#Using the Install Script

A step-by-step guide on how to prepare a fully-functional Development environment using the install script.

#Getting Started

The instructions on this page will guide you through creating a new user account with the correct privileges, installing and configuring ARK Core, then starting a relay instance and logging the output using the installation script.

Directly below is a quick summary of these install commands:

1sudo adduser ark
2sudo usermod -a -G sudo ark
3sudo su - ark
4 
5bash <(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ArkEcosystem/core/master/install.sh)
6 
7ark relay:start
8 
9pm2 logs

#Step-by-Step Installation via the Script

If you are planning to setup a new server you can execute the following steps.

#Step 1: Create a New Account

Create a new dedicated user account to manage ARK-related software.

We’ll illustrate this command as sudo adduser ark to create a user by the name of ‘ark’, but you can chose something else, if preferred.

On your server, type the following into the command line:

1sudo adduser ark

You’ll be asked to create and confirm a new user password, and be prompted to enter the user’s full name and some other information. (Feel free to leave them blank by pressing ‘enter’, they are all optional fields.)

When prompted to confirm, type ‘Y’ and press ‘enter’ to finish.

 1Adding user 'ark' ...
 2Adding new group 'ark' (1000) ...
 3Adding new user 'ark' (1000) with group 'ark' ...
 4Creating home directory '/home/ark' ...
 5Copying files from '/etc/skel' ...
 6Enter new UNIX password:
 7Retype new UNIX password:
 8passwd: password updated successfully
 9Changing the user information for ark
10Enter the new value, or press ENTER for the default
11    Full Name []:
12    Room Number []:
13    Work Phone []:
14    Home Phone []:
15    Other []:
16Is the information correct? [Y/n] Y

#Step 2: Grant Sudo Privileges

Next, we need to make sure that our user account has all of the necessary privileges to run ARK Core properly. This will give our user account sudo privileges.

Type or copy-paste the following command into your terminal:

1sudo usermod -a -G sudo ark

#Step 3: Login as the New User

We now should switch to the user account created above, this will also land us in the user’s base directory (~/).

Type or copy-paste the following command into your terminal:

1sudo su - ark

#Step 4: Run the Installation Script

Here, we will use the install.sh script. This installs ARK Core and all of its dependencies onto your server, then publishes the configuration files for it.

Run the install script by copying and pasting this one line command into your terminal:

1bash <(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ArkEcosystem/core/master/install.sh)

If you prefer to read the script before running it, download it first:

1curl -fsSLO https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ArkEcosystem/core/master/install.sh
2less install.sh
3bash install.sh

You will be asked to input your user password to grant sudo privileges:

1[sudo] password for ark: <input your password for user you created>

The script runs without any further questions until Core itself is installed. Along the way it sets up the following:

#Step 5: Select the Core network

Once the installation of dependencies and ARK Core is finished you will need to select which network you wish to operate on. This can be achieved by pressing the up or down arrow keys and confirming your selection by pressing enter.

Mainnet is the public network, Devnet is the development network for testing, and Testnet is network used for private testing.

1? What network do you want to operate on? › - Use arrow-keys. Return to submit.
2❯   devnet
3    mainnet
4    testnet

After you have made your selection, you will need to confirm by pressing y and confirm again with enter

1? Can you confirm? › (y/N)

At this point, ARK Core has been successfully installed with its configuration options properly published.

#Step 6: Configuring the Core Database

The last step of the required ARK Core configuration is to setup the database parameters.

You will be presented with a prompt:

1Would you like to configure the database? [y/N]:

Press y and confirm with enter.

Input the database credentials of your choosing.

1Enter the database username: ark
2Enter the database password: <a strong password>
3Enter the database name: <network_name> # your chosen network name

This will create a PostgreSQL role and database to be used for storing blockchain data, and store the credentials in Core’s .env file (CORE_DB_USERNAME, CORE_DB_PASSWORD and CORE_DB_DATABASE).

Once the script is done it reloads your shell, so the ark command and the locale settings are available right away.

#Additional Devnet Steps

When installing Devnet via the install.sh script, you’ll also need to enter the following commands into your terminal to ensure the latest @next version is used:

1ark config:cli --channel=next
2rm -rf ~/.config/ark-core/ && ark config:publish --network=devnet --reset

If custom data were entered during the installation process, you also might need to update your database settings in the .env file. This can be done using the following command:

1ark config:database

#Success

That’s it, your installation is all set! 🎉

#Next Steps

• Secure your server before you expose it to the internet, especially when running a forger.
• Syncing from scratch can take a long time. If you or someone you trust already runs a synced node, copy their database instead.