Validator Actions

This section details commands that are commonly useful to validator operators.

Commission-rate changes

A validator can change their commission rate through the change-commission-rate command:

namadac change-commission-rate --validator <validator> --commission-rate <commission-rate>

💡

The maximum allowed change in commision rate per epoch is specified by the validator's max-commission-rate-change parameter.

The max-commission-rate-change can only be set on validator initialization; it cannot be changed later.

Metadata changes

Each validator account has associated on-chain metadata; in addition to the (required) security email address, several optional fields (such as name, avatar, etc.) can be provided. These are commonly displayed in applications such as block explorers or wallets to visually distinguish validators from one another.

A validator can update their metadata at any time with the change-metadata command:

namadac change-metadata \
  --validator $VALIDATOR_ADDRESS \
  --description $DESCRIPTION \
  --email $EMAIL \
  --discord-handle $DISCORD_HANDLE \
  --website $WEBSITE \
  --avatar $AVATAR \
  --name $NAME

Only the --validator argument is required along with at least one of the other arguments listed above. In order to remove a piece of metadata (aside from the required email), pass "" as an argument.

For example, in order to change the validator name and description but remove the existing discord handle, one would run:

namadac change-metadata --validator $VALIDATOR_ADDRESS \
  --description $NEW_DESC \
  --discord-handle "" \
  --name $NEW_NAME

Deactivation and reactivation

You can manually remove your active validator from its validator set with the deactivate command:

namadac deactivate-validator --validator $VALIDATOR_ADDRESS

Once deactivated, the validator's state will become inactive and it will be removed from the validator set. This will take effect at the beginning of current epoch + pipeline_len. All bonds associated with the validator remain intact, and new bonds and unbonds are still accepted. From a user perspective, the deactivation of a validator would more commonly be a signal to unbond or redelegate to a new active or consensus validator.

Deactivating a jailed validator is prohibited, so such an operator would have to wait until they can unjail and then subsequently deactivate.

To rejoin one of the validator sets and resume operations, use the reactivate command:

namadac reactivate-validator --validator $VALIDATOR_ADDRESS

The validator will be appropriately placed into one of the active validator sets at the beginning of current_epoch + pipeline_len.

Changing the Consensus Key

A validator's consensus key is used to sign blocks and participate in the CometBFT consensus protocol. This key ensures that only authorized validators can propose and vote on blocks, contributing to the network's overall security. It is crucial that all validators keep their consensus keys secret and secure.

Validators are able to change their consensus key, allowing for enhanced security and key rotation practices. This process is essential for maintaining the security of the validator's operations and protecting against potential compromise.

To change their consensus key, validators can use the following command:

VALIDATOR_ADDRESS="<your-validator-address>"
SIGNING_KEYS="<your-signing-key>"
namadac change-consensus-key --validator $VALIDATOR_ADDRESS --signing-keys $SIGNING_KEYS

🔑

The new consensus key will be recorded in the wallet.toml file and is scheduled to become active 2 blocks before the pipeline offset from the epoch at the moment of activation. This timing ensures a smooth transition.

After the transition period, validators must replace the current priv_validator_key.json with the newly generated key. This step is crucial for activating the new consensus key for block signing.

It is essential for validators to plan the key rotation accordingly to ensure continuous participation in block validation with minimal interruption.

Generating a New Consensus Key

To generate a new consensus key, use the following command:

namadaw convert --alias $NEW_CONSENSUS_KEY

This command will create a new consensus key, which validators should securely store and use to replace the existing priv_validator_key.json file. It is critical for validators to perform this step correctly.

After updating the consensus key, validators can find their new validator address with the following command:

namadaw find --alias $NEW_CONSENSUS_KEY

Withdrawing rewards

When a delegator bonds tokens to an active validator, staking rewards accrue in the form of the native token. These rewards need to be claimed before they are credited to the delegator's account. The same holds true for when the validator has self-bonded. Rewards can be withdrawn with the command:

namadac claim-rewards --validator $VALIDATOR_ADDRESS

Submitting an unjail transaction

See the section on jailing for further info.

Voting on governance

An important function of validators is active participation in governance. It is particularly important for validators to vote on governance proposals because they vote on behalf of not only their self-bonded stake, but any delegated stake which has not submitted a vote of their own.

In other words, a validator's vote determines the 'default' vote for all its delegators. A delegator wishing to vote differently can override this by submitting a vote transaction of their own, which they may do at any time before the end of the voting period (including after the validator has voted).

⚠️

Validators have a shortened voting window -- they can only cast votes during the first two-thirds of a proposal's voting period.

This is to allow delegators time to check how their delegatee validator has voted, in case they wish to vote differently.

Validator setup Staking