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Install

Before You Begin​

Make sure you have:

  1. A computer with a reliable internet connection.
  2. Enough free disk space (we'll help you determine how much later).
  3. Administrator access to your computer.

What to expect:

  • Sync might take from a few hours to up to a day.
  • The initial syncing and plotting process requires substantial computational resources, so you may notice that your computer runs slower for day-to-day tasks until syncing and plotting are complete.
note

Please note that a wallet with a Substrate address is required to run the software.
To learn how to create a Substrate wallet, please visit our pages on SubWallet (recommended) or {polkadot.js} extension.

Port Forwarding

To ensure proper communication between Space Acres and other peers, you need to forward ports 30333 and 30433 from your router to the PC running Space Acres. For more details, refer to the Port Forwarding Guide.

Installation Videos​

For those who prefer a visual guide, we have prepared installation videos to assist you. The videos will help you to set up Space Acres. If you prefer detailed text instructions, please proceed to Step 1.

Step 1: Download and Install Space Acres​

Download the Space Acres Installer or the Portable App​

Currently, there are two ways to get Space Acres on Linux:

  • by installing .deb package on Ubuntu (recommended)
  • by running .AppImage bundle directly on any modern Linux distribution (including Ubuntu if you want to)
Ubuntu Installer(.deb)Linux Portable App(AppImage)

Install Space Acres​

You can either install the application using provided (.deb) installer, or run the portable application (.Appimage).

  1. To install the app, open terminal and run the following commands to switch to downloads directory and install an app

    cd Downloads
    sudo apt install ./space-acres*.deb

    deb-1

    Replace Downloads with the correct name of downloads directory if you have non-English Ubuntu installation or if you downloaded file into a custom location. In case you have multiple versions of Space Acres downloaded, you might want to replace space-acres*.deb with a full name of the file you've downloaded. Or go to Downloads directory and double-click the application to start the installation process

  2. Click the "Show Apps" icon in the bottom left of the screen

    deb-2

  3. Navigate to Space Acres (you may have to scroll to find the page it is on if you have a lot of apps installed)

    deb-3

  4. Double-click on Space Acres and the application will start

Portable Application (.AppImage)​

  1. Open the Files application

    AppImage-1

  2. Click the Downloads folder to open it

    AppImage-2

  3. Right-click the .AppImage and select properties

    AppImage-3

  4. Toggle the "Executable as program" option to on

    AppImage-4

  5. Close the properties window

  6. Double-click the .AppImage and Space Acres will start

    AppImage-4

Step 2: Set Up Space Acres​

Now comes the exciting part—setting up your farm! Here's what you'll see on the first screen:

Space Acres ConfigurationSpace Acres Configuration

  1. Node path:

    • This is where Space Acres will store important data.
    • Pick a location with plenty of free space; it might be as simple as /Documents.

  2. Rewards address:

    • This is where your farming rewards will be sent.
    • It starts with su for SubWallet and with 5 for {Polkadot.js} extension.
    • If you don't have one, click Create wallet to create a wallet.

  3. Path to Farm 0 and its size:

    • This is where your plots (farming data) will be stored.
    • The size determines your probability of getting a reward on the Network. In most cases, larger plots (or larger farm size) will gain you more rewards.
    • The size could be set as a fixed size, e.g. 4TB, or 500GB, or as a percentage value of the available disk space.
    • If you prefer to have a few farms (e.g. you have some spare space on different SSD drives), you can click on Add farm to pledge some additional storage space.
    Configured setup screenConfigured setup screen
    tip

    The screen above is just an example of configured setup screen, make sure to use your own Node path, Rewards address, Path to farm 0 and its size, and Fixed size / Disk space percentage values

  4. Advanced configuration (optional):

    • Toggle Reduce plotting CPU load (select this option if you're using your farming PC for other tasks)
    • Modify the default values for blockchain and DSN P2P ports
    • Toggle Faster Networking (selecting this option may increase the load on your router)
    tip

    Don't worry about this unless you're an experienced user.

    For a comprehensive list of prerequisites and explanations, refer to our Getting Started Guide.

    info

    Your screen may look slightly different depending on your operating system, but the basic information required will be the same.

Step 3: Start Farming​

  1. After entering your information, click Start.
  2. Space Acres will now set up your node and connect to the Autonomys Network.
  3. You'll see progress bars as it syncs data and creates your farm plots.
InitializationInitialization

  1. Once everything is ready, you'll see the main Space Acres dashboard where you can monitor your farming activity.

    Space Acres DashboardSpace Acres Dashboard

  2. Initial syncing and plotting can take from a few hours to days, depending on your hardware, network speed, and specified farm size. Below are examples of the various stages you can expect.

    a. Cache Syncing

    Space Acres DashboardSpace Acres Dashboard

    b. Initial Plotting

    Space Acres DashboardSpace Acres Dashboard

    c. Plotting Complete, Now Farming

    Space Acres DashboardSpace Acres Dashboard

  3. Once syncing and plotting are complete, you'll notice a drop in CPU and RAM usage, and the dashboard will display your earned rewards and the estimated time until the next reward.

    Space Acres DashboardSpace Acres Dashboard
    tip

    You can toggle the dashboard to view brief statistics or display all plotted sectors along with their status. The color codes of sectors are explained below. By hovering over the icons on the right, you can check the number of missed challenges, your average auditing and proving performance, and other useful stats.

Happy farming!​

Understanding Your Farm​

Your farm is made up of sectors that change color based on their status. For your convenience, we've provided a table detailing the color codes associated with different sector statuses. This will enhance your insight into the activities and conditions of your plot.

StatusColor PreviewDescription
Default#727272 #727272Default state of a farm sector
Plotted#9fc4ff #9fc4ffSector is plotted
About to Expire#ffd678 #ffd678Sector is nearing expiration
Expired#ff877c #ff877cSector has expired
Downloading#499249 #499249Sector is in the process of downloading (animated)
Encoding#ff5365 #ff5365Sector is encoding data (animated)
Writing#9fc4ff #9fc4ffSector is writing data (animated)
Learn More About Syncing, Plotting & Farming
Leave Feedback!

Help us improve by sharing your feedback on our releases. We’re eager to hear from you and make things better!

View Logs, Change Configuration, Leave Feedback​

Click on the burger button menu to view the available options.

Burger button manuBurger button manu

Troubleshooting​

If you are facing any issues with the application, you can:

  • Search the Support Forum to see if your issue has been addressed. If it's a new one, feel free to create a new post!
  • Use the dedicated channel #farmer-chat on our Discord for peer-to-peer support.
  • Raise an issue on our GitHub.