Introduction
Monero is one of the most important cryptocurrencies in my opinion. It does not have the same market share as Bitcoin, but it is quite unique in one aspect: privacy. Monero is just like cash — no one needs to know how much Monero was sent or who sent it. It's the opposite of Bitcoin in this regard. In fact, Bitcoin is worse than fiat money when it comes to privacy.
You can read more details here:
https://lukesmith.xyz/articles/monero-maximalism-or-how-bitcoin-is-a-coin/
Obs: I'm NOT recommending anyone invest in Monero. Monero is supposed to be a currency, but since crypto is still extremely volatile, many people treat it as an investment. Do your own research — I'm not responsible for any investments you make.
1. Choose a VPS or set it up at home
First things first, you will need a server. You can use your own home PC if you prefer, or a VPS. A VPS is easier because it stays online 24/7 and you can always open the required ports.
At home, many ISPs block incoming ports, so your node wouldn’t be public (it would still help the network, but you couldn’t easily connect to it from outside without something like ngrok).
I personally recommend Contabo for running a Monero node because they offer excellent prices on storage VPS plans.
Check their pricing here: Contabo Storage VPS
The Storage VPS S is more than enough. The Monero blockchain currently uses about 175 GB, less than 2 GB of RAM, and barely any CPU once fully synced (~3 % usage).
2. Securing the VPS
First of all, disable password login.
Then install and configure UFW (if it’s not already set up):
sudo apt install ufw
sudo ufw default deny incoming
sudo ufw default allow outgoing
sudo ufw allow ssh
sudo ufw allow 18080
sudo ufw allow 18089
sudo ufw enable3. Creating a dedicated user
For security reasons, never run Monero as root. Create a normal user instead:
adduser monerouserSet a password and press Enter through the rest of the prompts.
4. Changing settings and syncing the node
Switch to the new user:
su monerouser
cd ~Download the official Monero CLI binaries (Linux 64-bit):
wget -c https://downloads.getmonero.org/cli/monero-linux-x64-v0.18.3.4.tar.bz2
mkdir monero
tar -xjvf monero-linux-x64-v0.18.3.4.tar.bz2 -C monero --strip-components=1(Replace the version in the URL/filename with the latest one from https://getmonero.org if needed.)
Enter the folder and start monerod once just to create the config files (stop it after a few seconds with Ctrl+C):
cd monero
./monerodNow edit the configuration file:
nano ~/.bitmonero/bitmonero.confPaste the following recommended settings:
# P2P full node
public-node=true # Advertises the RPC-restricted port over p2p
# RPC settings
rpc-restricted-bind-ip=0.0.0.0
rpc-restricted-bind-port=18089
# Node settings
enforce-dns-checkpointing=true
db-sync-mode=safe # Slow but reliable db writes
enable-dns-blocklist=true # Block known-malicious nodes
no-igd=true # Disable UPnP
no-zmq=true
# Bandwidth settings (much faster sync + better contribution)
out-peers=32
in-peers=32
limit-rate-up=1048576 # 1 GB/s upload
limit-rate-down=1048576 # 1 GB/s downloadSave with Ctrl+O → Enter → Ctrl+X.
Start the node in detached mode:
./monerod --detachYou're done! Now just wait for it to fully sync.
Check sync status anytime with:
./monerod statusThe initial sync usually takes a few hours depending on your connection and VPS speed.
Once it's fully synced, you can connect any Monero wallet (Cake Wallet, Monero GUI, Feather, etc.) to your own node using your VPS IP and port 18089.
Conclusion & Credits
That's it! Running your own full node is strongly encouraged by the Monero community. It makes the network more decentralized and gives you maximum privacy.
This guide wouldn’t have been possible without these excellent resources:
- https://www.getmonero.org/resources/user-guides/vps_run_node.html
- https://www.coincashew.com/coins/overview-xmr/guide-or-how-to-run-a-full-node
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