Digitalia Full Node — User Manual¶

Purpose¶

This manual is for Full Node operators and API consumers who need practical day-to-day guidance for running a node, checking sync status, and using the node’s RPC interface safely.

1. What a Full Node Provides¶

A Full Node:

keeps an up-to-date copy of current blockchain state
connects to peers and relays chain data
serves JSON-RPC and WebSocket APIs for wallet/apps/backends

Typical use cases:

backend RPC endpoint for applications
trusted chain data source for internal services
operational participation in network infrastructure

2. First Startup¶

2.1 Start the node¶

Use Docker or Kubernetes deployment commands from your administrator guide/runbook.

2.2 Confirm node is alive¶

curl -sf http://localhost:8545/health/live
curl -sf http://localhost:8545/health/ready

2.3 Confirm RPC responds¶

curl -sf -X POST http://localhost:8545 \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"web3_clientVersion","params":[],"id":1}'

Expected result includes a client version string.

3. Basic RPC Usage¶

3.1 Check network listening state¶

curl -sf -X POST http://localhost:8545 \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"net_listening","params":[],"id":1}'

3.2 Check peer count¶

curl -sf -X POST http://localhost:8545 \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"net_peerCount","params":[],"id":1}'

3.3 Check block height¶

curl -sf -X POST http://localhost:8545 \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"dvm_blockNumber","params":[],"id":1}'

Run this command twice over time to verify sync progress.

4. Daily Operator Workflow¶

Start-of-shift checks:

health/live and health/ready return success
net_listening returns true
peer count is non-zero and stable
block number is advancing

End-of-shift checks:

no unresolved critical alerts
no crash-loop indicators
data volume has healthy free capacity

5. Troubleshooting¶

5.1 Node not reachable on RPC¶

confirm container/pod is running
confirm port 8545 exposure
check local firewall/network policy

5.2 Peer count is zero¶

verify 30303 TCP/UDP is open
verify outbound network access
restart node and recheck discovery logs

5.3 Block number not advancing¶

check net_peerCount
check sync status and logs
inspect disk I/O and volume free space

5.4 Frequent restarts¶

inspect events/logs for OOM or permission failures
adjust memory settings
verify data path ownership and integrity

6. Safety and Security for Users¶

Do not expose unrestricted RPC publicly unless explicitly required.
Use access controls or gateway protection for shared RPC endpoints.
Keep node software and container image versions current.
Keep transaction signing keys separate from node operations where possible.

7. Escalation Data to Provide¶

When reporting an issue, include:

node version/image tag
deployment type (Docker/Kubernetes)
timestamp and timezone
output of net_peerCount and dvm_blockNumber
relevant log excerpt

8. Documentation Map¶

docs/FULL_NODE_USER_MANUAL.md (this file)
docs/FULL_NODE_ADMINISTRATOR_GUIDE.md
JFOS_FULL_NODE_PRODUCTION_OPS_RUNBOOK.md
docs/IT_OPERATIONS_MANUAL.md