8760h (365 days). This can only be changed on a local network.

--stake-max-consumption-rate (uint)​

The maximum percentage of the consumption rate for the remaining token supply in the minting period, which is 1 year on Mainnet. Defaults to 120,000 which is 12% per years. This can only be changed on a local network.

--stake-min-consumption-rate (uint)​

The minimum percentage of the consumption rate for the remaining token supply in the minting period, which is 1 year on Mainnet. Defaults to 100,000 which is 10% per years. This can only be changed on a local network.

--stake-supply-cap (uint)​

The maximum stake supply, in nAVAX, that can be placed on a validator. Defaults to 720,000,000,000,000,000 nAVAX. This can only be changed on a local network.

--tx-fee (int)​

The required amount of nAVAX to be burned for a transaction to be valid on the X-Chain, and for import/export transactions on the P-Chain. This parameter requires network agreement in its current form. Changing this value from the default should only be done on private networks or local network. Defaults to 1,000,000 nAVAX per transaction.

--uptime-requirement (float)​

Fraction of time a validator must be online to receive rewards. Defaults to 0.8. This can only be changed on a local network.

--uptime-metric-freq (duration)​

Frequency of renewing this node's average uptime metric. Defaults to 30s.

Snow Parameters​

--snow-concurrent-repolls (int)​

Snow consensus requires repolling transactions that are issued during low time of network usage. This parameter lets one define how aggressive the client will be in finalizing these pending transactions. This should only be changed after careful consideration of the tradeoffs of Snow consensus. The value must be at least 1 and at most --snow-rogue-commit-threshold. Defaults to 4.

--snow-sample-size (int)​

Snow consensus defines k as the number of validators that are sampled during each network poll. This parameter lets one define the k value used for consensus. This should only be changed after careful consideration of the tradeoffs of Snow consensus. The value must be at least 1. Defaults to 20.

--snow-quorum-size (int)​

Snow consensus defines alpha as the number of validators that must prefer a transaction during each network poll to increase the confidence in the transaction. This parameter lets us define the alpha value used for consensus. This should only be changed after careful consideration of the tradeoffs of Snow consensus. The value must be at greater than k/2. Defaults to 15.

--snow-virtuous-commit-threshold (int)​

Snow consensus defines beta1 as the number of consecutive polls that a virtuous transaction must increase its confidence for it to be accepted. This parameter lets us define the beta1 value used for consensus. This should only be changed after careful consideration of the tradeoffs of Snow consensus. The value must be at least 1. Defaults to 15.

--snow-rogue-commit-threshold (int)​

Snow consensus defines beta2 as the number of consecutive polls that a rogue transaction must increase its confidence for it to be accepted. This parameter lets us define the beta2 value used for consensus. This should only be changed after careful consideration of the tradeoffs of Snow consensus. The value must be at least beta1. Defaults to 20.

--snow-optimal-processing (int)​

Optimal number of processing items in consensus. The value must be at least 1. Defaults to 50.

--snow-max-processing (int)​

Maximum number of processing items to be considered healthy. Reports unhealthy if more than this number of items are outstanding. The value must be at least 1. Defaults to 1024.

--snow-max-time-processing (duration)​

Maximum amount of time an item should be processing and still be healthy. Reports unhealthy if there is an item processing for longer than this duration. The value must be greater than 0. Defaults to 2m.

ProposerVM Parameters​

--proposervm-use-current-height (bool)​

Have the ProposerVM always report the last accepted P-chain block height. Defaults to false.

Continuous Profiling​

You can configure your node to continuously run memory/CPU profiles and save the most recent ones. Continuous memory/CPU profiling is enabled if --profile-continuous-enabled is set.

--profile-continuous-enabled (boolean)​

Whether the app should continuously produce performance profiles. Defaults to the false (not enabled).

--profile-dir (string)​

If profiling enabled, node continuously runs memory/CPU profiles and puts them at this directory. Defaults to the $HOME/.avalanchego/profiles/.

--profile-continuous-freq (duration)​

How often a new CPU/memory profile is created. Defaults to 15m.

--profile-continuous-max-files (int)​

Maximum number of CPU/memory profiles files to keep. Defaults to 5.

Health​

--health-check-frequency (duration)​

Health check runs with this frequency. Defaults to 30s.

--health-check-averager-halflife (duration)​

Half life of averagers used in health checks (to measure the rate of message failures, for example.) Larger value --> less volatile calculation of averages. Defaults to 10s.

Network​

--network-allow-private-ips (bool)​

Allows the node to connect peers with private IPs. Defaults to true.

--network-compression-type (string)​

The type of compression to use when sending messages to peers. Defaults to gzip. Must be one of [gzip, zstd, none].

Nodes can handle inbound gzip compressed messages but by default send zstd compressed messages.

--network-initial-timeout (duration)​

Initial timeout value of the adaptive timeout manager. Defaults to 5s.

--network-initial-reconnect-delay (duration)​

Initial delay duration must be waited before attempting to reconnect a peer. Defaults to 1s.

--network-max-reconnect-delay (duration)​

Maximum delay duration must be waited before attempting to reconnect a peer. Defaults to 1h.

--network-minimum-timeout (duration)​

Minimum timeout value of the adaptive timeout manager. Defaults to 2s.

--network-maximum-timeout (duration)​

Maximum timeout value of the adaptive timeout manager. Defaults to 10s.

--network-maximum-inbound-timeout (duration)​

Maximum timeout value of an inbound message. Defines duration within which an incoming message must be fulfilled. Incoming messages containing deadline higher than this value will be overridden with this value. Defaults to 10s.

--network-timeout-halflife (duration)​

Half life used when calculating average network latency. Larger value --> less volatile network latency calculation. Defaults to 5m.

--network-timeout-coefficient (duration)​

Requests to peers will time out after [network-timeout-coefficient] * [average request latency]. Defaults to 2.

--network-read-handshake-timeout (duration)​

Timeout value for reading handshake messages. Defaults to 15s.

--network-ping-timeout (duration)​

Timeout value for Ping-Pong with a peer. Defaults to 30s.

--network-ping-frequency (duration)​

Frequency of pinging other peers. Defaults to 22.5s.

--network-health-min-conn-peers (uint)​

Node will report unhealthy if connected to less than this many peers. Defaults to 1.

--network-health-max-time-since-msg-received (duration)​

Node will report unhealthy if it hasn't received a message for this amount of time. Defaults to 1m.

--network-health-max-time-since-msg-sent (duration)​

Network layer returns unhealthy if haven't sent a message for at least this much time. Defaults to 1m.

--network-health-max-portion-send-queue-full (float)​

Node will report unhealthy if its send queue is more than this portion full. Must be in [0,1]. Defaults to 0.9.

--network-health-max-send-fail-rate (float)​

Node will report unhealthy if more than this portion of message sends fail. Must be in [0,1]. Defaults to 0.25.

--network-health-max-outstanding-request-duration (duration)​

Node reports unhealthy if there has been a request outstanding for this duration. Defaults to 5m.

--network-max-clock-difference (duration)​

Max allowed clock difference value between this node and peers. Defaults to 1m.

--network-require-validator-to-connect (bool)​

If true, this node will only maintain a connection with another node if this node is a validator, the other node is a validator, or the other node is a beacon.

--network-tcp-proxy-enabled (bool)​

Require all P2P connections to be initiated with a TCP proxy header. Defaults to false.

--network-tcp-proxy-read-timeout (duration)​

Maximum duration to wait for a TCP proxy header. Defaults to 3s.

--network-outbound-connection-timeout (duration)​

Timeout while dialing a peer. Defaults to 30s.

Message Rate-Limiting​

These flags govern rate-limiting of inbound and outbound messages. For more information on rate-limiting and the flags below, see package throttling in AvalancheGo.

CPU Based​

Rate-limiting based on how much CPU usage a peer causes.

--throttler-inbound-cpu-validator-alloc (float)​

Number of CPU allocated for use by validators. Value should be in range (0, total core count]. Defaults to half of the number of CPUs on the machine.

--throttler-inbound-cpu-max-recheck-delay (duration)​

In the CPU rate-limiter, check at least this often whether the node's CPU usage has fallen to an acceptable level. Defaults to 5s.

--throttler-inbound-disk-max-recheck-delay (duration)​

In the disk-based network throttler, check at least this often whether the node's disk usage has fallen to an acceptable level. Defaults to 5s.

--throttler-inbound-cpu-max-non-validator-usage (float)​

Number of CPUs that if fully utilized, will rate limit all non-validators. Value should be in range [0, total core count]. Defaults to %80 of the number of CPUs on the machine.

--throttler-inbound-cpu-max-non-validator-node-usage (float)​

Maximum number of CPUs that a non-validator can utilize. Value should be in range [0, total core count]. Defaults to the number of CPUs / 8.

--throttler-inbound-disk-validator-alloc (float)​

Maximum number of disk reads/writes per second to allocate for use by validators. Must be > 0. Defaults to 1000 GiB/s.

--throttler-inbound-disk-max-non-validator-usage (float)​

Number of disk reads/writes per second that, if fully utilized, will rate limit all non-validators. Must be >= 0. Defaults to 1000 GiB/s.

--throttler-inbound-disk-max-non-validator-node-usage (float)​

Maximum number of disk reads/writes per second that a non-validator can utilize. Must be >= 0. Defaults to 1000 GiB/s.

Bandwidth Based​

Rate-limiting based on the bandwidth a peer uses.

--throttler-inbound-bandwidth-refill-rate (uint)​

Max average inbound bandwidth usage of a peer, in bytes per second. See interface throttling.BandwidthThrottler. Defaults to 512.

--throttler-inbound-bandwidth-max-burst-size (uint)​

Max inbound bandwidth a node can use at once. See interface throttling.BandwidthThrottler. Defaults to 2 MiB.

Message Size Based​

Rate-limiting based on the total size, in bytes, of unprocessed messages.

--throttler-inbound-at-large-alloc-size (uint)​

Size, in bytes, of at-large allocation in the inbound message throttler. Defaults to 6291456 (6 MiB).

--throttler-inbound-validator-alloc-size (uint)​

Size, in bytes, of validator allocation in the inbound message throttler. Defaults to 33554432 (32 MiB).

--throttler-inbound-node-max-at-large-bytes (uint)​

Maximum number of bytes a node can take from the at-large allocation of the inbound message throttler. Defaults to 2097152 (2 MiB).

Message Based​

Rate-limiting based on the number of unprocessed messages.

--throttler-inbound-node-max-processing-msgs (uint)​

Node will stop reading messages from a peer when it is processing this many messages from the peer. Will resume reading messages from the peer when it is processing less than this many messages. Defaults to 1024.

Outbound​

Rate-limiting for outbound messages.

--throttler-outbound-at-large-alloc-size (uint)​

Size, in bytes, of at-large allocation in the outbound message throttler. Defaults to 33554432 (32 MiB).

--throttler-outbound-validator-alloc-size (uint)​

Size, in bytes, of validator allocation in the outbound message throttler. Defaults to 33554432 (32 MiB).

--throttler-outbound-node-max-at-large-bytes (uint)​

Maximum number of bytes a node can take from the at-large allocation of the outbound message throttler. Defaults to 2097152 (2 MiB).

Connection Rate-Limiting​

--network-inbound-connection-throttling-cooldown (duration)​

Node will upgrade an inbound connection from a given IP at most once within this duration. Defaults to 10s. If 0 or negative, will not consider recency of last upgrade when deciding whether to upgrade.

--network-inbound-connection-throttling-max-conns-per-sec (uint)​

Node will accept at most this many inbound connections per second. Defaults to 512.

--network-outbound-connection-throttling-rps (uint)​

Node makes at most this many outgoing peer connection attempts per second. Defaults to 50.

Peer List Gossiping​

Nodes gossip peers to each other so that each node can have an up-to-date peer list. A node gossips --network-peer-list-num-validator-ips validator IPs to --network-peer-list-validator-gossip-size validators, --network-peer-list-non-validator-gossip-size non-validators and --network-peer-list-peers-gossip-size peers every --network-peer-list-gossip-frequency.

--network-peer-list-num-validator-ips (int)​

Number of validator IPs to gossip to other nodes Defaults to 15.

--network-peer-list-validator-gossip-size (int)​

Number of validators that the node will gossip peer list to. Defaults to 20.

--network-peer-list-non-validator-gossip-size (int)​

Number of non-validators that the node will gossip peer list to. Defaults to 0.

--network-peer-list-peers-gossip-size (int)​

Number of total peers (including non-validator or validator) that the node will gossip peer list to Defaults to 0.

--network-peer-list-gossip-frequency (duration)​

Frequency to gossip peers to other nodes. Defaults to 1m.

--network-peer-read-buffer-size (int)​

Size of the buffer that peer messages are read into (there is one buffer per peer), defaults to 8 KiB (8192 Bytes).

--network-peer-write-buffer-size (int)​

Size of the buffer that peer messages are written into (there is one buffer per peer), defaults to 8 KiB (8192 Bytes).

Resource Usage Tracking​

--meter-vm-enabled (bool)​

Enable Meter VMs to track VM performance with more granularity. Defaults to true.

--system-tracker-frequency (duration)​

Frequency to check the real system usage of tracked processes. More frequent checks --> usage metrics are more accurate, but more expensive to track. Defaults to 500ms.

--system-tracker-processing-halflife (duration)​

Half life to use for the processing requests tracker. Larger half life --> usage metrics change more slowly. Defaults to 15s.

--system-tracker-cpu-halflife (duration)​

Half life to use for the CPU tracker. Larger half life --> CPU usage metrics change more slowly. Defaults to 15s.

--system-tracker-disk-halflife (duration)​

Half life to use for the disk tracker. Larger half life --> disk usage metrics change more slowly. Defaults to 1m.

--system-tracker-disk-required-available-space (uint)​

"Minimum number of available bytes on disk, under which the node will shutdown. Defaults to 536870912 (512 MiB).

--system-tracker-disk-warning-threshold-available-space (uint)​

Warning threshold for the number of available bytes on disk, under which the node will be considered unhealthy. Must be >= --system-tracker-disk-required-available-space. Defaults to 1073741824 (1 GiB).

Plugins​

--plugin-dir (string)​

Sets the directory for VM plugins. The default value is $HOME/.avalanchego/plugins.

Virtual Machine (VM) Configs​

--vm-aliases-file (string)​

Path to JSON file that defines aliases for Virtual Machine IDs. Defaults to ~/.avalanchego/configs/vms/aliases.json. This flag is ignored if --vm-aliases-file-content is specified. Example content:

{
  "tGas3T58KzdjLHhBDMnH2TvrddhqTji5iZAMZ3RXs2NLpSnhH": [
    "timestampvm",
    "timerpc"
  ]
}

The above example aliases the VM whose ID is "tGas3T58KzdjLHhBDMnH2TvrddhqTji5iZAMZ3RXs2NLpSnhH" to "timestampvm" and "timerpc".

--vm-aliases-file-content (string)

As an alternative to --vm-aliases-file, it allows specifying base64 encoded aliases for Virtual Machine IDs.

Indexing​

--index-allow-incomplete (boolean)​

If true, allow running the node in such a way that could cause an index to miss transactions. Ignored if index is disabled. Defaults to false.

Router​

--router-health-max-drop-rate (float)​

Node reports unhealthy if the router drops more than this portion of messages. Defaults to 1.

--router-health-max-outstanding-requests (uint)​

Node reports unhealthy if there are more than this many outstanding consensus requests (Get, PullQuery, etc.) over all chains. Defaults to 1024.