Steps for migrating testnets

This guide will help you migrate your validator node from one testnet to another. These steps are optional, and for most testnets, these steps will not be needed.

Resetting your validator node (optional)

With the release of v0.19.0 we have introduced mandatory keys for validators. These keys are eth_hot_key and eth_cold_key that are used for Ethereum bridge purposes.

Locate the namada base directory

Depending on the testnet you are migrating from, the base directory will be located in different places. For this reason, we will save the base directory path to a variable.

Before `v0.15.3`

If you are migrating from a testnet BEFORE v0.15.3, then your home directory and relevant files will be located in a .namada. The location of this directory depends where you initially ran the command namadac utils join-network --chain-id <CHAIN_ID> --genesis-validator <ALIAS>. It will be located in the directory in which that command was executed.

Once located, you can save the base directory path to a variable. For example, if the join-network command was ran from your home directory, you can run:

export BASE_DIR=$HOME/.namada

After `v0.15.3`

If you are migrating from a testnet AFTER v0.15.3, then your base directory and relevant files will be located in .local/share/namada on Linux and Library/Application Support/Namada on MacOS. You can verify the default directory on your machine by running:

export BASE_DIR=$(namadac utils default-base-dir)

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Technically, the correct directory will be the one assigned to $XDG_DATA_HOME, but if you haven't set that variable, it will default to the one given above.

IMPORTANT! Save your `pre-genesis` folder in the ledger base directory

Before we delete any folders, we want to make sure we save our pre-genesis folder. This folder contains your validator keys, and we want to make sure we don't lose them.

mkdir $HOME/backup-pregenesis && cp -r $BASE_DIR/pre-genesis $HOME/backup-pregenesis/

Ensure keys are saved

ls backup-pregenesis should output a saved wallet.toml.

Delete the base directory

rm -rf $BASE_DIR/*

Check that namada and cometbft binaries are correct.

namada --version should yield v0.22.0 and cometbft version should output 0.37.2

Create a pre-genesis directory

mkdir $BASE_DIR/pre-genesis

Copy the backuped file back to `$BASE_DIR/pre-genesis` folder

cp -r backup-pregenesis/* $BASE_DIR/pre-genesis/

You should now be ready to go!

Environment setup Pre-genesis