cerc-io/lighthouse
16
0
Fork 0
Code Issues 1 Pull Requests Packages Projects Releases Wiki Activity
6883e1bfb6
lighthouse/book/src/api-vc.md
Mac L 17b6d7ce86 Add http-address flag to VC (#2467) 
## Issue Addressed

#2454 

## Proposed Changes

Adds the `--http-address` flag to allow the user to use custom HTTP addresses. This can be helpful for certain Docker setups.

Since using custom HTTP addresses is unsafe due to the server being unencrypted,  `--unencrypted-http-transport` was also added as a safety flag and must be used in tandem with `--http-address`. This is to ensure the user is aware of the risks associated with using non-local HTTP addresses.
2021-07-21 07:10:51 +00:00

1.9 KiB
Raw Blame History

Validator Client API

Lighthouse implements a HTTP/JSON API for the validator client. Since there is no Eth2 standard validator client API, Lighthouse has defined its own.

A full list of endpoints can be found in Endpoints.

Note: All requests to the HTTP server must supply an Authorization header. All responses contain a Signature header for optional verification.

Starting the server

A Lighthouse validator client can be configured to expose a HTTP server by supplying the --http flag. The default listen address is 127.0.0.1:5062.

The following CLI flags control the HTTP server:

  • --http: enable the HTTP server (required even if the following flags are provided).
  • --http-address: specify the listen address of the server. It is almost always unsafe to use a non-default HTTP listen address. Use with caution. See the Security section below for more information.
  • --http-port: specify the listen port of the server.
  • --http-allow-origin: specify the value of the Access-Control-Allow-Origin header. The default is to not supply a header.

Security

The validator client HTTP server is not encrypted (i.e., it is not HTTPS). For this reason, it will listen by default on 127.0.0.1.

It is unsafe to expose the validator client to the public Internet without additional transport layer security (e.g., HTTPS via nginx, SSH tunnels, etc.).

For custom setups, such as certain Docker configurations, a custom HTTP listen address can be used by passing the --http-address and --unencrypted-http-transport flags. The --unencrypted-http-transport flag is a safety flag which is required to ensure the user is aware of the potential risks when using a non-default listen address.

CLI Example

Start the validator client with the HTTP server listening on http://localhost:5062:

lighthouse vc --http