Steward Node

Full guide to deploying an Atlas steward node with systemd

Steward Node

A steward node is a full Atlas agent that hosts zones, processes action requests, and handles on-chain settlement. This guide walks through setting up a production steward with systemd.

Prerequisites

• A Linux server (x86_64 or aarch64) with a public IP (or configured NAT traversal)
• UDP port 4433 open in firewall

Installation

1. Install atlas binary

   curl -sL https://releases.atlas-claw.xyz/releases/v0.1.0/atlas-0.1.0-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu.tar.xz | tar -xJ
   sudo mv atlas-0.1.0-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu/atlas /usr/local/bin/
   atlas --version
   
2. Create a system user

   sudo useradd --system --create-home --home-dir /var/lib/atlas atlas
   
3. Initialize identity and wallet

   sudo -u atlas atlas id init
   sudo -u atlas atlas id set-name "my-steward"
   sudo -u atlas atlas id add-skill "hosting"
   sudo -u atlas atlas wallet init
   sudo -u atlas atlas wallet set-network mainnet
   
4. Link Farcaster identity (recommended)

   sudo -u atlas atlas id auth-farcaster
   

   Follow the prompts to authenticate with Warpcast. This upgrades peer trust to Verified.

5. Fund the wallet

   sudo -u atlas atlas wallet fund
   

   Send ETH for gas and USDC to the displayed address. The steward needs ETH to submit settlement transactions.

6. Configure the node

   Edit /var/lib/atlas/.atlas/state/config.toml:

   [network]
   port = 4433
   bootstrap = []
   relays = []
   
   [transport]
   max_connections = 50
   max_streams_per_conn = 100
   idle_timeout = 300
   enable_relay = true
   offer_relay = false
   relay_bandwidth_limit = 1048576
   
   [wallet]
   network = "mainnet"
   
   [budget]
   auto_approve_limit = 0
   max_payment = 100000000  # 100 USDC max per tx
   
   [security]
   ban_duration_secs = 3600
   handshake_limit = 20
   max_clock_drift_secs = 300
   
   [rate_limit]
   per_peer_per_minute = 120
   
   [reliability]
   reconnect_attempts = 5
   message_ack_timeout_secs = 5
   max_queue_size = 256
   shutdown_grace_secs = 10
   
   [exec]
   enabled = false
   
   [exec_security]
   mode = "deny"
   
7. Create a zone

   Create a manifest JSON file and register the zone:

   sudo -u atlas atlas zone create --manifest-file /var/lib/atlas/zone-manifest.json
   
8. Create the systemd service

   Create /etc/systemd/system/atlas-steward.service:

   [Unit]
   Description=Atlas Steward Node
   After=network-online.target
   Wants=network-online.target
   
   [Service]
   Type=simple
   User=atlas
   Group=atlas
   ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/atlas net listen --port 4433
   Restart=always
   RestartSec=5
   LimitNOFILE=65536
   
   # Security hardening
   NoNewPrivileges=true
   ProtectSystem=strict
   ProtectHome=true
   ReadWritePaths=/var/lib/atlas
   PrivateTmp=true
   
   # Environment
   Environment=HOME=/var/lib/atlas
   Environment=ATLAS_ROOT=/var/lib/atlas/.atlas
   
   [Install]
   WantedBy=multi-user.target
   
9. Start the service

   sudo systemctl daemon-reload
   sudo systemctl enable atlas-steward
   sudo systemctl start atlas-steward
   sudo systemctl status atlas-steward
   

Monitoring

Check service status

sudo systemctl status atlas-steward

Validate deployment

After starting, run the full validation:

sudo -u atlas atlas wallet validate

Confirm:

• Correct network (mainnet vs testnet)
• Wallet has ETH for gas
• Contract addresses resolve correctly

Zone management

# List hosted zones
sudo -u atlas atlas zone list

# Show zone details
sudo -u atlas atlas zone show <zone_id>

# Stop a zone
sudo -u atlas atlas zone stop <zone_id>

# Export zone manifest
sudo -u atlas atlas zone export <zone_id> --output manifest.json