KNOWLEDGE BASE / PEOPLE
Understand. Try it. Take part.
From your first wallet to your own node — a practical guide to People’s Blockchain.
Test network
Mainnet has not launched. Available operations depend on the site connection and network version. Test coins are not a promise of income.
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How People works
A blockchain is a shared record of operations. Your wallet signs an action, nodes verify it, and validators include it in blocks.
PPL is the network coin
People (PPL) pays for network fees and protocol operations. Test PPL is for testing the network; holding it does not mean you have earned money.
Participant, node, validator
A participant uses wallets and applications. A full node stores and verifies network state. A validator also produces and attests to blocks. A phone or an open browser tab does not automatically become a validator.
From signature to confirmation
An operation passes checks and enters a queue. Queue acceptance is not block inclusion or finality. Check the outcome in the explorer.
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Start with a wallet
You do not need your own server to get started.
01 · Create or restore a wallet
Open the wallet and create a new one or restore your own. Keep the recovery phrase somewhere safe outside the website. A password protects local storage; it does not replace a backup of your phrase.
02 · Check the connection
If you see “Preview” or “public node URL not configured”, the site is not connected to a network. Real transactions cannot be submitted until the operator configures a connection.
03 · Get test PPL
If the faucet is enabled on this network, request test coins through the available interface. Limits apply. Do not buy test coins on the promise of future income.
04 · Try a small transfer
Check the recipient, amount and fee. Leave some PPL for later operations. After sending, find the transaction ID in the explorer and check block inclusion.
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Ways to earn
The network is in its test stage. These are participation mechanisms, not a promise of profit.
Validation · test protocol
Rewards depend on validator participation and network parameters. Registration, a bond and running infrastructure are required. Account for server costs and protocol risks; there is no promised fixed yield. Running an ordinary non-validator node does not earn a reward by itself.
Building products · depends on demand
You can test tokens, NFTs and contracts. Creating an asset does not create buyers, liquidity or profit. The protocol cannot guarantee product value or demand.
Growth · protocol exists, public interface pending
The referral model has two levels, L1 and L2. The 70/30 weights apply to an eligible settlement budget, not the amount of every transfer. Activity, participation age, maturation and caps apply. An invitation alone does not earn a payment. The public interface for viewing and claiming Growth rewards is not implemented yet.
Mobile participation · not launched
Mobile participation rewards and protection against fake accounts are still under development. Keeping a page open or using a phone does not mine PPL. Automatic Community Pool payments to every wallet should not be treated as an available feature either.
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Build on the test network
Choose a tool and verify the result in the explorer.
Token
Choose issuance parameters and understand the allocation rules. The built-in token issuance mechanism allocates 10% of a new token to its community pool. This is not an automatic payment to every PPL holder or a universal rule for arbitrary Solidity contracts.
NFT
Prepare metadata and an image, check your rights to the materials and review the fee. An available form does not mean minting is complete: a signed operation must be included in a block.
Contract
Deployment requires PPL for gas and source review. Successful compilation is not a security audit. Test operations without real value first.
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Where fees go
A fee pays for a network operation; the transfer amount and its fee are different amounts.
How protocol fees are split
Every protocol fee is split: 30% to validators, 25% to the community pool, 20% to the treasury, 10% to liquidity, 15% to Growth, 0% burned — including fractional fees.
Fractional fees
Protocol v2 applies the same shares to fractional fees, calculated in the smallest PPL units with the remainder going to validators. With no validators, their share goes to Treasury. The operator must coordinate a network-wide transition before applying the upgrade.
Check before signing
Different operations have different prices. Contract gas is prepaid; the current mechanism does not refund unused gas on success or revert. The fees page lists the values used by the website.
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Connect your own node
The new joining path uses a ready-made Docker image and one command. No private repository access, wallet or private keys are required.
Your node — one command
Install and start Docker. The command creates a verifying node with persistent storage. No wallet, bond or private keys are required.
Checking release availability…
01 · Prepare Docker
Install Docker and make sure it is running. The first verified image targets Linux amd64 (x86-64). Other platforms are not yet advertised as verified.
02 · Wait for the public release
The panel above will show a ready-to-run command once the image and the v2 archive seed’s HTTPS endpoint are published. If the release is marked as pending, there is no working public command yet. Do not substitute arbitrary addresses or images.
03 · Copy and run the command
The command downloads a pinned image version, creates the people-node container and the persistent people-node-data volume. Network settings are fetched automatically over HTTPS and saved in the volume. Ordinary followers do not need to choose keys or edit an .env file.
04 · Wait for synchronization
Your node connects to the archive seed, receives blocks from genesis and verifies signatures and state changes itself. Time depends on history length and your connection. The API is available only on your computer; ordinary joining does not require opening inbound ports.
05 · Verify the result
Open http://localhost:4001/health and http://localhost:4001/chain/head. API availability alone does not prove synchronization: compare height and block data with the network. The next section covers verification and maintenance commands.
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Verify and maintain your node
Check synchronization, then manage the existing container. Do not repeat docker run each time you want to start your node.
Check the state
Run the requests below after startup. Compare height, block hash and state root against a trusted peer at the same height. A successful /health response alone does not prove synchronization.
Logs, stop and restart
docker logs --tail 100 people-node shows recent messages. docker stop people-node shuts it down gracefully; docker start people-node starts the same container with its saved chain. Restart uses pinned settings even if the configuration server is temporarily unavailable.
Keep your data
Keep the people-node-data volume: it contains the chain and pinned network configuration. For manual startup, preserve DATA_DIR. Do not run docker compose down -v for data you need. The /snapshot response is a state overview, not a backup. Use a separate volume for another network.
Joining an older chain
Nodes retain a limited history window. An empty node may not catch up if early blocks have already been removed. The new v2 network has an archive mode: a dedicated node retains blocks from genesis for full verification. Enabling archive mode cannot recover previously deleted blocks.
curl http://127.0.0.1:4001/health
curl http://127.0.0.1:4001/chain/head
curl http://127.0.0.1:4001/snapshot08 / PEOPLE
For developers: manual build
An optional path for developers with source access. Ordinary Docker users do not need this section.
01 · Get the approved version
Manual builds require repository access and an approved SHA. Take CHAIN_ID, GENESIS_FAUCET_ADDRESS, BOOTSTRAP_ADDRESS, BOOTSTRAP_PEERS and fee parameters from the published configuration of your selected v2 network. The old v1 chain is incompatible: use a separate DATA_DIR.
02 · Prepare the environment
Use Node.js 22 and npm. In the repository you received, check out the approved SHA and run the commands below. Building is required: packages load dist. CPU, memory and disk requirements still need measurement; there is no universal server size yet.
03 · Prepare .env.node
Set PEER_ID, CHAIN_ID, GENESIS_FAUCET_ADDRESS, BOOTSTRAP_ADDRESS, BOOTSTRAP_PEERS, DATA_DIR, PORT=4001, GOSSIP_PORT=4002 and BIND_HOST=127.0.0.1 in .env.node. EXPECTED_GENESIS_HASH must match genesisHash in the public configuration; TOKEN_CREATE_MIN_FEE and NFT_MINT_MIN_FEE must match its fees. PUBLIC_GOSSIP_URL is only needed for a node accepting inbound gossip connections.
04 · Use public settings only
GENESIS_FAUCET_ADDRESS and BOOTSTRAP_ADDRESS are public addresses. DEV_FAUCET_PRIVATE_KEY stays with the faucet and BOOTSTRAP_PRIVATE_KEY stays with the designated initial-block producer. Do not request or copy these secrets to your node.
05 · Start the process
Save .env.node in Open-Validator-Network-main and restrict access to its owner. Do not enable ALLOW_FAUCET or ALLOW_DEV_ENDPOINTS on an ordinary node. The command below explicitly loads the environment file. Do not expose the HTTP API publicly without agreed protection.
cd Open-Validator-Network-main
npm ci
npm run build
node --env-file=.env.node apps/node/dist/index.js09 / PEOPLE
Become a validator
Run and synchronize an ordinary node first, then coordinate participation with the operator.
Separate key and bond
Create a dedicated validator key and keep it safe. Obtain test PPL for the bond and fee, and confirm current registration parameters and the waiting period. Registration uses a signed join operation; starting a server alone does not register a validator.
Enable the role
After registration, configure the matching VALIDATOR_ADDRESS and VALIDATOR_PRIVATE_KEY in the node environment and restart. Follow the operator’s instructions for the approved network version and verify actual participation in blocks.
Availability matters
In the approved v2 mode, an unavailable selected validator stops block production. Safe automatic producer rotation is not implemented yet. Coordinate maintenance with the operator; do not reset the chain yourself.
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Keep your wallet safe
Whoever holds the secret can sign operations.
Your recovery phrase is yours alone
Never send your phrase, private key or password to support, a chat, a website form or a repository. A public address and transaction ID are enough to investigate an operation.
Before signing
Check the domain, network, recipient, amount and purpose. Try a small amount first. A blockchain does not provide the usual cancellation of an accidental transfer.
If you lose access
Look for your own backup of the phrase or key. A website password and chain data cannot recover a lost private key. Do not trust offers to “recover” it for a fee.
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Common questions
What to check when something does not work.
The site says “Preview”
The operator has not configured a public node URL, or the site cannot connect. A form cannot send a real operation without a reachable network. Do not re-enter secrets into third-party services.
I sent a transfer but the balance did not change
Check the transaction ID, block inclusion and network state in the explorer. Check the address and selected network. Do not send a duplicate transfer before finding out what happened to the first.
New blocks stopped appearing
Connectivity or an unavailable selected validator may be responsible. Report the observed height and time to the operator. Do not delete node data to try to fix a halt.
What to include in a support report
Page address, error text, time, public address and transaction ID. Node operators can add the code SHA, CHAIN_ID and height. Remove secrets from logs; do not send your .env file.