Delegates-and-Validators.md

Delegates and Validators

What is a delegate

Delegates are special accounts on the Semux BFT consensus. Delegates are accounts that are available for voting and could become a validator. To register as a delegate you need to have 1000 SEMs + transaction fee.

How to register as a delegate

To become a delegate

1. Make sure you have enough balance (1000 SEMs + transaction fee);
2. Click on the Delegates tab;
3. In the middle right side you can see a bar below Unvote;
4. Type the name you want your delegate to appear;
5. Click Register as delegate.

What is validator

Validators are delegates who are allowed to forge/mine blocks and validate transaction for the BFT Protocol. To become a Validator, a Delegate need to have enough number of votes to make it to the Top 100 of the list. Validators are indicated with the V symbol compared to S symbol for other delegates.

How to become a validator

To become a validator

1. Make sure to register as delegate
2. Vote for your own delegate
   1. Click on the Delegates tab;
   2. On the right side type the number of votes you want to put for your delegate;
   3. Click on your delegate;
   4. Click Vote (note: votes will remain locked until you unvote).
3. Wait for others to vote for your own delegate

Number of validators

At the start of the network there will be 16 validators slots. The Top 16 validators with the most number of votes will automatically become validators. Delegates can add more votes to remain in the Top 16. The number of validators will increment by 1 every 2 hours until the maximum of 100 validators is reached.

Recommended validator setup

Validator needs to be backed by a powerful computer.

Minimum Setup

• 8GB Memory
• Dual Core CPU
• 100 Mbps Bandwidth

Recommended Setup

• 16GB Memory
• Quad Core CPU
• 200 Mbps Bandwidth

Note: bandwidth requirements are for both inbound and outbound traffic.