7

I installed a v.0.8.7 client and tried switching to Ropsten, following these instructions. Namely, I typed in:

dyn906-29:~ sam$ geth -- datadir /Users/sam/Library/Ethereum/testnet/geth/chaindata/ init /Users/sam/Library/Ethereum/testnet/testnet_genesis.json; geth -- datadir /Users/sam/Library/Ethereum/testnet/geth/chaindata/ --networkid 3 console

... synchronization started, with typical (i.e., after I let it run about 10 minutes) console output:

I1124 12:07:01.281067 eth/downloader/downloader.go:298] Synchronisation failed: block download canceled (requested)
I1124 12:07:23.178469 core/blockchain.go:975] imported 3 block(s) (0 queued 0 ignored) including 0 txs in 1.001425657s. #84205 [dc3d3bcd / c0b43021]
I1124 12:07:24.448356 core/blockchain.go:975] imported 3 block(s) (0 queued 0 ignored) including 2 txs in 8.001122ms. #84208 [e716f763 / 9cdfe671]
I1124 12:07:33.003664 core/blockchain.go:975] imported 2048 block(s) (0 queued 0 ignored) including 1897 txs in 4.743529105s. #86256 [2c5e179c / dbc9325e]
I1124 12:07:37.833884 core/blockchain.go:975] imported 2048 block(s) (0 queued 0 ignored) including 676 txs in 4.821595483s. #88304 [f9215a23 / 62150759]

What confuses me in this output it indicates I downloaded as many as 86256 blocks (see end of last line)... but I see here that there are only about 35000 blocks in the new testnet so far.

So I have the impression that I am synchronising with Morden..

1. Am I currently synchronizing with Morden (instead of with Ropsten)?

2. How can I make sure my Client is synchronizing with Ropsten?

Thanks.

EDIT: The GUI mentions a total of ca. 1,800 K blocks... so I am fairly positive my Client is synchronising with Morden. So how to move to Ropsten?

2

2 Answers 2

7

Using Geth 1.5.3 and later, it's 2 steps:

  1. Run geth --testnet removedb to delete your blockchain database for the Morden network.

  2. Run geth --testnet


ORIGINAL:

When you use geth init, the datadir should end with /testnet. For example: /Users/sam/Library/Ethereum/testnet

When you use other commands like geth console, the datadir should be the parent directory, in this example: /Users/sam/Library/Ethereum

Yes, it is confusing. But when Geth 1.5.3 is released, geth --testnet will simplify it and you don't need to bother with geth init.

It is helpful to start with a clean datadir (you may need to manually create the /testnet subdirectory), but make sure that you back up your existing datadir: be careful to make sure you do not lose any keystore.

3
  • I may need to double-check this but posting for now in case it helps. EDIT: I won't check the original post since Geth 1.5.3 has now been released.
    – eth
    Nov 24, 2016 at 21:08
  • 3
    The geth --testnet removedb part is the most useful part of your answer, maybe you should highlight it a bit more. It's actually more of an answer than "just run geth --testnet" Nov 30, 2016 at 10:49
  • @TeleportingGoat Thanks for the suggestion! I improved the answer (which came from a similar question and your comment was very helpful).
    – eth
    Dec 1, 2016 at 2:59
3

In your second call there is a space between -- and datadir, so probably you are running geth with the wrong data directory and therefore you are using the wrong genesis block. Try running

geth --datadir /Users/sam/Library/Ethereum/testnet/geth/chaindata/ --networkid 3 console

instead of

geth -- datadir /Users/sam/Library/Ethereum/testnet/geth/chaindata/ --networkid 3 console
1
  • you are right, thank you so much. Part of the problem remains, in that after I entered these command, Ethereum wallet appears to still be synchronising with Morden (since it says that it needs to download 1800K blocks). Any idea on how to go about this?
    – hartmut
    Nov 24, 2016 at 19:01

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.