How to Run Pactus with systemd on Linux

Preface

Systemd is a system and service manager for Linux that helps manage how programs start up, run, and shut down. It also handles system processes, logging, and basic service monitoring.

Prerequisites

Before setting up Pactus to run with systemd, ensure you have the following:

• Download the latest version of Pactus CLI for your Linux system from here.
• This guide assumes that systemd is installed and running on your Linux distribution. Most modern distributions use systemd by default.

Creating a systemd Service

To create a systemd service for Pactus, follow these steps:

1. Initialize the Pactus Node: Before running the service, initialize the Pactus node by this command:

pactus-daemon init

2. Create a Service File: Open a terminal and create a new service file in the /etc/systemd/system/ directory with superuser permissions:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/pactus.service

3. Add the Following Content to the service file, replacing <USER_NAME> with your actual username:

[Unit]
Description=Pactus Daemon Service
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=<USER_NAME>
ExecStart=/home/<USER_NAME>/pactus-cli/pactus-daemon start -w /home/<USER_NAME>/pactus
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=10

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

4. Reload Systemd Configuration: After creating or modifying the service file, reload the systemd to recognize the new service:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload

5. Start and Enable the Service: Start the service immediately and enable it to start on boot:

sudo systemctl start pactus
sudo systemctl enable pactus

6. Check Service Status: Check the status of your service to ensure it is running correctly:

sudo systemctl status pactus

Managing the Service

Use these commands to manage the Pactus service with systemd:

• Start the Service:

  sudo systemctl start pactus

• Stop the Service:

  sudo systemctl stop pactus

• Restart the Service:

  sudo systemctl restart pactus

• Enable the Service to Start on Boot:

  sudo systemctl enable pactus

• Disable the Service from Starting on Boot:

  sudo systemctl disable pactus

Checking Logs

If the service fails to start or behaves unexpectedly, check the logs using journalctl:

sudo journalctl -u pactus.service

This command will show you the log entries related to your service, helping you diagnose issues.