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PubNub Configuration Guide

Overview

The blockchain application uses PubNub for real-time peer-to-peer communication between nodes. PubNub enables the publish/subscribe pattern that allows blockchain nodes to:

  • Broadcast newly mined blocks to all peers
  • Share transactions across the network
  • Synchronize blockchain state in real-time

Getting Your PubNub Keys

  1. Create a PubNub Account

  2. Create a New App

    • Once logged in, click "Create New App"
    • Give it a name like "python-blockchain"

  3. Get Your Keys

    • You'll see two important keys:
      • Publish Key - Used to send messages to channels
      • Subscribe Key - Used to receive messages from channels
    • Keep these keys handy!

Using secrets.env (Recommended for Production)

  1. Copy the secrets template:

    cp env.example .env

  2. Edit secrets.env and add your keys:

    PUBNUB_PUBLISH_KEY=pub-c-your-actual-publish-key
PUBNUB_SUBSCRIBE_KEY=sub-c-your-actual-subscribe-key
PUBNUB_USER_ID=blockchain-node-1

Backend Code

The backend/pubsub.py file now reads configuration from environment variables.

Multi-Node Configuration

When running multiple nodes, ensure each has a unique PUBNUB_USER_ID:

# Node 1 (main)
export PUBNUB_USER_ID=blockchain-node-1
python3 -m backend.app

# Node 2 (peer) - in a different terminal
export PUBNUB_USER_ID=blockchain-node-2
export PEER=True
export PEER_PORT=5001
python3 -m backend.app

# Node 3 (seeded) - in another terminal
export PUBNUB_USER_ID=blockchain-node-3
export PEER=True
export SEED_DATA=True
export PEER_PORT=5002
python3 -m backend.app

Each node should have a unique user_id:

  • blockchain-node-1 - Main node
  • blockchain-peer-1 - Peer node
  • blockchain-seed-1 - Seeded node

PubNub Dashboard Monitoring

You can monitor real-time activity in the PubNub dashboard:

  1. Log in to https://admin.pubnub.com/
  2. Select your app
  3. Go to "Debug Console"
  4. Subscribe to your channels to see messages in real-time

This is useful for:

  • Debugging connection issues
  • Monitoring message flow
  • Verifying blockchain synchronization

Channels Used by This Application

The blockchain application uses the following channels:

  • BLOCK - Broadcasts newly mined blocks to all nodes
  • TRANSACTION - Shares new transactions across the network
  • TEST - Used for testing connectivity (development only)

Quick Start Guide

First Time Setup

  1. Get your PubNub keys:

  2. Configure your environment:

    # Copy the example file
cp env.example .env

# Edit .env with your actual keys
nano .env

  3. Run the application:

    python3 -m backend.app

Running Multiple Nodes

To test blockchain synchronization with multiple nodes:

# Terminal 1 - Main node
export PUBNUB_USER_ID=node-1
python3 -m backend.app

# Terminal 2 - Peer node
export PUBNUB_USER_ID=peer-1
export PEER=True
export PEER_PORT=5001
python3 -m backend.app

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