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Troubleshooting

This page collects common operator questions and debugging tips for the Mesa upgrade. For low-level architecture and dispatcher internals, see Upgrade Modes — Details.

How do I know which binary my node is using?​

Check whether the activation state file exists. The file is located at:

{config-directory}/auto-fork-mesa-{network_id}/activated

Where:

  • {config-directory} is the path passed via --config-directory (defaults to ~/.mina-config on the host, or /root/.mina-config in Docker)
  • {network_id} is the network name (e.g., mainnet or devnet)

For example, on a typical mainnet setup:

ls ~/.mina-config/auto-fork-mesa-mainnet/activated
  • File does not exist: your node is using the pre-fork (Berkeley) binary
  • File exists: your node has transitioned to the Mesa binary

Can I run non-daemon commands or use a specific binary version?​

As described in Dispatcher Limitations, the dispatcher supports daemon, client, and --version. For any other command — including accounts list, ledger export, and other CLI operations — you must use the version-specific binary directly:

BinaryDescriptionFull path
mina-berkeleyPre-fork binary (current chain)/usr/lib/mina/berkeley/mina
mina-mesaPost-fork binary (Mesa chain)/usr/lib/mina/mesa/mina
# Use mina-mesa for all non-daemon commands after the fork
mina-mesa client status
mina-mesa accounts list
mina-mesa ledger export

# Use mina-berkeley for pre-fork queries
mina-berkeley client status

These symlinks (mina-berkeley, mina-mesa) are installed globally by the automode packages and are always available. They bypass the dispatcher entirely and run the binary directly, so they work regardless of the activation state.

Do not manipulate the activation state file

While it is technically possible to force the dispatcher to use a specific runtime by creating or removing the activated file, this is strongly discouraged. Manually manipulating the state file while the network is live can put your node on the wrong chain. If you need to run a specific version, use mina-berkeley or mina-mesa directly instead.

Debug mode​

Set MINA_DISPATCHER_DEBUG=1 in your environment to see which binary and arguments the dispatcher is using:

MINA_DISPATCHER_DEBUG=1 mina daemon ...

For a dry run (print the command without executing):

MINA_DISPATCHER_DRYRUN=1 mina daemon ...