Celestia

type:

testnet

chain id:

mocha-5

rpc:

https://celestia-testnet-rpc.itrocket.net

rest:

https://celestia-testnet-api.itrocket.net

snapshots:

https://server-6.itrocket.net/testnet/celestia/

installation guide
bridge node setup
full node setup
operating boundaries
multiplexer
fibre
skill
light node setup
monitoring
keys
validator signaling
blobstream orchestrator
storage optimization
snapshots

Celestia Testnet (Mocha-5) — Installation Guide

For a new non-running Mocha-5 app node. Existing nodes must follow App upgrade and multiplexer, not reinitialize their home.

Reviewed 2026-09-23: target v10.2.0-mocha, commit 3b77dc2f5b00e1a646a2e9dd98b5c024a0d9ad8a, app v10 activation 1082619. Before activation the multiplexer runs app v9; binary version is not protocol version. The upgrade guide defines RPC-first order, verification and the pre-fork/pre-migration-only rollback boundary. Mainnet and Mocha-4 are separate.

POSTHUMAN operates app nodes, not Bridge/Light. DA v0.34.2-mocha and its Fibre namespace are documented in the Bridge and Light informational guides; Fibre/escrow activation requires a separate decision.

Prerequisites

For Validator/Consensus Node (official requirements):

Hardware: 32 cores, 32 GB RAM, 12 TiB NVMe planning envelope, 1 Gbps bandwidth; see capacity assumptions
OS: Ubuntu 24.04 or equivalent with glibc >= 2.38; Ubuntu 22.04 and older unsupported
Network: Stable internet connection

Note: These are official requirements for validators. For non-validator full nodes, lower specs may work but are not recommended for production.

1. Update System and Install Build Tools


sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt install -y curl tar wget clang pkg-config libssl-dev jq build-essential bsdmainutils git make ncdu gcc chrony liblz4-tool

2. Select the verified multiplexer artifact or toolchain

Prefer the checksum-verified official multiplexer archive and staging commands in App upgrade and multiplexer. Do not select standalone while Mocha-5 is still on app v9. Do not use Cosmovisor for this upgrade.

If building from source, install Go 1.26.6 through trusted distribution channels and verify go version. Do not reuse the old v9 toolchain assumption.

3. Build from the pinned source (alternative to the official archive)

Use a new staging directory without deleting or replacing another checkout:


set -eu
VERSION="v10.2.0-mocha"
APP_COMMIT="3b77dc2f5b00e1a646a2e9dd98b5c024a0d9ad8a"
test "$(go env GOVERSION)" = "go1.26.6"
BUILD_ROOT="$(mktemp -d -p /tmp celestia-app-build.XXXXXX)"
git clone --filter=blob:none --depth 1 --branch "$VERSION" \
  https://github.com/celestiaorg/celestia-app.git "$BUILD_ROOT/src"
test "$(git -C "$BUILD_ROOT/src" rev-parse HEAD)" = "$APP_COMMIT"
make -C "$BUILD_ROOT/src" build
"$BUILD_ROOT/src/build/celestia-appd" version --long

Require 10.2.0-mocha, the pinned commit and the multiplexer build tag. Review the embedded historical assets as described in the upgrade guide. Only after review, install the binary for this new non-running node; existing nodes use the controlled upgrade workflow instead of this command:


make -C "$BUILD_ROOT/src" install
celestia-appd version --long

Verify the effective installed binary path before creating a service. Avoid sharing an executable path with a mainnet or any running node.

4. Initialize the Node

Initialize with your node name and testnet chain ID:


# Set variables
MONIKER="<YOUR_NODE_NAME>"
CHAIN_ID="mocha-5"

# Initialize
celestia-appd init "$MONIKER" --chain-id "$CHAIN_ID" --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5"

This creates: ~/.celestia-app-mocha-5/

5. Download Genesis and Address Book

Important: Use the official Mocha-5 genesis and the listed community addrbook; verify chain identity before use:



# Download genesis.json
curl -Ls https://raw.githubusercontent.com/celestiaorg/networks/main/mocha-5/genesis.json \
  -o "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/genesis.json"

# Download addrbook.json (peer list)
curl -Ls https://server-6.itrocket.net/testnet/celestia/addrbook.json \
  -o "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/addrbook.json"

# Verify downloads
ls -lh "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/genesis.json"
ls -lh "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/addrbook.json"

6. Configure Node Settings

6.1 Set Minimum Gas Price


sed -i 's|minimum-gas-prices =.*|minimum-gas-prices = "0.002utia"|g' \
  "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/app.toml"

6.2 Configure Pruning (Recommended for testnet)


sed -i -e 's|^pruning *=.*|pruning = "custom"|' "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/app.toml"
sed -i -e 's|^pruning-keep-recent *=.*|pruning-keep-recent = "100"|' "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/app.toml"
sed -i -e 's|^pruning-interval *=.*|pruning-interval = "19"|' "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/app.toml"

6.3 Disable Indexer (Saves disk space)


sed -i -e 's|^indexer *=.*|indexer = "null"|' "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/config.toml"

6.4 Enable Prometheus


sed -i -e 's|prometheus = false|prometheus = true|' "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/config.toml"

6.5 Add Peers

The old POSTHUMAN endpoint ending in :28756 belonged to the retired Mocha-5 source and must not be used. Select a current public peer, verify its Mocha-5 identity and reachability, and replace every placeholder before use.


# Independently verified public Mocha-5 peer
PEERS="<VERIFIED_MOCHA_5_NODE_ID>@<PUBLIC_P2P_HOST>:<P2P_PORT>"

# Update config (adjust as needed based on available peers)
sed -i -e "/^\[p2p\]/,/^\[/{s/^[[:space:]]*persistent_peers *=.*/persistent_peers = \"$PEERS\"/}" \
  "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5/config/config.toml"

6.6 v10 configuration preflight

Before startup, follow Configuration preflight: ensure the top-level app ABCI address matches proxy_app, preserve loopback binds and keep priv_validator_grpc_laddr = "" when Fibre is not operated. Do not blindly apply config sync or change ports to resolve a mismatch.

7. Create Systemd Service


sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/celestia-appd-testnet.service > /dev/null <<EOF
[Unit]
Description=Celestia Node (Mocha-5 Testnet)
After=network-online.target

[Service]
User=$USER
WorkingDirectory=$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5
ExecStart=$(which celestia-appd) start --home $HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=3
LimitNOFILE=65535

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

Note: Service name is celestia-appd-testnet to distinguish from mainnet if running both.

8. Download and Apply Snapshot

POSTHUMAN does not currently publish a Mocha-5 snapshot. Use the verified ITRocket feed at https://server-6.itrocket.net/testnet/celestia/. Check .current_state.json, verify the live RPC identifies as mocha-5, download the exact listed file before stopping the node, and validate the complete archive with lz4 -t.

Before replacing validator data, preserve the local consensus key and newest priv_validator_state.json. Never use signer state from a snapshot. Keep the old data directory as rollback material until the restored node is synced and verified.

9. Start the Node


# Reload systemd
sudo systemctl daemon-reload

# Enable on boot
sudo systemctl enable celestia-appd-testnet

# Start service
sudo systemctl start celestia-appd-testnet

# View logs
sudo journalctl -u celestia-appd-testnet -f -o cat

10. Verify Node Status

Check Sync Status


celestia-appd status --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" 2>&1 | jq .SyncInfo

Look for "catching_up": false when fully synced.

Check Block Height


celestia-appd status --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" 2>&1 | jq .SyncInfo.latest_block_height

11. Create or Restore Wallet

Optional operator-controlled onboarding, not part of an app upgrade. Keep wallet recovery material out of chat, logs and agent context. Never import or copy a consensus key through these wallet steps.

Create New Wallet


WALLET="wallet-testnet"
celestia-appd --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" keys add "$WALLET"

Save the mnemonic securely!

Restore Existing Wallet


WALLET="wallet-testnet"
celestia-appd --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" keys add "$WALLET" --recover

Save Wallet Address


WALLET_ADDRESS=$(celestia-appd --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" keys show "$WALLET" -a)
echo "export WALLET_ADDRESS_TESTNET=$WALLET_ADDRESS" >> "$HOME/.bash_profile"
source "$HOME/.bash_profile"
echo "Testnet wallet: $WALLET_ADDRESS"

12. Get Testnet Tokens

Request testnet TIA from the faucet:

Celestia Discord: https://discord.com/invite/celestiacommunity
- Go to #mocha-faucet channel
- Request tokens with your address

Check Balance


celestia-appd --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" query bank balances "$WALLET_ADDRESS"

13. Create Validator

Optional new-validator transaction, requiring a separate operator decision; never repeat it for an existing validator upgrade. After sync and funding:


celestia-appd tx staking create-validator \
  --amount=1000000utia \
  --pubkey=$(celestia-appd --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" tendermint show-validator) \
  --moniker="<YOUR_NODE_NAME>" \
  --chain-id=mocha-5 --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" \
  --commission-rate="0.10" \
  --commission-max-rate="0.20" \
  --commission-max-change-rate="0.01" \
  --min-self-delegation="1" \
  --gas=300000 \
  --fees=2000utia \
  --from="$WALLET"

Useful Commands

Service Status


sudo systemctl status celestia-appd-testnet

Stop Node


sudo systemctl stop celestia-appd-testnet

Node Info


celestia-appd status --home "$HOME/.celestia-app-mocha-5" 2>&1 | jq

Security

Firewall Configuration


sudo ufw default allow outgoing
sudo ufw default deny incoming
sudo ufw allow ssh/tcp
sudo ufw allow 26656/tcp
sudo ufw enable

Signer custody: Follow Keys and signer boundaries; preserve the existing key and newest signer state without exposing or moving them.
SSH Key Auth: Disable password authentication
Monitoring: Setup Prometheus/Grafana

Retirement boundary

There is no copy-paste validator uninstall procedure here. Decommissioning, data deletion, key handling or signer migration requires a separately reviewed plan with verified recovery evidence and duplicate-signer fencing. Never use installation or retirement steps as a database or signer-state rollback.

Resources

Mocha-5 snapshots (ITRocket): https://server-6.itrocket.net/testnet/celestia/
Mocha-5 RPC (ITRocket): https://celestia-testnet-rpc.itrocket.net
Discord Faucet: https://discord.com/invite/celestiacommunity
Official Testnet Docs: https://docs.celestia.org/nodes/mocha-testnet

Last Updated: 2026-09-23 | v10.2.0-mocha | App v10 height: 1082619 | Chain ID: mocha-5