proxmox/docs/archive/BLOCK_PROCESSING_STATUS.md

Block Processing Status

Date: $(date)
Status: ❌ NOT PROCESSING BLOCKS

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Current Status

Answer: ❌ NO - Besu is NOT processing blocks

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Root Cause

All Besu services are failing to start due to invalid configuration options in the TOML files.

Configuration Issue

The configuration files contain deprecated/invalid options that Besu v23.10.0 does not recognize:

• log-destination
• max-remote-initiated-connections
• trie-logs-enabled
• accounts-enabled
• database-path
• rpc-http-host-allowlist

Error Pattern

All services show the same pattern:

1. Service starts
2. Besu reads configuration file
3. Besu immediately exits with: Unknown options in TOML configuration file
4. Systemd restarts service after 10 seconds
5. Loop repeats indefinitely

Restart Counts:

• Validators: 189-259 restarts each
• Services cannot successfully start
• No block processing possible

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Service Status

Category	VMID Range	Status	Processes	Block Processing
Validators	1000-1004	🔴 Failing	Some running (but crashing)	❌ No
Sentries	1500-1503	🔴 Failing	Some running (but crashing)	❌ No
RPC Nodes	2500-2502	🔴 Failing	Some running (but crashing)	❌ No

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Evidence

Logs Show

• ❌ No block-related messages
• ❌ No sync indicators
• ❌ No peer connections
• ❌ Only configuration error messages
• ❌ Continuous restart loops

RPC Endpoints

• ❌ RPC endpoints not responding (services not running)
• ❌ Cannot query eth_blockNumber (services failing)
• ❌ No block data available

Process Status

• ⚠️ Some processes exist but exit immediately
• ❌ Processes don't stay running long enough to process blocks
• ❌ Services in "activating" or restart loops, not stable

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What Needs to Happen for Block Processing

1. Fix Configuration Files

   • Remove or update deprecated options
   • Ensure all options are valid for Besu v23.10.0

2. Services Must Start Successfully

   • No configuration errors
   • Services stay running (not restarting)
   • Processes remain active

3. Network Connection

   • Nodes connect to peers
   • P2P communication established
   • Discovery working

4. Genesis Block Loaded

   • Genesis file properly loaded
   • Chain initialized

5. Consensus Active (for validators)

   • QBFT consensus running
   • Validators producing blocks

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Required Actions

Immediate: Fix Configuration Files

The configuration files need to be updated to remove invalid options:

# Remove or comment out deprecated options from all config files
# Options to remove/update:
# - log-destination → remove (use logging configuration)
# - max-remote-initiated-connections → remove or update
# - trie-logs-enabled → remove (deprecated)
# - accounts-enabled → remove (deprecated)
# - database-path → may need update to data-path
# - rpc-http-host-allowlist → update to rpc-http-host-allowlist or remove

After Fix: Verify Block Processing

# Check if services start successfully
for vmid in 1000 1001 1002 1003 1004; do
    pct exec $vmid -- systemctl status besu-validator.service --no-pager | head -10
done

# Check for block processing indicators
for vmid in 1000 1001 1002; do
    pct exec $vmid -- journalctl -u besu-validator.service --since "2 minutes ago" --no-pager | grep -iE 'block|sync|chain|consensus' | head -10
done

# Check RPC for block number
for vmid in 2500 2501 2502; do
    pct exec $vmid -- curl -s -X POST -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
        --data '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"eth_blockNumber","params":[],"id":1}' \
        http://localhost:8545 2>/dev/null
done

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Summary

Block Processing: ❌ NO

Reason: Configuration files contain invalid options causing all services to fail immediately on startup.

Impact:

• No nodes can start successfully
• No block processing possible
• Network not operational
• All services in restart loops

Next Step: Fix configuration files by removing/updating deprecated options.

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Status Check Completed: $(date)
Result: ❌ NOT PROCESSING BLOCKS - CONFIGURATION ISSUE