setup of bitcoin node
Self-soverignty has never been an option for an individual for most of human history. Individuals have had to rely on forming part of a large group in order to first produce, and then protect their wealth. This is fast changing because of the CPU. It is becoming cheaper and as a result more ubiquitous.
They are everywhere. This means that wealth is dematerialising and becoming digital. Storing one's wealth in hard assets, or property that requires the recognition of the State is becoming more risky. The rule of law is being abandoned by the west not only for individuals, but nations states too. This increases the incentives to learn ways to become self soverign, or as Laserhodl puts it; 'become more expensive for tyranny to target you'.
A key to this is to understand the CPU, or more precisely, learn how to master the CPU so it becomes your servant. I've used Windows and MacOS for most of my life, however given they are closed systems, I've taken it upon myself to learn Linux. This is because it is open source and not owned by a corporation. I'm using Ubuntu, which is one of many distributions of the Linux operating system. I'm using this operating system to run the bitcoin node that I'll be relying on to interact with the bitcoin and lightning networks. Why not just use a ready made solution such as mynode or umbrel? Although they are great for those interested in bitcoin but with little knowledge in Linux, you are ceding some control to the owners of those packages. One of the factors you are ceding is the ability to upgrade bitcoin core. Should you wish to upgrade to a particular version, you can't until the owner of the system provides the update. Umbrel, Mynode et al. are great for people that have no experience with Command Line Interface (CLI) and computer networking, but once you gain an appreciation of what the Bitcoin network is, it's important to step up the ladder of self sovereignty.
An important way packages like Umbrel or Mynode make it easier for users is their heavy reliance on the Graphic User Interface (GUI), which is how windows and macos interact with users. Some Linux distributions have this ability, however if you plan to run bitcoin core on Linux, you need to master CLI to get the most out of your node. As the name suggests, CLI is the blinking cursor on a black screen, waiting for you to type in a command. No menu bars, no mouse pointer, no graphics.
Here are the commands I've learned so far;
ls - List Short. This will list all folders/files on the hard-drive that aren't hidden
ll - List Long. This will list all folders/files on the hard-drive including hidden ones.
nano 'name of file'- This will open a text editor where you can enter text. Press Ctrl O to save the file. Press Ctrl X to exit the text editor. This utility is used for preparing scripts and altering files that are used by applications on the computer. For example bitcoin.conf for bitcoin core.
If there is a '.' in front of a file name or folder, this signifies that it's hidden and hence can't be altered by any user other than the administrator. In Linux, this role is referred to as 'Super User'
df -h - This shows how much space the hard drive has and how much free space there is.
rm 'file name' - deletes a file
rm -rf 'name of folder' - deletes the folder
mkdir 'folder name'- make a directory
sudo apt update - will update ubuntu with the latest packages. apt stands for 'Advanced packaging tool'. This tool will scan the operating system and update the system with any newer versions.
cd (folder name) - This will allow the user to view the contents of the folder specified
cd .. - This will exit the folder and go into the parent folder
At the start of the command prompt, if there is a '/' this signifies you are in the root directory. Only the super user can alter the contents and any command in this space requires 'sudo' at the beginning. You access this space by using command cd /
If there is a '~', this signifies that you are in the home directory. Any user can alter this space. You access this space by using command cd ~
The above is important as they are the building blocks for understanding the system that will manage your self soverign bitcoin node. Do you have other commands that you use frequently? Add them below!