Hi all wondering if i could have some help please. I am new to staking and a rookie at linux which is the perfect mix
I have accidentally deleted my priv folder “sudo rm -r” (while starting up my stakepool) which contained all the required files for my stakepool. I did have some ADA transferred to this account and id rather not loose it
Now, i desperately used a file recovery tool called photorec and was able to actually recover most files from the priv folder
I believe the most important ones anyway (cold.skey, cold.vkey, stake.skey, stake.vkey, cold.counter, hot.skey, hot.vkey, vrf.skey, vrf.vkey)
Question
Can i now use these files and restore my stakepool?
If so, how?
You don’t need (or want) your cold keys on your node. If those become compromised you will lose control of your pool.
The files needed to run the pool are hot.skey, vrf.skey and the pool operating certificate, which can be generated using the cold keys, which are required to maintain the pool.
I would recommend creating a new priv folder in the same place, and adding the missing files having the same names and content to that folder.
wow. you’re incredibly helpful and responsive ADAfrog! I really do appreciate your assistance
Completely agree, i will have my keys in future on an offline server, this was really just my first attempt
I’ve been able to use this scenario to teach me how to generate address and sign transactions manually (not through cntools) so it hasnt bee a waste
From the payment.vkey and stake.vkey ive recovered, i have manually generated the payment.addr, but unfortunately it does not match the payment address i sent funds to
Soo this leads me to believe that the recovered keys, may have been for another address. Agree?
or is there different ways that the same keys can generate a different payment address?
But still goes to show, even if you think you’ve deleted your keys from a machine…file recovery can still recover them. be vigilant
oh and it seems i only got as far as generating the pool keys, but i don’t believe anything was pledged to it. Soo probs not worth touching the cold/hot keys
[UPDATE]
I researched through the files i was able to recover, and was able to find the actual vkey and skey. in which i used to generate the addresses and have now been able to sign a transaction
Successfully manage to re-gain control of funds
