These steps will provide all the necessary information to get started using BTCPay Server on LunaNode. There are many options for deploying the software. You can find all details of BTCPay Server at https://docs.btcpayserver.org.

In this part, you will familiarize yourself with LunaNode as the hosting provider, learn about the first steps of using your BTCPay Server, and learn how to use with Lightning Network. After we have gone through all the steps, you can run a webshop or crowdfund platform accepting Bitcoin!

This is one of many ways to deploy BTCPay Server. Read our documentation for more details.

https://docs.btcpayserver.org.

First, go to the website of LunaNode.com, where we will create a new account. Click on the Sign Up top right or use the Get Started wizard on their homepage.

After you have created your new account, LunaNode sends a verification email. Once you verify the account, compared to Voltage, you are immediately presented with the option to top up your account balance. This balance is necessary to cover the server space and hosting costs.

Once you’ve clicked "Deposit credit", you get to set how much you want to top up your account with and how you want to pay for it. LunaNode and BTCPay Server will cost between $ 10 and $ 20 per month. Compared to Voltage.cloud, you gain full access to your Virtual Private Server (VPS), allowing you to have more control over your server. After you’ve created your new account, LunaNode sends a verification email. Once you verify the account, compared to Voltage, you are immediately presented with the option to top up your account balance. This balance is necessary to cover the server space and hosting costs.

In this guide, we will walk you through the setup process by creating a set of API keys and using the BTCPay Server launcher developed by LunaNode.

In your LunaNode dashboard, click API in the top right. This opens up a new page. We only have to set a Name for the API key. The rest will be taken care of by LunaNode and will not be covered in this guide. Click the Create API Credential button. After creating the API credentials, you get a long string of letters and characters. This is your API key.

There are two parts to these credentials, API key and API ID; we will need both. Before we go into the next step, let’s open a second tab in the browser and go to https://launchbtcpay.lunanode.com/

Here you will be asked to provide your API key and API ID. This is to let you know that you are the one who provided this new server. The API key should still be open in your previous tab; if you scroll down in the table below, you will find the API ID.

You can go back to the page with the Launcher, fill out the fields with your API key and ID, and click on continue.

In the next step, you can provide a domain name. If you already own a domain and want to use this for BTCPay Server, make sure you also add the DNS record (Called an A record) on your domain. If you do not own a domain, use the LunaNode-provided domain instead (you can change this later in BTCPay Server settings) and click Continue.

Read more about setting or changing a DNS record for BTCPay Server; https://docs.btcpayserver.org/FAQ/Deployment/#how-to-change-your-btcpay-server-domain-name

After taking the steps prior, we can set all the options for our new server. Here, we will select Bitcoin (BTC) as our supported currency. We can also set an email to receive notifications about encryption certificates for renewal purposes, which is optional.

This guide aims to set up a Mainnet environment (real-world Bitcoin); however, LunaNode also allows you to set it to Testnet or Regtest for development purposes. We will leave it on the Mainnet option for this guide.

You can choose your Lightning implementation. LunaNode offers two different implementations, LND and Core Lightning. For this guide, we will take LND. There are few but true differences in both implementations; for more on this, we recommend reading the extensive documentation: https://docs.btcpayserver.org/LightningNetwork#getting-started-with-btcpay-server-and-core-lightning-cln

LunaNode offers multiple Virtual Machine (VM) plans. These differ in terms of price range and server specifications. For this guide, an m2 plan will suffice; however, if you have selected more than just Bitcoin as currency, consider using at least an m4.

Accelerate the initial blockchain synchronization; this is optional and depends on your needs. There are advanced options, such as setting a Lightning Alias, pointing to a specific GitHub release, or setting SSH keys; none of these will be covered in this guide.

After filling out the form, you have to click Launch VM, and Lunanode will start creating your new VM, including BTCPay Server installed on it. This process takes a couple of minutes; once your server is ready, LunaNode gives you the link to your new BTCPay Server.

After the creation process, click on the link to your BTCPay Server; here, you will be asked to create an Administrator account.

In this section, you learned:

Describe some of the differences between running an instance of BTCPay Server on a VPS vs. creating an account on a hosted instance.