Committee Management

The validator committee is the set of active validators participating in Sui consensus. This guide covers committee structure, selection, and management.

Committee Overview

The Sui validator committee:

Active validators: Currently participating in consensus
Candidate validators: Registered but not in active set
Pending validators: Will join in next epoch
Leaving validators: Will exit in next epoch

Committee Size

Committee size varies based on network:

Mainnet: ~100-150 validators
Testnet: ~50-100 validators
Dynamic: Size can change through governance

Epoch System

Epoch Duration

Mainnet: 24 hours
Testnet: Typically 24 hours (may vary)
Devnet: Often shorter for testing

Epoch Boundaries

At each epoch boundary:

Reward distribution occurs
Committee membership updates
Metadata changes take effect
Staking changes activate
New epoch begins

Checking Current Epoch

# Query current epoch
curl -X POST http://localhost:9000 \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 1,
    "method": "suix_getLatestSuiSystemState",
    "params": []
  }' | jq '.result.epoch'

# Via CLI
sui client call --package 0x3 --module sui_system \
  --function get_current_epoch \
  --args 0x5

Committee Selection

Selection Criteria

Validators are selected for the active committee based on:

Minimum stake: Must meet or exceed minimum requirement
Stake ranking: Higher stake increases probability of selection
Committee size limit: Only top validators by stake are selected
Active status: Must not be in leaving or slashed state

Stake-Weighted Selection

Validators with more total stake (self-stake + delegated) have:

Higher chance of inclusion in active set
Greater voting power in consensus
Larger share of rewards

Checking Committee Membership

# List all active validators
sui client call --package 0x3 --module sui_system \
  --function get_validators \
  --args 0x5

# Check if specific validator is active
sui validator display-metadata <address> | grep "active"

View on explorers:

Joining the Committee

Prerequisites

Before joining:

✅ Complete validator setup
✅ Register as candidate
✅ Accumulate minimum stake
✅ Fully sync node with network
✅ Verify all ports accessible
✅ Test node performance

Registration Process

Generate validator info

sui validator make-validator-info \
  "Validator Name" \
  "Description" \
  "https://example.com/logo.png" \
  "https://example.com" \
  "validator.example.com" \
  1000

Become candidate

sui validator become-candidate validator.info

Verify transaction succeeded:

sui validator display-metadata

Accumulate stake

Self-stake SUI tokens
Attract delegations
Monitor total stake:

sui validator display-metadata | grep "total_stake"

Join committee

Once minimum stake reached:

sui validator join-committee

You’ll become active at next epoch boundary.

Activation Timeline

Time 0:00  - Submit join-committee request
Time 0:00  - Status: Pending Validator
Time 24:00 - Epoch boundary
Time 24:00 - Status: Active Validator
Time 24:00 - Begin consensus participation

Leaving the Committee

Voluntary Exit

To leave the active validator set:

sui validator leave-committee

Effects:

Remain active until next epoch
Removed at epoch boundary
Staking pool becomes inactive
Stop earning rewards
Delegators can unstake

Exit Timeline

Time 0:00  - Submit leave-committee request
Time 0:00  - Status: Leaving Validator
Time 24:00 - Epoch boundary
Time 24:00 - Status: Inactive Candidate
Time 24:00 - Staking pool deactivated

Involuntary Removal

Validators can be removed for:

Insufficient stake: Falling below minimum
Slashing: Byzantine behavior reported by 2f+1 validators
Inactivity: Extended downtime or non-participation

Validator States

State Transitions

Not Registered
      |
      v
  Candidate ←→ Active Validator
      ↑            |
      |            v
      └──── Inactive/Slashed

Candidate

Registered validator
Not in active set
Can accept stake
Can join committee if sufficient stake

Check candidate status:

sui validator display-metadata | grep "pending"

Active Validator

In current committee
Participating in consensus
Earning rewards
Can be delegated to

Responsibilities:

Maintain node uptime
Participate in consensus
Process transactions
Submit gas price quotes

Pending Validator

Requested to join committee
Will activate next epoch
Should ensure node is ready

Preparation:

Verify node fully synced
Confirm all ports accessible
Monitor for epoch boundary
Ready to start consensus

Leaving Validator

Requested to leave committee
Still active current epoch
Will deactivate next epoch

Actions:

Complete current epoch normally
Communicate with delegators
Prepare for deactivation

Inactive/Slashed

Removed from committee
Not earning rewards
May have reduced stake (if slashed)

Recovery:

Address removal cause
Restore stake if needed
Rejoin as candidate
Request committee membership

Committee Operations

Voting Power

Voting power in consensus:

Voting Power = Validator Stake / Total Committee Stake

Example:

Validator stake: 50M SUI
Total committee stake: 2B SUI
Voting power: 50M / 2B = 2.5%

Higher voting power:

More influence in consensus
Higher rewards potential
Greater responsibility

Consensus Participation

Active validators must:

Propose blocks: When elected as leader
Vote on proposals: Participate in each round
Sign certificates: Validate transactions
Maintain state: Keep synced with network

Monitoring participation:

# Check consensus metrics
curl -s http://localhost:9184/metrics | grep -E \
  "current_round|committed_subdags|consensus_votes"

Quorum Requirements

Consensus requires:

2f+1 stake: For quorum (f = faulty validators)
Byzantine fault tolerance: Tolerates up to f failures
Liveness: Requires >2f+1 honest validators

Example (with 100M total stake):

f = 33M stake can be faulty
Quorum = 67M stake needed
Safety maintained if less than 33M stake byzantine

Stake Management

Monitoring Total Stake

# Check your validator's stake
sui validator display-metadata | grep -E "total_stake|self_stake"

# Check minimum requirement
sui client call --package 0x3 --module sui_system \
  --function get_min_validator_stake \
  --args 0x5

Stake Changes

Stake changes at epoch boundaries:

Delegations: New delegations activate
Unstaking: Withdrawal requests complete
Rewards: Automatically added to stake
Slashing: Penalty applied if reported

Self-Stake Management

Validators can adjust self-stake:

# Add self-stake
sui client call --package 0x3 --module sui_system \
  --function request_add_stake \
  --args 0x5 <stake-coin-object>

# Request unstake
sui client call --package 0x3 --module sui_system \
  --function request_withdraw_stake \
  --args 0x5 <staked-sui-object> <amount>

Ensure total stake stays above minimum when withdrawing. Falling below minimum results in removal from active set.

Validator Ranking

Ranking Factors

Validators are ranked by:

Total stake: Primary ranking factor
Performance: Uptime and participation
Commission rate: Lower can attract more delegation
Reputation: Track record and reliability

Checking Rankings

View validator rankings:

Via RPC:

curl -X POST http://localhost:9000 \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 1,
    "method": "suix_getValidatorsApy",
    "params": []
  }' | jq '.result.apys | sort_by(.apy) | reverse'

Delegation Dynamics

Attracting Delegations

Factors delegators consider:

Performance history: Uptime and participation
Commission rate: Competitive pricing
Stake size: Indicator of trust/success
Reputation: Community standing
Communication: Transparency and updates

Managing Delegations

As a validator:

Monitor delegation changes
Communicate with delegators
Maintain transparency
Provide regular updates
Announce changes in advance

Delegation Limits

No hard limit on delegations, but:

Very high stake may centralize network
Voting power caps may apply through governance
Consider network health

Governance Participation

Proposal Voting

Validators vote on:

Protocol upgrades
Parameter changes
Network policies
Economic parameters

Voting Weight

Based on stake:

Vote Weight = Validator Total Stake / Network Total Stake

Best Practices

Stay informed: Follow governance discussions
Review proposals: Understand implications
Vote actively: Participate in governance
Communicate: Share voting rationale with delegators
Consider delegators: Votes affect their stake too

Committee Health

Monitoring Committee

Check overall committee health:

# View committee size
curl -X POST http://localhost:9000 \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 1,
    "method": "suix_getValidatorsApy",
    "params": []
  }' | jq '.result.apys | length'

# Check stake distribution
curl -X POST http://localhost:9000 \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": 1,
    "method": "suix_getLatestSuiSystemState",
    "params": []
  }' | jq '.result.activeValidators | map(.stakingPoolSuiBalance)'

Decentralization Metrics

Nakamoto coefficient: Minimum validators for 33% stake
Geographic distribution: Validator locations
Client diversity: Node software variations
Stake distribution: Concentration vs. distribution

Emergency Procedures

Committee Disruption

If committee is disrupted:

Check validator health
Monitor Discord announcements
Review logs for errors
Contact other validators
Follow emergency procedures

Fork Scenarios

In case of network fork:

Follow official guidance
Do not modify configuration without instruction
Coordinate with other validators
Wait for resolution from Mysten Labs

Best Practices

Committee Participation

Maintain readiness: Keep node healthy and updated
Monitor actively: Watch for epoch transitions
Communicate clearly: Inform delegators of changes
Plan ahead: Coordinate maintenance with epochs
Stay informed: Follow network updates

Operational Standards

High availability: >99.5% uptime
Fast updates: Apply within 24-48 hours
Active monitoring: 24/7 alerting
Backup systems: Redundancy for critical components
Documentation: Maintain operational procedures

​Committee Overview

​Committee Size

​Epoch System

​Epoch Duration

​Epoch Boundaries

​Checking Current Epoch

​Committee Selection

​Selection Criteria

​Stake-Weighted Selection

​Checking Committee Membership

​Joining the Committee

​Prerequisites

​Registration Process

​Activation Timeline

​Leaving the Committee

​Voluntary Exit

​Exit Timeline

​Involuntary Removal

​Validator States

​State Transitions

​Candidate

​Active Validator

​Pending Validator

​Leaving Validator

​Inactive/Slashed

​Committee Operations

​Voting Power

​Consensus Participation

​Quorum Requirements

​Stake Management

​Monitoring Total Stake

​Stake Changes

​Self-Stake Management

​Validator Ranking

​Ranking Factors

​Checking Rankings

​Delegation Dynamics

​Attracting Delegations

​Managing Delegations

​Delegation Limits

​Governance Participation

​Proposal Voting

​Voting Weight

​Best Practices

​Committee Health

​Monitoring Committee

​Decentralization Metrics

​Emergency Procedures

​Committee Disruption

​Fork Scenarios

​Best Practices

​Committee Participation

​Operational Standards

​Resources

​Monitoring Tools

​Documentation

Committee Overview

Committee Size

Epoch System

Epoch Duration

Epoch Boundaries

Checking Current Epoch

Committee Selection

Selection Criteria

Stake-Weighted Selection

Checking Committee Membership

Joining the Committee

Prerequisites

Registration Process

Activation Timeline

Leaving the Committee

Voluntary Exit

Exit Timeline

Involuntary Removal

Validator States

State Transitions

Candidate

Active Validator

Pending Validator

Leaving Validator

Inactive/Slashed

Committee Operations

Voting Power

Consensus Participation

Quorum Requirements

Stake Management

Monitoring Total Stake

Stake Changes

Self-Stake Management

Validator Ranking

Ranking Factors

Checking Rankings

Delegation Dynamics

Attracting Delegations

Managing Delegations

Delegation Limits

Governance Participation

Proposal Voting

Voting Weight

Best Practices

Committee Health

Monitoring Committee

Decentralization Metrics

Emergency Procedures

Committee Disruption

Fork Scenarios

Best Practices

Committee Participation

Operational Standards

Resources

Monitoring Tools

Documentation