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There is no native “pause” command in Cosmos SDK. Pausing a validator means it will stop signing blocks, which will eventually trigger jailing due to liveness failures. Plan maintenance carefully to minimize missed blocks and avoid jailing.

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Understanding liveness requirements

The x/slashing module tracks missed blocks via a sliding window. Check the current parameters: 
autheod query slashing params --chain-id autheo_2127-1
Key parameters:
  • signed_blocks_window — the window size (e.g., 10,000 blocks)
  • min_signed_per_window — the minimum fraction that must be signed (e.g., 0.5 = 50%)
If you miss more than (1 - min_signed_per_window) × signed_blocks_window consecutive blocks, the validator is jailed.

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Short maintenance (< a few hours)

For brief maintenance within the liveness window, you can stop the node and restart without additional steps: 
sudo systemctl stop autheod

# Perform maintenance (upgrades, disk expansion, config changes, etc.)

sudo systemctl start autheod
sudo journalctl -u autheod -f
Monitor the node’s missed block count after restart: 
autheod query slashing signing-info \
  $(autheod tendermint show-validator --home /path/to/node-home)

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Long maintenance (risk of jailing)

For extended maintenance that exceeds the liveness window, temporarily reduce your validator’s power by unbonding stake:
1

Unbond your self-delegation

autheod tx staking unbond <autheovaloper-address> <amount>aauth \
  --from mykey \
  --chain-id autheo_2127-1 \
  --keyring-backend file
Unbonding reduces voting power to zero, which removes the node from the active set and stops jailing eligibility.
The unbonding period is ~21 days. During this period, the THEO cannot be transferred or re-delegated.
2

Perform maintenance

With zero voting power, the validator is not required to sign blocks. Perform all necessary maintenance.
3

Re-delegate when ready to resume

After the unbonding period, re-delegate to re-enter the active set:
autheod tx staking delegate <autheovaloper-address> <amount>aauth \
  --from mykey \
  --chain-id autheo_2127-1 \
  --keyring-backend file

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Resuming after jailing

If the node was jailed during maintenance:
  1. Ensure the node is fully synced: autheod status | jq '.SyncInfo.catching_up'
  2. Unjail: 
    autheod tx slashing unjail \
  --from mykey \
  --chain-id autheo_2127-1 \
  --keyring-backend file
  3. If the license shows BOUND, re-delegate to restore ACTIVE status.

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Best practices

  • Schedule maintenance during low-activity periods
  • Use a monitoring alert to track missed blocks in real time
  • For planned extended maintenance, notify delegators in advance
  • Always have a snapshot ready to restore quickly if the node fails to sync after restart