IBC Refresh

Automate Hermes relayer tasks for Inter-Blockchain Communication

ChainTools

Overview

IBC Refresh is a utility designed to automate and simplify maintenance tasks for the Hermes relayer in the Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) protocol. It handles routine operations such as clearing packets and updating clients across different blockchain networks automatically, reducing manual intervention and ensuring smooth cross-chain communication.

When operating IBC relayers between multiple chains, regular maintenance is required to ensure optimal performance. IBC Refresh automates these maintenance tasks, helping validators and operators maintain reliable cross-chain communication with minimal effort.

The tool is particularly valuable for validators managing multiple IBC connections, as it simplifies what would otherwise be repetitive manual operations and helps prevent packet timeouts and channel closures.

Key Features

  • Automated Packet Clearing - Automatically detects and clears pending packets across IBC channels to prevent timeouts.
  • Client Updates - Refreshes IBC client states to maintain synchronization between connected chains.
  • Dynamic Configuration - Supports a flexible configuration system to customize behavior based on your specific network setup.
  • Enhanced Logging - Provides detailed logs of all operations for monitoring and troubleshooting purposes.
  • Task Scheduling - Can be integrated with cron or other scheduling systems for fully automated operation.

Installation

IBC Refresh can be installed directly from GitHub using git:

git clone https://github.com/ChainTools-Tech/IBC-Refresh
cd IBC-Refresh
chmod +x ibc-refresh.sh

Requirements

  • Bash shell environment
  • Hermes relayer already configured and operational
  • Active IBC connections between chains
  • Hermes binary accessible in PATH

Usage

IBC Refresh can be run manually or scheduled via cron for regular maintenance:

# Basic usage
./ibc-refresh.sh

# With custom config path
./ibc-refresh.sh -c /path/to/config.json

# Run only packet clearing
./ibc-refresh.sh --packets-only

# Run only client updates
./ibc-refresh.sh --clients-only

Configuration

The tool uses a JSON configuration file to define which channels and clients should be maintained:

{
  "chains": [
    {
      "name": "juno",
      "chains": [
        {
          "name": "osmosis",
          "channel": "channel-0",
          "client": "07-tendermint-0"
        },
        {
          "name": "cosmos",
          "channel": "channel-1",
          "client": "07-tendermint-42"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "options": {
    "log_level": "info",
    "retry_count": 3
  }
}

Monitoring and Logging

IBC Refresh provides comprehensive logging to help you monitor operations and troubleshoot issues:

Log Output Example

[2025-04-22 14:30:15] INFO: Starting IBC Refresh process
[2025-04-22 14:30:16] INFO: Processing chain: juno
[2025-04-22 14:30:17] INFO: Checking packets for juno <> osmosis (channel-0)
[2025-04-22 14:30:20] INFO: Cleared 3 pending packets
[2025-04-22 14:30:22] INFO: Updating client 07-tendermint-0
[2025-04-22 14:30:25] INFO: Client update successful
[2025-04-22 14:30:30] INFO: All tasks completed successfully

Integration with Monitoring Tools

The structured log output makes it easy to integrate with monitoring systems like Prometheus or ELK stack. You can parse the logs to create alerts for failed operations or track metrics about packet clearing frequency and client update success rates.

Related Resources