Installing Networks

Deploy blockchain networks on your local Obol Stack

The Obol Stack supports installing multiple blockchain networks on your local Kubernetes cluster. Each network installation creates a unique deployment with its own namespace, allowing you to run multiple instances simultaneously.

Available networks

View all available networks:

obol network list

Currently supported networks:

Network	Description
ethereum	Full Ethereum node (execution + consensus clients)
helios	Ethereum light client for RPC access
aztec	Aztec Layer 2 sequencer node

Network installation workflow

Installing a network follows a two-step process:

1. Install - Generate configuration and save to disk

2. Sync - Deploy the configuration to the cluster

This separation allows you to review and modify configuration before deployment.

Install command

obol network install <network> [flags]

This creates a deployment directory at ~/.config/obol/networks/<network>/<id>/ containing:

• values.yaml - Configuration values (editable)

• helmfile.yaml.gotmpl - Deployment definition

Sync command

obol network sync <network>/<id>

This deploys the configuration to your Kubernetes cluster using Helmfile.

Delete command

obol network delete <network>/<id>

This removes both the Kubernetes resources and local configuration.

Ethereum network

Deploy a full Ethereum node with configurable execution and consensus clients.

Configuration options

Flag	Description	Options	Default
--id	Deployment identifier	Any string	Auto-generated
--network	Ethereum network	mainnet, sepolia, hoodi	mainnet
--execution-client	Execution layer client	reth, geth, nethermind, besu, erigon, ethereumjs	reth
--consensus-client	Consensus layer client	lighthouse, prysm, teku, nimbus, lodestar, grandine	lighthouse

Examples

Hoodi testnet

Deploy an Ethereum node on Hoodi testnet with default clients:

# Install configuration
obol network install ethereum --network=hoodi

# Deploy to cluster (replace with your deployment ID)
obol network sync ethereum/knowing-wahoo

Mainnet with specific clients

Multiple deployments

Full Ethereum nodes require significant resources. Mainnet execution clients need 1+ TB of storage and can take days to sync. Consider using testnets for development.

Check sync status

Monitor your Ethereum node sync progress:

# View pod status
obol kubectl get pods -n ethereum-<id>

# Check execution client logs
obol kubectl logs -n ethereum-<id> -l app=execution -f

# Check consensus client logs
obol kubectl logs -n ethereum-<id> -l app=consensus -f

Helios light client

Deploy a Helios Ethereum light client for fast RPC access without syncing a full node.

Configuration options

Flag	Description	Options	Default
--id	Deployment identifier	Any string	Auto-generated
--network	Ethereum network	mainnet	mainnet
--consensus-rpc	Consensus RPC endpoint	URL	Public endpoint
--execution-rpc	Execution RPC endpoint	URL	Public endpoint

Example

# Install Helios
obol network install helios

# Deploy to cluster
obol network sync helios/<id>

Helios provides a local RPC endpoint that verifies data against the consensus layer, giving you trustless Ethereum access without running a full node.

Aztec network

Deploy an Aztec Layer 2 sequencer node for the privacy-focused Ethereum rollup.

Configuration options

Flag	Description	Options	Default
--id	Deployment identifier	Any string	Auto-generated
--network	Aztec network	mainnet	mainnet
--attester-private-key	Attester private key (hex)	Required	None
--l1-execution-url	L1 execution RPC URL	URL	ERPC endpoint
--l1-consensus-url	L1 consensus RPC URL	URL	Public endpoint

Example

obol network install aztec \
  --attester-private-key=<YOUR_PRIVATE_KEY> \
  --l1-execution-url=https://geth-prysm-mainnet-1.gcp.obol.tech/ \
  --l1-consensus-url=https://prysm-geth-mainnet-1.gcp.obol.tech/

What this does:

• Deploys an Aztec sequencer node in your local Kubernetes cluster.

• Connects to Ethereum mainnet using the specified RPC endpoints.

• Configures your node as an attester using the provided private key.

Default L1 RPC endpoints:

• Execution Layer: https://geth-prysm-mainnet-1.gcp.obol.tech/ (Geth)

• Consensus Layer: https://prysm-geth-mainnet-1.gcp.obol.tech/ (Prysm)

These are production-grade, publicly accessible Ethereum nodes provided by Obol.

You can use your own Ethereum node endpoints by changing the --l1-execution-url and --l1-consensus-url flags.

Deploy to the cluster:

obol network sync aztec/<id>

Resource requirements

The Aztec sequencer requires significant resources:

Resource	Request	Limit
CPU	4 cores	8 cores
Memory	16 GB	32 GB
Storage	1 TB	-

Ensure your machine has sufficient resources before deploying an Aztec node. The node requires substantial CPU, memory, and disk space for operation.

Managing deployments

List installed networks

View configuration directories:

ls ~/.config/obol/networks/

View deployment status

Check running deployments:

obol kubectl get namespaces | grep -E "ethereum|helios|aztec"

Modify configuration

Edit the values file before syncing:

# Open values.yaml in your editor
$EDITOR ~/.config/obol/networks/<network>/<id>/values.yaml

# Re-sync to apply changes
obol network sync <network>/<id>

Delete a deployment

Remove a network deployment:

obol network delete <network>/<id>

This deletes:

• Kubernetes namespace and all resources

• Local configuration directory

• Persistent volume claims (data)

Deletion is permanent. All blockchain data stored in the deployment will be lost.