Running your AR.IO gateway is a key step in ensuring smooth and efficient access to the AR.IO network. While the process is generally straightforward, there may be occasional issues that arise during operation. This guide provides a step-by-step approach to troubleshooting potential problems and configuring advanced features like the Observer Module.

Step 1: Monitor Your Gateway on the Network Portal

The first step in troubleshooting is to check the status of your gateway using the AR.IO Network Portal. Through this portal, you can verify whether your gateway is functioning correctly.

• If it passes: Congratulations! Your gateway is operating smoothly.

• If it fails: Investigate the error messages to determine the source of the problem. The following steps will help you troubleshoot common issues.

Step 2: Ensure Your Gateway Is Running

Is Your Gateway Active?

To check if your gateway is active, you can simply visit your gateway URL in a web browser (e.g., your.gateway). If the page loads properly, your gateway is up and running. If it doesn’t load, follow these steps to check and restart your gateway:

sudo docker ps

This command lists all running Docker containers on your system. A healthy gateway setup should produce output similar to the following:

In this example, pay attention to the STATUS column. If the containers say Up, your gateway is functioning correctly. If you see Exited or any error messages, the gateway has stopped and needs to be restarted.

To restart your gateway, use the following commands:

sudo docker-compose down 
sudo docker-compose up -d

To diagnose the problem, it’s also useful to check the logs:

sudo docker-compose logs -f --tail=50

Are ArNS Names Resolving?

To verify if ArNS names are resolving correctly, visit arns.your.gateway in your browser. If the ArNS names are resolving, everything is functioning as expected. If not, you may need to check your DNS settings or SSL certificates.

Is ArDrive Content Loading?

Check if your gateway is serving content from ArDrive by visiting ardrive.your.gateway. If the content loads properly, your gateway is successfully pulling data from Arweave’s decentralized storage.

Are Wallets Correctly Set in Your .env File?

It’s essential that your .env file is correctly configured with the appropriate wallet addresses. For example:

AR_IO_WALLET=<your-public-wallet-address>

OBSERVER_WALLET=<observer-wallet-public-address>

ARNS_ROOT_HOST=<your-domain>

The wallet used for the Observer module must be set correctly in the .env file. This wallet is used to sign and submit reports to the Arweave blockchain. Make sure the corresponding keyfile for the Observer wallet is saved in the wallets/ directory as <Wallet-Address>.json. For example:

QGWqtJdLLgm2ehFWiiPzMaoFLD50CnGuzZIPEdoDRGQ.json

After making any changes to the .env file or wallet configurations, restart your gateway:

sudo docker-compose down 
sudo docker-compose up -d

Step 3: Advanced Configuration for the Observer Module

The Observer Module is critical for monitoring the health of the AR.IO network. Follow these steps to ensure the Observer is running correctly:

Observer Not Running or Unable to Connect

If your Observer is not running or unable to connect to the AR.IO network, check its status with this command:

sudo docker ps

If the Observer container is not running, restart the gateway:

sudo docker-compose down 
sudo docker-compose up -d

You can check the Observer logs to identify any issues:

sudo docker-compose logs -f observer

Observer Wallet Has No AR

If your Observer wallet doesn’t have enough AR tokens, it won’t be able to submit reports to the Arweave blockchain. It’s recommended to deposit at least 1 AR into the Observer wallet to ensure continuous operation.

Observer Wallet Mismatch

If your Observer wallet doesn’t match the one set in the AR.IO network, check the OBSERVER_WALLET in your .env file. Also, ensure the wallet keyfile is correctly named and placed in the wallets/ directory. Restart the gateway after making changes:

sudo docker-compose down 
sudo docker-compose up -d

Step 4: Troubleshooting Common Gateway Issues

Release Number Doesn’t Match

If your gateway release number is outdated or includes the suffix "-pre", update it with these commands:

sudo docker-compose down --rmi all 

git checkout main 

git pull 

sudo docker-compose up -d

If this doesn't resolve the issue, you can also try a more extreme method of clearing out the incorrect docker images:

sudo docker-compose down

sudo docker system prune -a

sudo docker-compose up -d

Gateway Appears Offline

If your gateway appears offline on Viewblock or ar://gateways, this is usually a temporary issue. Verify that your gateway is still running using the steps outlined above.

ArNS Names Not Loading

If ArNS names aren’t loading, ensure the ARNS_ROOT_HOST is correctly set in your .env file. Additionally, check your DNS settings and make sure wildcard subdomains (e.g., *.your-domain.com) are configured properly.

SSL Certificate Issues

If you receive a “Your connection is not private” error, your SSL certificates may have expired. Renew them using the following command:

sudo certbot certonly --manual --preferred-challenges dns --email <your-email-address> -d <your-domain>.com -d '*.<your-domain>.com'

Nginx Errors (404/502)

If you encounter 404 or 502 errors, check your Nginx configuration and restart the Nginx service if needed:

sudo service nginx restart

Conclusion

By following this guide, you can ensure that your AR.IO gateway runs smoothly and any potential issues are swiftly resolved. From basic gateway checks to advanced Observer module configurations, these steps will help keep your gateway operating at peak performance.