Farming Cluster
A farming cluster allows you to scale your operation across multiple machines and storage devices for maximum efficiency and redundancy.
Cluster Architecture
Key Concept: The controller connects to the blockchain node via RPC and coordinates all cluster components (cache, plotters, farmers) through NATS messaging. Only the controller talks to the blockchain; farmers communicate through the controller.
Port Requirements
| Port | Protocol | Component | Purpose | Expose to Internet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30333 | TCP | Node | Consensus P2P | Yes |
| 30433 | TCP | Node | DSN communication | Yes |
| 30533 | TCP | Controller | Cluster Controller P2P | Yes |
| 9944 | TCP | Node → Controller | RPC communication | Internal only |
| 4222 | TCP | NATS ↔ All cluster components* | Internal coordination | Internal only |
*NATS connects to: Controller, Cache, Plotter, Farmer (but NOT the Node)
- Node: Handles blockchain P2P (30333, 30433) and provides RPC to controller (9944)
- Controller: Talks to node via RPC (9944), connects to blockchain peers (30533), and coordinates via NATS (4222)
- All other components: Only communicate through NATS (4222) - no direct blockchain access
Network Setup Guide
Step 1: Controller Machine Configuration
- Router Setup
- Firewall Setup
Configure these port forwarding rules for the controller machine:
| Service | External Port | Internal IP | Internal Port | Protocol |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consensus | 30333 | Controller IP | 30333 | TCP |
| DSN | 30433 | Controller IP | 30433 | TCP |
| Cluster Controller | 30533 | Controller IP | 30533 | TCP |
Do NOT forward:
- Port 4222 (NATS) - internal cluster communication only
- Port 9944 (RPC) - internal cluster communication only
# Linux (UFW)
# Public ports
sudo ufw allow 30333/tcp comment 'Cluster Consensus'
sudo ufw allow 30433/tcp comment 'Cluster DSN'
sudo ufw allow 30533/tcp comment 'Cluster Controller'
# Internal cluster network (adjust subnet)
sudo ufw allow from 192.168.1.0/24 to any port 4222 proto tcp comment 'NATS Internal'
sudo ufw allow from 192.168.1.0/24 to any port 9944 proto tcp comment 'RPC Internal'
# Windows PowerShell
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Cluster Consensus" `
-Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 30333 -Action Allow
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Cluster DSN" `
-Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 30433 -Action Allow
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Cluster Controller" `
-Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 30533 -Action Allow
# NATS internal
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "NATS Internal" `
-Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 4222 `
-RemoteAddress LocalSubnet -Action Allow
Step 2: Farmer Machines Configuration
Farmer machines only need internal network access to communicate with the controller's NATS server:
- Router Configuration
- Firewall Configuration
No port forwarding needed for farmer machines. They only communicate internally with the controller.
# On each farmer machine
# Allow outbound NATS connection to controller
sudo ufw allow out to CONTROLLER_IP port 4222 proto tcp comment 'NATS to Controller'
# Windows
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "NATS to Controller" `
-Direction Outbound -Protocol TCP `
-RemoteAddress CONTROLLER_IP -RemotePort 4222 -Action Allow
Step 3: Internal Network Configuration
Set up the internal cluster network:
# 1. Assign static IPs or DHCP reservations
# Controller: 192.168.1.10
# Cache Server 1: 192.168.1.11
# Cache Server 2: 192.168.1.12
# Farmer 1: 192.168.1.21
# Farmer 2: 192.168.1.22
# etc.
# 2. Ensure all machines can communicate
# Test from each machine:
ping 192.168.1.10 # Controller
telnet 192.168.1.10 4222 # NATS server
telnet 192.168.1.10 9944 # Node RPC