Running a Validator

Validators secure the Lux Network by participating in consensus. In return, they earn staking rewards proportional to their stake and uptime. This guide covers setup, staking, delegation, and rewards.

Requirements

Staking Requirements

Parameter	Value
Minimum stake	2,000 LUX
Maximum stake	3,000,000 LUX
Minimum delegation	25 LUX
Minimum delegation fee	2%
Minimum staking period	2 weeks
Maximum staking period	1 year
Uptime requirement	80%

Hardware Requirements

Validators need reliable hardware with high uptime. Use the same requirements as a full node, with emphasis on:

Stable network connection: 1 Gbps recommended with low latency
UPS or redundant power: Downtime reduces rewards
NVMe storage: Consistent I/O performance during consensus
Dedicated machine: Avoid sharing resources with other workloads

A validator that falls below 80% uptime during its staking period receives zero rewards for that period. There is no partial reward -- it is all or nothing.

Validator Setup

Run a Full Node First

Your node must be fully bootstrapped before you can register as a validator. Follow the full node guide and wait until info.isBootstrapped returns true for all chains.

luxd --network-id=mainnet

Get Your Node ID

curl -s -X POST --data '{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "info.getNodeID"
}' -H 'content-type:application/json' http://localhost:9650/ext/info

Response:

{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "result": {
    "nodeID": "NodeID-..."
  },
  "id": 1
}

Save this Node ID -- you will need it for the staking transaction.

Fund Your P-Chain Address

You need at least 2,000 LUX on the P-Chain. If your LUX is on the C-Chain, transfer it:

# Export from C-Chain
lux transfer export --source c-chain --destination p-chain --amount 2000 --network mainnet

# Import on P-Chain
lux transfer import --chain p-chain --network mainnet

Register as a Validator

lux validator add \
  --node-id=NodeID-... \
  --stake-amount=2000 \
  --start-time="$(date -u -d '+10 minutes' +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)" \
  --end-time="$(date -u -d '+365 days' +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)" \
  --delegation-fee=2 \
  --network=mainnet

Flag	Description
`--node-id`	Your node's ID from step 2
`--stake-amount`	Amount of LUX to stake (minimum 2,000)
`--start-time`	When validation begins (must be in the future)
`--end-time`	When validation ends (max 1 year from start)
`--delegation-fee`	Percentage fee charged to delegators (minimum 2%)

Verify Registration

curl -s -X POST --data '{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "platform.getCurrentValidators",
  "params": {}
}' -H 'content-type:application/json' http://localhost:9650/ext/P

Your Node ID should appear in the response once the start time has passed.

Key Management

Validator keys are critical. The staking key (staker.key) and certificate (staker.crt) are stored in the node's staking directory.

~/.luxd/staking/
  staker.key    # Private key for P2P identity
  staker.crt    # TLS certificate

Back up your staking key and certificate securely. If these files are lost, you lose your Node ID and cannot recover your validator identity. Store copies in encrypted offline storage.

Key Security Best Practices

Never share staker.key with anyone
Encrypt backups using GPG or age
Use a hardware security module (HSM) for high-value validators
Rotate keys when decommissioning hardware

Delegation

Other LUX holders can delegate their stake to your validator to increase its weight (and your rewards).

How Delegation Works

A delegator selects your validator and locks their LUX
Your validator's total stake increases by the delegated amount
You earn a delegation fee (minimum 2%) from the delegator's rewards
The delegator earns staking rewards minus your fee

Delegation Limits

The maximum stake a validator can have (own stake + delegations) is the minimum of:

5x the validator's own stake
3,000,000 LUX

For example, a validator with 2,000 LUX can accept up to 8,000 LUX in delegations (for a total of 10,000 LUX).

Rewards Calculation

Rewards are distributed at the end of each staking period based on:

Factor	Effect
Stake amount	Higher stake = more rewards
Staking duration	Longer periods earn a higher rate
Remaining supply	Rewards decrease as total supply approaches the 2 TLUX cap
Uptime	Must be at least 80% to receive any rewards

Reward Formula

MintingRate = MinRate + (MaxRate - MinRate) * (Duration / MaxDuration)
Reward = RemainingSupply * (Stake / TotalStaked) * MintingRate * (Duration / Year)

Parameter	Mainnet Value
MinConsumptionRate	10% annually
MaxConsumptionRate	12% annually
MintingPeriod	365 days
SupplyCap	2,000,000,000,000 LUX

Example

For a validator staking 10,000 LUX for 1 year with the network at 50% of supply cap:

MintingRate = 0.10 + (0.12 - 0.10) * (365/365) = 0.12 (12%)
Reward = RemainingSupply * (10000 / TotalStaked) * 0.12 * 1

Uptime and Slashing

Uptime Tracking

Lux tracks validator uptime through peer observations. Other validators report whether they can reach your node.

Uptime is calculated as: time_connected / total_staking_period
The uptime threshold for receiving rewards is 80%

Slashing

Lux does not implement traditional slashing (stake destruction) for downtime. Instead:

Validators below 80% uptime receive zero rewards for that period
The staked LUX is returned in full at the end of the staking period
There is no risk of losing your staked principal

This design encourages uptime without the catastrophic risk of stake loss from transient issues.

Monitoring Your Validator

Check Uptime

curl -s -X POST --data '{
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "id": 1,
  "method": "platform.getCurrentValidators",
  "params": {
    "nodeIDs": ["NodeID-..."]
  }
}' -H 'content-type:application/json' http://localhost:9650/ext/P

The response includes uptime as a decimal (e.g., 0.95 = 95%).

Alerts to Configure

Alert	Trigger	Severity
Node offline	No peers for > 5 min	Critical
Low uptime	Below 85%	Warning
Disk space	Below 20% free	Warning
Version outdated	New release available	Info

Validator