Bitcoin nodes are an important part of the Bitcoin ecosystem, they help validate transaction and keep the network alive. While there is no direct reward for running a Bitcoin node, there are plenty of reasons why you should run your own full node. Not only will you learn more about how the Bitcoin network works, but you can benefit from increased anonymity and faster blockchain querying for a mere $5 a month. This article will show you how to setup a Bitcoin node in under 5 minutes using a cheap digitalocean VPS.

Step 1: Create a droplet

If you do not already have a digitalocean account you can create one here. Proceed to your accountand create a new Ubuntu 16.04.2 x32 droplet, choose the cheapest $5 a month option which comes with 512MB and a 20GB SSD disk. It should only take a few seconds to create the droplet and you should receive an email with the required login information.

Step 2: Login to your droplet

Using Putty and the information provided in the email, we need to login to the VPS in order to begin setting up the Bitcoin node. The way digitalocean has it setup, the first time you login you would also need to set a new password. Once that is done you should have access to the machine.

Step 3: Begin Installation

We createda simple install script which you can use in order to setup all the required libraries and frameworks for the Bitcoin network. Simply enter the following line into the terminal and the installation will start:

If you want to know more about the libraries that the bitcoin binary uses and for a more detailed guide checkout this article on the importance of bitcoin nodes and how to setupone. The installation may take anywhere from 5 minutes to an hour depending on what kind of CPU your VPS has. If you selected the minimum $5 / month option on digitalocean, the installation process usually takes around 30 minutes. You will know it is done when the server sends a message that it is restarting

Step 4: Enjoy your Bitcoin node

Fire up Putty again and login to the VPS. Your node should start up automatically when the server boots up and you should be able to use the command btc inexecute calls on the bitcoin client. For a complete list of availableclient calls visit the Bitcoin Wiki. Congratulations, you now run a Bitcoin node and help secure the network.

If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter @themerklenews and make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and technology news.

View original post here:

How To Set Up a Bitcoin Node for $5 With 1 Line of Code - The Merkle