Arbitrum¶

Arbitrum is a Layer 2 scaling solution for Ethereum that uses Optimistic Rollups to increase transaction throughput while reducing gas costs. By processing transactions off-chain and posting compressed data to Ethereum mainnet, Arbitrum provides a secure and efficient scaling solution.

Ethereum on ARM provides the Arbitrum Nitro client, enabling you to run your own Arbitrum node on ARM-based devices.

Important

Running an Arbitrum node requires access to a synced Ethereum L1 node (Execution Layer). You must have a local or remote Ethereum node available.

Arbitrum Node Support¶

Setting up an Arbitrum node on Ethereum on ARM is straightforward. The images ship with the pre-installed Nitro client—you only need to configure your L1 endpoint and start the service.

1. Install the OS¶

Follow the Installation Guide to flash the Ethereum on ARM image to your device and complete the initial boot process.

2. Configure L1 Connection¶

Before starting the Arbitrum node, you must configure the L1 (Ethereum mainnet) endpoint.

Edit the configuration file:

sudo nano /etc/ethereum/nitro.conf

Update the --l1.url parameter with your L1 node’s address:

ARGS="--l1.url http://YOUR_L1_NODE_IP:8545 \
    --l2.chain-id=42161 \
    --http.api=net,web3,eth,debug \
    --http.corsdomain=* \
    --http.addr=0.0.0.0 \
    --http.vhosts=*"

Replace YOUR_L1_NODE_IP with the IP address of your synced Ethereum node (e.g., 192.168.1.100).

Tip

If running the L1 node on the same machine, use http://localhost:8545 or http://127.0.0.1:8545.

3. Download Initial Snapshot (Recommended)¶

To significantly speed up synchronization, download an initial database snapshot from Arbitrum’s official source.

# Create the data directory
mkdir -p /home/ethereum/.arbitrum/arb1/nitro

# Download and extract the latest snapshot (this can take several hours)
cd /home/ethereum/.arbitrum/arb1/nitro
wget -O - https://snapshot.arbitrum.foundation/arb1/nitro-pruned.tar | tar -xvf -

Warning

The snapshot is very large (2+ TB). Ensure you have sufficient disk space and use screen or tmux to prevent disconnection during download.

4. Start the Service¶

Once configured, start the Nitro client:

sudo systemctl start nitro
sudo journalctl -u nitro -f

The node will begin syncing with the Arbitrum network. Initial sync time depends on whether you used a snapshot.

5. Enable on Boot (Optional)¶

To automatically start the Arbitrum node on system boot:

sudo systemctl enable nitro

Configuration¶

Configuration File¶

The main configuration file is located at:

/etc/ethereum/nitro.conf

This file contains the command-line arguments passed to the Nitro binary.

Data Directory¶

By default, data is stored in:

/home/ethereum/.arbitrum/arb1/nitro

This path is automatically created on first startup.

Service Details¶

Component	Value
Service Name	`nitro.service`
Binary Path	`/usr/bin/nitro`
Configuration	`/etc/ethereum/nitro.conf`
Data Directory	`/home/ethereum/.arbitrum/arb1/nitro`
Default RPC Port	`8547`
User	`ethereum`

RPC Access¶

Once synced, you can query the Arbitrum node via JSON-RPC:

curl -X POST http://localhost:8547 \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    --data '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"eth_blockNumber","params":[],"id":1}'

Hardware Requirements¶

Component	Minimum	Recommended
Storage	2 TB NVMe SSD	4 TB NVMe SSD
RAM	16 GB	32 GB
L1 Access	Required	Local node preferred

For monitoring, logs, and lifecycle management, refer to the Managing Clients guide.

Official Documentation¶

For advanced configuration and architectural details, refer to the official Arbitrum documentation:

Arbitrum Node Documentation