Registering Stake Pool

Dingo - Registering Your Stake Pool

✅ This guide assumes your files are in the $HOME/dingo folder. Adjust paths below if necessary.

Step 1 - Create your pool’s metadata json file

Update below with your pool’s information.

📝 ticker must be between 3-5 characters in length 📝 description cannot exceed 255 characters in length.

cd ~/dingo
cat > preview-pool-metadata.json << EOF
{
"name": "MyPoolName",
"description": "My pool description",
"ticker": "ABC",
"homepage": "https://pool-Website.com"
}
EOF

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Step 2 - Calculate the metadata hash

Calculate the hash of your metadata file. It’s saved to previewPoolMetaDataHash.txt

cardano-cli conway stake-pool metadata-hash --preview-pool-metadata.json > previewPoolMetaDataHash.txt

Copy previewPoolMetaDataHash.txt to your air-gapped

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Step 3 - Upload preview-pool-metadata.json to public web site

Upload your preview-pool-metadata.json file to a Web site that you administer or a public Web site. For example, you can upload your pool metadata to GitHub. See Coincashew guide here for uploading to GitHub.

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Step 4 - Verify the metadata hashes

First we will get the metadata hash from your metadata json URL.

Replace https://www.METADATA-URL.com with your actual URL from Step 3.

cardano-cli conway stake-pool metadata-hash --pool-metadata-file <(curl -s -L <https://www.METADATA-URL.com>)

Make sure this hash matches the hash here:

cat poolMetaDataHash.txt

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Step 5 Create a registration certificate for your stake pool

To make updating your Pool certificate easier if you need to make changes in the future, we will create a env file with our pool information and a script to generate the pool.cert file.

Step 5.1 - Create a pool-scripts folder

⚠️ On Air Gapped

cd ~/dingo
mkdir pool-scripts

Step 5.2 - Create an env file

Create an env file for our pool in the pool-scripts folder.

✅ Update the data below with your metadata URL, your relay node IP and port, pool pledge amount and cost (min pool fee) and margin.

cat > $HOME/dingo/pool-scripts/env << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash

PLEDGE=25000000000  # 25,000 ADA
COST=170000000     #  170 ADA
MARGIN=0.01        #    1 %

NET="--testnet-magic 2"  #preview
RELAY1_HOST=55.209.117.58
RELAY1_PORT=6000
RELAY2_HOST=55.23.123.206
RELAY2_PORT=6000
METADATA_URL=https://webstie.com/preview-pool-metadata.json
METADATA_HASH=$(cat $HOME/dingo/poolMetaDataHash.txt)
EOF

The above example uses IP addresses if you are using DNS use the following example:

--single-host-pool-relay <relaynode1.pool.example.com> \
--pool-relay-port 6000 \
--single-host-pool-relay <relaynode2.pool.example.com> \
--pool-relay-port 6000 \

Step 5.3 - Create pool-registration.sh script

Create pool-registration.sh script in the pool-scripts folder:

cat > $HOME/dingo/pool-scripts/pool-registration.sh << EOF
#!/bin/bash

source ./env

cardano-cli conway stake-pool registration-certificate \
--cold-verification-key-file $HOME/dingo/cold-keys/node.vkey \
--vrf-verification-key-file $HOME/dingo/vrf.vkey \
--pool-pledge \${PLEDGE} \
--pool-cost \${COST} \
--pool-margin \${MARGIN} \
--pool-reward-account-verification-key-file $HOME/dingo/stake.vkey \
--pool-owner-stake-verification-key-file $HOME/dingo/stake.vkey \
\${NET} \
--pool-relay-ipv4 \${RELAY1_HOST} \
--pool-relay-port \${RELAY1_PORT} \
--pool-relay-ipv4 \${RELAY2_HOST} \
--pool-relay-port \${RELAY2_PORT} \
--metadata-url \${METADATA_URL} \
--metadata-hash \${METADATA_HASH} \
--out-file $HOME/dingo/pool.cert
EOF

Step 5.4 - Add execute permissions

Add execute permissions to the pool-registration script

chmod +x $HOME/dingo/pool-scripts/pool-registration.sh

Step 5.5 - Execute Script

The script must be executed in order to generate the new stake pool registration certificate, which will need to be submitted with a transaction.

cd $HOME/dingo/pool-scripts
./pool-registration.sh

Step 5.6 - Copy pool.cert to your hot environment

Copy pool.cert to your hot environment either your BP or Relay in your dingo folder.

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Step 6 - Pledge stake to your stake pool

⚠️ On Air Gapped

cd ~/dingo
cardano-cli conway stake-address stake-delegation-certificate \
--stake-verification-key-file stake.vkey \
--cold-verification-key-file $HOME/dingo/cold-keys/node.vkey \
--out-file deleg.cert

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Step 7 - Submit the certificates

Build the transaction and sign it to submit both the pool.cert and the deleg.cert

Step 7.1 - Query the current slot

currentSlot=$(cardano-cli conway query tip --testnet-magic 2 | jq -r '.slot')
echo Current Slot: $currentSlot

Step 7.2 - Build the transaction

cd ~/dingo
cardano-cli conway transaction build \
    --tx-in $(cardano-cli query utxo --address $(cat payment.addr) --out-file /dev/stdout | jq -r 'keys[0]') \
    --change-address $(cat payment.addr) \
    --certificate-file pool.cert \
    --certificate-file deleg.cert \
    --invalid-hereafter $(( ${currentSlot} + 1000 )) \
    --witness-override 3 \
    --out-file tx.raw

Step 7.3 - Sign the transaction

Copy tx.raw to your cold environment in your dingo folder

⚠️ On Air Gapped

cd ~/dingo
cardano-cli conway transaction sign \
--tx-body-file tx.raw \
--signing-key-file payment.skey \
--signing-key-file $HOME/dingo/cold-keys/node.skey \
--signing-key-file stake.skey \
--out-file tx.signed

Step 7.4 - Submit transaction

Copy tx.signed to your hot environment either your BP or Relay in your dingo folder.

cd ~/dingo
cardano-cli conway transaction submit --tx-file tx.signed

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Step 8 - Verify registration

Step 8.1 - Create `stakepoolid.txt file:

⚠️ On Air Gapped

cardano-cli stake-pool id \
--cold-verification-key-file $HOME/dingo/cold-keys/node.vkey \
--output-format hex \
> stakepoolid.txt

cat stakepoolid.txt

Step 8.2 - Copy stakepoolid.txt to your hot environment

Copy stakepoolid.txt to your hot environment either your BP or Relay in your dingo folder

Step 8.3 - Check it has appeared on-chain:

cd ~/dingo
cardano-cli query stake-snapshot --stake-pool-id $(cat stakepoolid.txt)

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Step 9 - Update your dingo.yaml with the new KES, VRF and Operation Certificate

Stop Dingo node by running:

sudo systemctl stop dingo

Add the following lines to your dingo.yaml file by running:

sudo bash -c "cat <<EOF >> /etc/dingo/dingo.yaml
# Validator / block producer (core storage, API ports ignored):
blockProducer: true
shelleyVrfKey: \"$HOME/dingo/vrf.skey\"
shelleyKesKey: \"$HOME/dingo/kes.skey\"
shelleyOperationalCertificate: \"$HOME/dingo/node.cert\"
EOF"

You can view and verify our dingo.yaml file by running:

sudo nano /etc/dingo/dingo.yaml

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Step 10 - Start Dingo Node

sudo systemctl start dingo

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Step 11 - Check Status

Verify Dingo is running:

sudo systemctl status dingo

To follow the logs in real time:

sudo journalctl -u dingo -f

To see recent logs if there is an error:

sudo journalctl -u dingo -n 50 --no-pager

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