RustChain Build Guide

Use this guide when you want a local development checkout for the Python node and the Rust command-line components.

System prerequisites

Tool	Minimum	Used for
Python	3.11+ recommended	Node, tests, wallet GUI, scripts
pip	Bundled with Python	Python dependency installation
Rust	1.70+	Rust miner and native wallet crates
Cargo	Bundled with Rust	Rust builds and checks
curl	Any recent version	API smoke tests
Git	Any recent version	Checkout and contribution workflow

Protocol Buffers are not required for the checked-in Python node, Rust miner, or Rust wallet paths documented here. Install protoc only if a specific future subproject or integration README asks for it.

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/Scottcjn/Rustchain.git
cd Rustchain

Python development setup

Linux and macOS:

python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
python -m pip install --upgrade pip
python -m pip install -r requirements.txt -r requirements-node.txt

Windows PowerShell:

python -m venv .venv
.\.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
python -m pip install --upgrade pip
python -m pip install -r requirements.txt -r requirements-node.txt

Verify the key entry points parse correctly:

python -m py_compile node/wsgi.py node/rustchain_v2_integrated_v2.2.1_rip200.py wallet/__main__.py

Rust component builds

RustChain has multiple Rust subprojects, not one top-level Cargo workspace. Build or check the component you are changing with --manifest-path.

Check the miner:

cargo check --manifest-path rustchain-miner/Cargo.toml

Build the miner:

cargo build --release --manifest-path rustchain-miner/Cargo.toml

Check the native wallet:

cargo check --manifest-path rustchain-wallet/Cargo.toml

Build the native wallet:

cargo build --release --manifest-path rustchain-wallet/Cargo.toml --bin rtc-wallet

Fast validation before opening a PR

For docs-only changes:

git diff --check

For Python node or wallet changes:

python -m py_compile node/wsgi.py node/rustchain_v2_integrated_v2.2.1_rip200.py wallet/__main__.py

For Rust miner or wallet changes:

cargo check --manifest-path rustchain-miner/Cargo.toml
cargo check --manifest-path rustchain-wallet/Cargo.toml

Run narrower tests for the files you touched when possible. The repository is large, so prefer focused validation plus any maintainer-requested CI checks.