Using Xplugeth

Setting Up

Before using the build tool to generate binaries, ensure your system has the required dependencies:

  • Python 3.12.3 or later

  • Go 1.22 or later

  • Git

To install dependencies, run:

pip install -r build/requirements.txt

Using the Build Tool

To build a binary, run:

python3 build/build.py --workdir /tmp/build_xplugeth

This will:

  • Clone the Geth repository

  • Checkout Geth version (if specified)

  • Apply patches

  • Integrate plugins (if specified)

  • Compile the final binary

By default, the output binary is stored in /tmp/output/.

The build tool provides several options for customization. If you run with the --help flag, it shows you all the available arguments that can be passed in with flags

python3 build/build.py --help

Flags

  • --source-remote, -s This flag specifies the Git repository to clone for the build. Default: https://github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum

  • --source-tag, -t Specifies the version or tag of Geth to build. Default: v1.14.13

  • --plugin, -p Adds one or more plugins to the build, provided as import paths. Example:

    --plugin github.com/openrelayxyz/xplugeth/plugins/merge@v0.12.0 \
--plugin github.com/openrelayxyz/xplugeth/plugins/producer@v0.12.0

  • --replace, -r Replaces a package dependency with a local version.

    --replace github.com/example/module=../local/module

  • --cmd, -c Specifies the command directory where the build process starts. Default: ./cmd/geth

  • --workdir, -w Defines the working directory for cloning and patching.

  • --artifacts-directory, -a Sets the output directory for the compiled binary. Default: /tmp/output/.

  • --archive, -v Specifies a Git archive repository where the built binary can be pushed. If no value is provided, it defaults to git@github.com:openrelayxyz/xplugeth-archive.git. Note: The archive URL must be an SSH URL to preserve the user’s Git credentials. Example:

    --archive git@github.com:example/xplugeth-archive.git

Example: Building a Binary

  • To build a binary with multiple plugins, a specific Geth version, and custom directories, run the code below. Please replace /workdir and artifactsdir with actual paths where the code and binary should live.

    python3 build/build.py \
    -s https://github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum/ \
    -t v1.14.13 \
    -p github.com/openrelayxyz/xplugeth/plugins/merge@v0.12.0 \
    -p github.com/openrelayxyz/xplugeth/plugins/producer@v0.12.0 \
    -c ./cmd/cli \
    -w /workdir \
    -a /artifactsdir

  • To build a vanilla geth binary without any plugin, you can simply run the file without passing any arguments as it assumes the defaults.

    python3 build/build.py