# Bootstrap from a Snapshot

## Bootstrap from a Snapshot

This document describes how to bootstrap an Endless node quickly using a snapshot. This can be done on all node types, including validators, VFNs and PFNs.

Although you can bootstrap a new node using state sync, this might not be the fastest approach after the network has been running for a while; it can either take too much time, or it won't be able to fetch all the required data since other nodes may have already pruned their ledger history. To avoid this, you can bootstrap your node using an existing snapshot, which is simply a copy of the storage data of an existing node.

{% hint style="info" %}
Mainnet snapshots It is not recommended to use snapshots for bootstrapping nodes in **mainnet**. This is because snapshots are not verified by the Endless software. As a result, the snapshot may be invalid or contain incorrect data. To prevent security concerns, we recommend using snapshots only in test environments, e.g., **devnet** and **testnet**.

If you must bootstrap a node using a **mainnet** snapshot, you should either generate the snapshot yourself or obtain it from a trusted source. You should also verify the snapshot's integrity and authenticity before using it (e.g., via cryptographic signatures and checksums).
{% endhint %}

### Find an existing snapshot

There are a number of snapshots that can be downloaded from different Endless community members. These include:

* BWareLabs (Testnet and Mainnet): [BWareLabs Endless Node Snapshots](https://bwarelabs.com/snapshots)
* Polkachu (Mainnet): [Polkachu Endless Node Snapshots](https://polkachu.com/endless_snapshots/endless)

{% hint style="info" %}
Questions about snapshot data Depending on how the snapshot is constructed and compressed, the snapshot files may be different sizes. If you have any questions about the snapshot data, or run into any issues, please reach out to the Endless community members directly via the [#node-support](https://discord.com/channels/945856774056083548/953421979136962560) channel in [Endless Discord](https://discord.gg/endlessnetwork).
{% endhint %}

### Use a snapshot

To use a snapshot, simply download and copy the files to the location of the storage database for your node. This location can be found and updated in the fullnode `yaml` configuration file under `data_dir`. See the example tutorial (Run a PFN) for how to configure the data directory.


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