This blockchain module allows for creating an Ethereum network with several nodes using Docker containers.
Its goal is to be interfaced with robot controllers in the ARGoS simulator:
https://github.com/ilpincy/argos3
The interface of the Docker containers with ARGoS is done in Python, using the code in the following repository:
https://github.com/teksander/geth-argos
This module can also be used independently of ARGoS
- for debbuging
- playing around with an Ethereum network and Docker containers
- to interface with something other than ARGoS
The very first time you run this code, it is required to create the Docker image for the Ethereum nodes and initialize Docker Swarm as follows:
cd geth
docker build -t mygeth .
docker swarm init --advertise-addr 127.0.0.1
Additionally, you have to set the variable DOCKERFOLDER in
the file blockchainconfig.sh to the full path where this
repository is located on your computer, for example:
/<username>/repos/argos-blockchain/
This version is currently using Ethereum PoA. To use PoW, an different version is availiable at:
https://github.com/Pold87/blockchain-swarm-robotics
Usually, the network is created when a swarm robotics experiment is launched
(see file: https://github.com/teksander/geth-argos/blob/latest/MarketForaging/reset-geth)
However, you can also start the Ethereum network without ARGoS, using the following command:
bash local/start_network.sh <number of nodes>
That is, bash local/start_network.sh 5, would create a private Ethereum network with 5 nodes.
