Ethereum: Geth port change causes disruption
A recent update to the Ethereum client introduced a change to the discovery port for the Geth node. Initially, users were using the default port 30303, but after installing version 1.13.14, an unexpected change occurred.
As several users reported on the Ethereum subreddit and other online forums, the Geth node was now detecting connections on port 1024 instead of its usual default port
The problem: discovery port change
To summarize, run ./geth with the following command line options:
./geth --port 30303 --discovery.port 30304 --http --http.api eth,net,engine,admin --authrpc.jwtsecret ~/myhex.hex --datadir='~/ethereum/execution/data';
The node initially detects connections on port 30304. However, shortly after the node starts, it detects connections on port 1024 instead.
Causes and consequences
There are a few possible reasons for this unexpected change:
- Misconfigured configuration files: It is possible that one or more of your system’s configuration files (e.g.
geth.conf,etherscan.io/config.json) contained incorrect settings that caused the port change.
- Node update issues: A recent update may have introduced changes to the Geth node’s behavior that caused this unexpected discovery port change.
Workarounds and solutions
To fix this issue:
- Check configuration files: Check your system’s configuration files for incorrect settings that could cause the port change.
- Update Geth: If you are using a recent version of Geth (e.g. 1.14.x), update to the latest version to ensure you are working with the correct default discovery port.
Conclusion
A small but important change to the discovery port for Geth has caused some excitement among Ethereum users who rely on this feature. If you have identified issues with your node or have experience with configuration files, it is important to investigate and resolve any inconsistencies that may be causing this unexpected behavior.