How to Update VerusCoin Graphical (GUI) Wallet to Latest Version

Step-by-step for updating to the latest version of Verus GUI wallet on Ubuntu Linux and Windows

In this post I’ll walk through the steps to updating to the latest Verus (GUI) from a previous release. These steps may also be used for performing a fresh install of the latest Verus wallet, including installing the wallet in tandem on a system which already has Agama by Komodo installed.

Verus wallet is an modified and enhanced build of Agama. Verus includes enhancements such as mining, staking, and latest zero knowledge Sapling features built in. Because Verus wallet is a build of Agama, relying on the same daemon (komodod) in the background, installing it side by side, on a system already containing Agama by Komodo does take a little finesse to ensure both wallets work correctly, when all is said and done.

IMPORTANT NOTICE

All nodes, CLI or GUI, must be v0.5.3 or later (0.5.1 on Mac) unless otherwise announced on the official Verus Discord or Medium. Please update your wallet immediately if you are running an older version.

Download binary for your OS:
https://veruscoin.io/#download

For ALL step-by-steps below, be sure to shutdown Agama and/or Verus wallet and backup your wallet.dat files for ALL coins you have activated. In Step 1 of each section below I’ll walk you through the process of creating a backup of your entire hidden komodo folder, which includes your wallet files, just for good measure.

Graphical Wallet (GUI) — Linux and Windows

In Linux it’s easiest to do much of the work from a terminal but many of the steps can be performed either from the terminal or by using your desktop environment. That said, for Linux steps I’ll be using the Terminal commands in the following steps.

STEP 1 — Backup hidden komodo folder, including wallet.dat files (If updating Verus, or installing Verus alongside an existing Agama install)

Linux:

• Open a new terminal and navigate to your home folder with cd ~
• Copy the entire hidden .komodo folder to a backup location. The easiest is to issue the command cp .komodo BK-komodo
• Remove the old version of Verus, if you are updating. Simply delete the Verus application folder you previously had extracted.

Windows:

• Click Start and type %appdata% and press ENTER
• Copy the “Komodo” folder found within to “BK-komodo”
• Remove the old version of Verus, if you are updating. You can simply delete the Verus application folder you previously had extracted.

STEP 2 — Get Latest Version of Verus GUI Wallet

• Download the latest version from one of the following official locations:
  https://veruscoin.io/#download
• Unzip the application folder where you would like (e.g. Desktop) and rename it to something like “Verus v0.N” where “N” is the current version number, so it’s easier to track which wallet and version you’re running.

Most users can skip ahead to Step 5…if, however, you have any issues with syncing, follow Steps 3 and 4.

STEP 3 (Optional) — Get Recent VRSC Bootstrap

If this is your first time installing, or you had any issues with updating or syncing, you may want to download the Bootstrap of VRSC which can speed up the Verus sync process.

Linux:

• From the terminal, navigate to your home folder with cd ~ and download the latest VRSC bootstrap by issuing the following command:

wget https://bootstrap.0x03.services/veruscoin/VRSC-bootstrap.tar.gz

• Delete the contents of your ~/.komodo/VRSC folder, ensuring your wallet.dat file was backed up in Step 1.
• After the download completes, unpack the file into your .komodo/VRSC folder with the following command:

tar -xvf VRSC-bootstrap.tar.gz -C .komodo/VRSC

Windows:

• Open your browser and paste the following URL

https://bootstrap.0x03.services/veruscoin/VRSC-bootstrap.tar.gz

• You may need 7-Zip to unzip this file.
• Delete the contents of your %appdata%\Komodo\VRSC folder, ensuring your wallet.dat file was backed up in Step 1.
• When the file completes downloading, unzip the contents into the following folder: %appdata%\Komodo\VRSC

Note:

New wallet.dat files will be generated in these folders during the first launch of the updated Verus wallet while it syncs up, you’ll overwrite these files later with your backed-up wallet if you are updating.

STEP 4 (Optional) — Get Recent KMD Bootstrap

If you are installing Verus alongside a version of Komodo’s Agama wallet, or you would like support for KMD native within Verus wallet, you’ll need to sync the entire Komodo blockchain again due to the new Zcash Params which come with this latest version of Verus. Since the KMD blockchain is so large, it’s recommended to download a recent bootstrap to save time syncing.

Linux:

• From the terminal, navigate to your home folder with cd ~ and download the latest KMD bootstrap by issuing the following command:

wget https://bootstrap.0x03.services/komodo/KMD-bootstrap.tar.gz

• After the download completes, unpack the file into your .komodo folder with the following command:

tar -xvf KMD-bootstrap.tar.gz -C .komodo

Windows:

• Open your browser and paste the following URL

https://bootstrap.0x03.services/komodo/KMD-bootstrap.tar.gz

• You may need 7-Zip to unzip this file.
• When the file completes downloading, unzip the contents into the following folder: %appdata%\Komodo

STEP 5 — First, Launch Verus Wallet

• On first launch of the newly updated Verus wallet choose VRSC under the “Native Mode” drop down.
• You’ll receive a modal prompt to download the latest Zcash Params, follow the steps to do so.
• After the Zcash Params have completed downloading, close the modal and again select VRSC from “Native Mode”
• Verus will launch and begin to sync. This process may take a few minutes. Allow the sync to reach 100% before proceeding.

STEP 6 (Optional) — Enabling KMD

If you’re including KMD support in your Verus wallet, or installing Verus alongside Agama, you’ll want to follow this step.

After Verus wallet has been launched and synced up with VerusCoin, close the wallet and wait for it to shut down completely before proceeding.

• Launch Verus wallet and choose KMD from the “Native Mode” drop down list.
• Komodo will launch and begin to sync. This process may take a few minutes. Allow the sync to reach 100%.
• After Komodo has fully synced, it is safe to click “Activate Coin” and add VRSC in Native mode. It may take some time, but after several minutes both wallets will display, both in Native mode at 100% each.

STEP 7 (Optional) — Restore wallet.dat Files (If You Followed Steps 3 and 4)

If you are performing an update and followed Steps 3 and 4 above in which you cleared out the contents of your hidden VRSC and Komodo folders, you now need to restore your original wallet.dat files.

• First close Verus wallet and wait for it to shut down completely.
• Copy your backed up wallet.dat files back into their appropriate folders
  Linux: KMD wallet.dat file goes into /home/yourusername/.komodo and Verus wallet.dat file goes into /home/yourusername/.komodo/VRSC Windows: KMD wallet.dat file goes into %appdata%/Komodo and Verus wallet.dat file goes into %appdata%/Komodo/VRSC

To restore the backup we created in Step 1, simply do the following:

Linux

-In a Terminal window, go to your home folder: cd ~
-Restore KMD Wallet with: cp BK-komodo/wallet.dat .komodo
-Restore VRSC Wallet with: cp BK-komodo/VRSC/wallet.dat .komodo/VRSC

Windows

-Click Start and type %appdata% then hit ENTER.
-Copy the wallet.dat file within the BK-komodo folder and paste into the Komodo folder.
-Within BK-komodo folder, open the VRSC folder and copy the wallet.dat file, then paste into the VRSC folder found within the Komodo folder.

STEP 8 — Clean up

After verifying everything works, your wallets are restored and showing balances (if you did an update), and that everything is syncing correctly, you can clean up a little to save space on your drive.

For example, you can remove the BK-komodo folder, although I would ensure ALL wallet files are restored and/or backed up elsewhere first.

You may also want to remove any old versions of Verus wallet or Agama, name the new application folders appropriately, create links, etc.

Lastly, it’s safe to delete the Bootstrap files you downloaded and can save a few GB of space. If you need to do any updates in the future you’ll want to download recent bootstraps for that time to make most use of them, so deleting these is no problem.

Resources and About Verus

To learn more about VerusCoin, visit https://veruscoin.io and join the official Verus Discord.

• VerusCoin Successfully Activates Sapling, Plus More Improvements
• Verus Coin 0.4.0 Official Release Notes
• Verus Pocket Guide — Start Here
• How Verus Solved Proof of Stake problem “Nothing at Stake”
• Everything You Need to Know About the Sapling Upgrade