Revised BetaNet Node Hardware Requirements

Thank you to all the members of the community who took the time to speak with us about barriers and difficulties in participating in the xx network. We have learned a great deal about what hardware is available across the globe and what configurations community members can support.

Ultimately, it is the participation of the Nodes which ensures the network will be successful, so we have moved to giving hardware benchmarks instead of component requests.

As a result of feedback, we have removed the requirement for a static IP address and have added guidance on running the Gateway on the same hardware as the Node. We have also given better explanations for potential risks in choosing less performant or reliable hardware.

Node:

CPU: High core count modern CPU with Hyperthreading

  • Capable of meeting Multithreaded PassMark score of 15,500 or Cinebench R15 Multi Score score of 1750

  • Examples: AMD Ryzen 7 2700x, AMD Ryzen 5 3600, Intel Core i9-9980HK

GPU: Nvidia Turing or Tesla GPU, Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 or greater

RAM: 16GB DDR4 or more (an upgrade path to 32GB is recommended)

Storage: 1TB High Speed Enterprise NVME (PCI) SSD

  • Recommended speed: 500,000 /500,000 IOPS

  • Recommended Reliability: 1.5 million hours MTBF

  • Example: Samsung 970 PRO SSD 1TB - M.2 NVMe

  • Note: SSD reliability is not as important for the BetaNet when there will not be a large number of transitions. It is likely that lower endurance SSDs will be fine but will need to be replaced when it comes time for MainNet. If an SSD fails, it could take substantial time before a node is able to get back online.

Bandwidth: 100mbit up / 100mbit down

Other configurations may also work and will be approved on a case by case basis. The software does support full CPU nodes, but higher core counts are required. As the software becomes more mature and more power is extracted from the GPU, it is likely the hardware requirements for such nodes will increase.

We are actively testing setups with multiple high end (5+) Nvidia Pascal GPUs and expect to report in the next few weeks if such setups can meet requirements. That being said, it is likely that support will be dropped from such configurations as the platform matures.

Gateway:

For the BetaNet, it will be possible to run a Gateway on a Node, see below.

Gateways are low powered machines which act as the public face for a node. Every node must have a gateway. Most gateways are expected to run in the cloud, but it is possible to run them as physical devices. They offer protection to the node if they are on a seperate IP address and network connection.

CPU: modern dual core (Example: AMD Ryzen 3 2200g)

GPU: None

RAM: 2GB or more

Storage: 250GB (database instance)

Bandwidth: 100mbit up / 100mbit down (separate from node bandwidth)

Node + Gateway:

It is possible to run the Gateway on the node, although it results in a loss of security. The gateway structure makes it more difficult to take a node off the network, which will be lost if it is run on the same machine. The specifications for such a node differ slightly and are as follows:

CPU: High core count modern CPU with Hyperthreading

  • Capable of meeting Multithreaded PassMark score of 15,500 or Cinebench R15 Multi Score score of 1750

  • Examples: AMD Ryzen 7 2700x, AMD Ryzen 5 3600, Intel Core i9-9980HK

GPU: Nvidia Turing or Tesla GPU, Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 or greater

RAM: 16GB DDR4 or more (an upgrade path to 32GB is recommended)

Storage 1: 1TB High Speed Enterprise NVME (PCI) SSD

  • Recommended speed: 500,000 /500,000 IOPS

  • Recommended Reliability: 1.5 million hours MTBF

  • Example: Samsung 970 PRO SSD 1TB - M.2 NVMe

  • Note: SSD reliability is not as important for the BetaNet when there will not be a large number of transitions. It is likely that lower endurance SSDs will be fine but will need to be replaced when it comes time for MainNet. If an SSD fails, it could take substantial time before a node is able to get back online.

Storage 2: 240GB High Speed Enterprise SSD

  • Recommended speed: 100,000/10,000 IOPS

  • Recommended Reliability: 1.5 million hours MTBF

  • Example: Samsung 883 DCT 240GB

  • Note: SSD reliability is not as important for the BetaNet when there will not be a large number of transitions. It is likely that lower endurance SSDs will be fine but will need to be replaced when it comes time for MainNet.

Bandwidth: 150mbit up / 200mbit down

These specifications may change over the life of the BetaNet, but we will strive to keep them as consistent as possible. Please note these specifications are highly likely to change going into the MainNet.

11 Likes

Thanks for the update- are the timeframes the same for Node registrations? I will need to revise my hardware based on this update today.

Cheers.

1 Like

The time-frames are not the same. You will want to have your hardware ready for when the BetaNet goes live July 1st, so you have plenty of time.

1 Like

Thanks for the update!

Will Exhibit A of the Betanet Node Agreements be updated to reflect the new hardware requirements?

1 Like

@benger great, looking forward to it! Awesome work by the whole team in getting this ramped up, excited to take the next step forward.

2 Likes

Aloha, benger

If I remember correctly, you wrote that would be ready to consider - Intel Core i7 9700K.
At this moment - is it still acceptable?

Now I have platform with: Intel Core i7 9700K/Z390/MSI RTX 2070-8GB
Will it be enough?

For all other components - I’m ready to support the maximum choice, but replacing the processor will be quite expensive.

Thank you.

Hi,

The Core i7-9700K is slightly under spec according to Cinebench (-11.9%) and Passmark (-5.2%), but barely. My guess is you will be fine. Although I cannot be certain.

Because it is a K series part, you are likely to be able make up the difference with a moderate overclock, although there is always some risk in overclocking.

My recommendation would be to try it and see how it works.

3 Likes

Hi,

Thank you for the specifications. :+1:

The fastest internet that I can get at my residence is 1Gbps download and 35Mbps upload. I’m also exploring data center colocation options near me but that is a dive that I would prefer to take for MainNet. For BetaNet it would be more convenient to have the node hardware close at hand for development, testing, troubleshooting, etc.

Can I compensate for upload speed deficiency using a faster GPU and CPU and the faster download speed? For example, an RTX 2080 Super (or Ti even) and a passmark 26537 cpu (threadripper 1950x) along with the 1G x 35M internet. The gateway would be hosted in the cloud.

If the specified 100Mbps upload bandwidth is not constantly saturated then perhaps speedups elsewhere in the node can more than compensate for the slower upload speed.

Obviously this depends on your software design and how it utilizes the upload bandwidth.

Thoughts ?

2 Likes

Hi,

I will run one single machine. Can you please check if all specs are fine? I will inquire few suppliers to get the best price.

Thanks.

Type Description Ref.
CPU AMD Ryzen 7 2700X Octa-Core 3.7GHz c/ Turbo 4.35GHz 20MB SktAM4 YD270XBGAFBOX
GPU Zotac Geforce RTX 2070 Mini Twin Fan 8GB GDDR6 ZT-T20700E-10P
PSU Seasonic PRIME Ultra 850W Gold Full Modular SSR-850GD
MOBO Motherboard Mini-ITX ASRock Fatal1ty B450 Gaming-ITX/ac 90-MXB870-A0UAYZ
RAM G.SKILL Aegis 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4-2400MHz CL15 Preta F4-2400C15D-16GIS
HD1 SSD M.2 2280 Samsung 970 Pro 1TB MLC V-NAND NVMe MZ-V7P1T0BW
HD2 Samsung 860 Pro 256GB MLC V-NAND SATA MZ-76P256B/EU
Case Fractal Node 304 FD-CA-NODE-304-BL
1 Like

Hi,

That all looks good, although you probably can get a lower wattage PSU if you want

there is also a cheaper processor that meets spec, the Ryzen 5 3600x

1 Like

Hi,

Unfortunately, computational power and GPU power are not easily interchangeable in our protocol due to how subsets of data can be operated on by different parts of the pipeline. The upload is not saturated, but the pipeline is sequential so lower upload means the next node cannot get enough data to fully utilize its GPU.

As you understand, the other option is collocation. We are working on a guide for fitting an entire node in a 1U enclosure, which will allow it to be collocated in a datacenter for what is probably cheaper over the life of the BetaNet than the hardware upgrades you are looking into. We hope to release a guide soon.

1 Like

I guess I will be lining up a colocation option and building a 1U server then.

Hopefully a time-saving tip for those looking for colocation options: I’ve had vastly better luck googling “1U colocation” than reaching out to the data centers shown on google maps near me. Most data centers seem to rent a minimum of a half-rack (21U) at best. You may have to drive a ways.

Cheers,

1 Like

Does anyone have a recommended script to get IOPS from a linux command line? I am not sure whether my existing SSD meets the requirements. I tried using fio but the output was way way less than I was expecting. I’ll probably have to buy a nvme, but I want to be sure it’s necessary before I do. Thanks!

1 Like

Could you guys please check if the following specs would be fine for a node+gateway?

Any suggestion or comment would be welcome. I’ll finally probably buy rather than build. Thanks in advance! @benger @Icarus @Keith @alexdupre

Case: Cooler Master MasterCase MC500P (3x140mm pre-installed fans) (P/N: MCM-M500-KG5N-S00)
MOBO: Asus Prime X570-P (P/N 90MB11N0-M0EAY0)
PSU: Corsair RM750 750W 80 Plus Gold Modular (P/N CP-9020195-EU)
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6GHz BOX (P/N 100-100000071BOX)
CPU Cooler: MasterLiquid Lite 240 (P/N MLW-D24M-A20PW-R1)
GPU: Asus Dual GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER EVO OC Edition 8GB GDDR6 (P/N: 90YV0DK0-M0NA00)
RAM: 2 x Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3000 PC4-24000 16GB 2x8GB CL15 (P/N CMK16GX4M2B3000C15)
SSD1: Samsung SSD 970 Pro NVMe PCI-E M.2 1 TB (P/N MZ-V7P1T0BW)
SSD2: Samsung 860 Pro SSD Series 256GB (P/N MZ-76P256B/EU)

1 Like

The specs seem fine. I’m not sure that the selected RAM is in the official compatibility list of the asus motherboard, it seems not, but without the official code is difficult to check. If so you might consider a replacement for optimal stability.

Thanks. I think you are right, that RAM doesn’t seem officially compatible. I may have to upgrade the MOBO, because the Samsung 970 PRO SSD is not officially supported by Asus PRIME B450-PLUS either…

[edited] So now I’ve replaced:

  • Asus PRIME B450-PLUS with Asus Prime X570-P
  • Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3200 PC4-25600 32GB 2x16GB CL16 with 2 x Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3000 PC4-24000 16GB 2x8GB CL15 (P/N CMK16GX4M2B3000C15)
1 Like

@bradford
You might prefer to monitor rather than benchmark.
I’d recommend iostat while playing some video, copy one or two large Gb+ files, copy a directory with many, many, many small files, etc.

Other tools you might consider… How to Benchmark Hard Disks in Linux But I would do more research on each to learn their limitations.

2 Likes

Could Samsung 970 EVO PLUS SSD be a valid option as 1st storage for the node? It doesn’t seem bad in this benchmark comparison with the 970 PRO (remove the link spaces), though I wonder about durability:

https: // ssd.userbenchmark. com/Compare/Samsung-970-Evo-Plus-NVMe-PCIe-M2-1TB-vs-Samsung-970-Pro-NVMe-PCIe-M2-1TB/m693540vsm497261

[edited]: Sorry, never mind, I think I’ve convinced myself that the PRO is the clear winner for the node, given it’s greater endurance and durability and betanet’s (and potentially mainnet’s) requirements. The PRO has Samsung’s red square (professional endurance and warranty) distinctive (thanks @Icarus for the tip).

Thanks!

1 Like

Can you guys share some sites where we can get a desktop assembled with these parts in US?