Your first local node

Start a local Cardano chain from a ready-to-run release. You do not need Git, Gradle, or a source checkout.

1. Download Yano

Open the latest Yano release (or choose another from Yano Releases) and download:

• JVM: yano-<version>.zip, with Java 25 installed. Recommended if you also want to try app ledgers.
• Native: yano-native-<version>-<platform>.zip, matching your operating system and CPU. No Java installation needed.

Replace <version> with the selected release version as it appears in the asset names (the release tag without its leading v) and <platform> with the platform suffix shown in its asset list.

See installation for platform-specific asset names and Windows commands.

2. Extract and start

Extract the whole ZIP, including its config/ directory. For the JVM download on macOS or Linux:

VERSION="<version>" # Replace with the selected release version.
unzip "yano-${VERSION}.zip"
cd "yano-${VERSION}"
./yano.sh start:devnet

For a native download, enter its extracted yano-native-<version>-<platform> directory and run the same ./yano.sh start:devnet command. The launcher selects the packaged binary automatically.

Keep this terminal running. The default REST port is 7070; the node-to-node port is 13337. The local devnet uses network magic 42.

3. Check your chain

In another terminal:

curl -fsS http://localhost:7070/q/health/ready
curl -fsS http://localhost:7070/api/v1/node/tip
curl -fsS http://localhost:7070/api/v1/blocks/latest
curl -fsS http://localhost:7070/api/v1/epochs/latest/parameters

Repeat the tip query after a few seconds. Once startup completes, blocks should advance. Open Swagger UI to explore the API included in your release.

What you just started

This is a local Cardano development chain backed by RocksDB. Its test currency has no public-network value. Keep devnet mutation endpoints on your development machine or a trusted test network.

If startup fails, check Java with java -version for a JVM installation, confirm that ports are free, and ensure you extracted the complete distribution. See troubleshooting.

Next steps

Connect your favorite SDK, submit a transaction, or start an app ledger. Source builds are an optional contributor workflow.