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Akash Customer Support Guide

Dedicated support page for customers using Akash services

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What is Akash?

Akash Network is a decentralized cloud computing platform that allows you to deploy and run applications on a global network of cloud providers. When you use DurianLAB with Akash:

  • Cost-Effective: Pay only for what you use
  • Decentralized: No single point of failure
  • Global: Deploy workloads across multiple providers worldwide
  • Flexible: Run any Docker container workload

How Does Akash Benefit You?

When DurianLAB servers have idle resources, they contribute to the Akash network, earning passive income. This helps us:

  1. Reduce Costs: Offset server costs through Akash earnings
  2. Offer Competitive Pricing: Pass savings to customers
  3. Support Decentralization: Contribute to a more resilient internet
  4. Maximize Resource Utilization: Servers don't sit idle

Getting Started

Prerequisites

Before using Akash services, ensure you have:

  1. DurianLAB Account - Sign up at durianlab.tech
  2. Akash Wallet - Install Keplr Wallet or Akash CLI
  3. AKT Tokens - Purchase AKT from exchanges (Osmosis, Coinbase, etc.)
  4. Docker Image - Your application packaged in a Docker container

Step 1: Install Akash CLI

# macOS
brew install akash-network/tap/akash

# Linux
curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ovrclk/akash/master/install.sh | bash

# Verify installation
akash version

Step 2: Create Akash Wallet

# Create new wallet
akash keys create my-wallet

# Or import existing wallet
akash keys import my-wallet /path/to/wallet.json

# Get wallet address
akash keys show my-wallet -a

Step 3: Fund Your Wallet

  1. Purchase AKT tokens from:
  2. Osmosis
  3. Coinbase

  4. Kraken

  5. Send AKT to your wallet address

  6. Check balance:

akash query bank balances $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

How Akash Works

Architecture Overview

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    Your Application                      │
│                  (Docker Container)                      │
└────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────┘
                     │
                     ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                   Akash Network                         │
│              (Decentralized Marketplace)                │
│  ┌──────────────┐  ┌──────────────┐  ┌──────────────┐ │
│  │   Provider A │  │ Provider B   │  │ Provider C   │ │
│  │  (DurianLAB)  │  │ (Other DC)  │  │ (Other DC)   │ │
│  └──────────────┘  └──────────────┘  └──────────────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Deployment Lifecycle

  1. Define - Create deployment manifest (SDL file)
  2. Deploy - Submit to Akash marketplace
  3. Match - Providers bid for your workload
  4. Run - Winning provider hosts your container
  5. Monitor - Track resource usage and costs
  6. Close - Stop deployment when done

Using Akash Services

Step 1: Create Deployment Manifest

Create deploy.yaml file:

---
version: "2.0"

services:
  myapp:
    image: myusername/myapp:latest
    expose:
      - port: 80
        as: 80
        to:
          - global: true
    env:
      - DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:pass@host:5432/db

profiles:
  compute:
    myapp:
      resources:
        cpu:
          units: 1
        memory:
          size: 1Gi
        storage:
          size: 10Gi
  placement:
    dcloud:
      attributes:
        host: akash
      pricing:
        myapp:
          denom: uakt
          amount: 1000

deployment:
  myapp:
    dcloud:
      profile: myapp
      count: 1

Step 2: Deploy to Akash

# Create deployment
akash tx deployment create deploy.yaml --from my-wallet --chain-id akashnet-2

# View your deployments
akash query deployment list --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

# Check deployment status
akash query deployment get --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a) --dseq <dseq>

Step 3: Accept Provider Bid

# View bids from providers
akash query market bid list --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

# Accept a bid
akash tx market lease create --dseq <dseq> --gseq 1 --oseq 1 --provider <provider-address> --from my-wallet

# View lease status
akash query market lease list --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

Step 4: Access Your Application

# Get service URL
akash query service list --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

# Output example:
# http://myapp.durianlab.akash.world

Step 5: Monitor Your Deployment

# View logs
akash logs --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --from my-wallet

# Check resource usage
akash query status --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address>

# View costs
akash query market lease get --dseq <dseq> --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a) --provider <provider-address>

Step 6: Close Deployment

# Close deployment when done
akash tx deployment close --dseq <dseq> --from my-wallet

# Verify closure
akash query deployment get --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a) --dseq <dseq>

Pricing & Billing

How Pricing Works

Akash uses a bid/ask model where providers compete for your workload:

  1. You Specify: Resources needed (CPU, memory, storage)
  2. Providers Bid: Offer prices in AKT (Akash Token)
  3. You Choose: Accept the best bid
  4. Pay As You Go: Charged per block (~6 seconds)

Cost Estimation

Example Pricing (Subject to Market Conditions):

Resource Price Per Block (≈6 sec) Price Per Hour
1 CPU ~0.01 uAKT ~6 uAKT
1 GB RAM ~0.001 uAKT ~0.6 uAKT
10 GB Storage ~0.0001 uAKT/u ~0.6 uAKT

Typical Workload Costs:

Workload Resources Cost Per Hour Cost Per Month
Small Web App 1 CPU, 1GB RAM, 10GB ~7 uAKT ~0.005 AKT
Medium API 2 CPU, 4GB RAM, 50GB ~30 uAKT ~0.02 AKT
Large Service 4 CPU, 8GB RAM, 100GB ~70 uAKT ~0.05 AKT

Note: Prices fluctuate based on market demand. Check current rates on Akash Console.

Billing Cycle

┌─────────────┐
│Deposit AKT   │ → Wallet → Deployment (Auto-deduct every block)
└─────────────┘
                      ↓
          ┌───────────────────────┐
          │ When Balance Low:      │
          │ 1. Auto-close deploy   │
          │ 2. Or deposit more AKT │
          └───────────────────────┘

Managing Costs

# Check wallet balance
akash query bank balances $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

# Set deployment escrow
akash tx deployment deposit --from my-wallet --amount 5000000uakt

# View escrow balance
akash query deployment get --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a) --dseq <dseq>

Monitoring Your Workloads

Resource Monitoring

# View CPU usage
akash query metrics --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --resource cpu

# View memory usage
akash query metrics --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --resource memory

# View storage usage
akash query metrics --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --resource storage

# View network usage
akash query metrics --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --resource network

Real-time Logs

# Stream logs
akash logs --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --from my-wallet --follow

# View last 100 lines
akash logs --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --from my-wallet --tail 100

# Filter logs
akash logs --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --from my-wallet --filter "ERROR"

DurianLAB Dashboard

Access your deployment through DurianLAB dashboard:

  1. Login to dashboard.durianlab.tech
  2. Navigate to Akash Deployments
  3. View:
  4. Active deployments
  5. Resource usage graphs
  6. Cost breakdown
  7. Provider information
  8. Application logs

FAQ

General Questions

Q: What types of workloads can I run on Akash?

A: Any Docker container workload: - Web applications (Nginx, Apache, Node.js, Python) - APIs and microservices - Databases (PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redis) - Machine learning models - Blockchain nodes - CI/CD workloads - Batch processing jobs

Q: How is Akash different from AWS/GCP?

A: | Feature | Akash | AWS/GCP | |---------|-------|---------| | Decentralized | ✅ Yes | ❌ No | | Pricing Model | Market-based, bid/ask | Fixed pricing | | Contract Duration | Flexible (hourly blocks) | Usually hourly/monthly | | Provider Choice | You choose from bids | Assigned automatically | | Data Sovereignty | Choose location | Choose region |

Q: What happens if my provider goes offline?

A: 1. Akash automatically redistributes your workload to another provider 2. Your deployment continues running on a new provider 3. You may experience brief downtime (seconds to minutes) 4. DurianLAB providers have high uptime guarantees

Q: Can I run stateful applications?

A: Yes! Use persistent storage:

services:
  postgres:
    image: postgres:15
    params:
      storage:
        data:
          mount: /var/lib/postgresql/data
persistent: true

Pricing Questions

Q: How much does it cost to deploy on Akash?

A: Costs depend on: - Resources requested (CPU, RAM, storage) - Current market rates (supply/demand) - Duration of deployment

Example: Small web app (1 CPU, 1GB RAM) costs ~0.005 AKT/month (~$0.01 USD at current rates)

Q: How do I estimate costs before deploying?

A: 1. Use Akash Console Cost Calculator 2. Check current provider bids on testnet 3. Start with minimal resources and scale up

Q: What happens if I run out of AKT?

A: 1. Deployment auto-closes when escrow depleted 2. You'll receive notification at 20% balance 3. Add more AKT before closure to keep running

Q: Can I get a refund?

A: No refunds, but you only pay for what you use. Close deployment anytime to stop charges.

Technical Questions

Q: What if my Docker image is private?

A: Use image pull secrets:

services:
  myapp:
    image: myusername/private-app:latest
    credentials:
      server: docker.io
      username: myusername
      password:
        env: DOCKER_PASSWORD

Q: How do I expose multiple ports?

A:

services:
  myapp:
    expose:
      - port: 80
        as: 80
        to:
          - global: true
      - port: 443
        as: 443
        to:
          - global: true

Q: Can I use environment variables?

A: Yes:

services:
  myapp:
    env:
      - DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:pass@host:5432/db
      - API_KEY=your-api-key
      - NODE_ENV=production

Q: How do I scale my deployment?

A: Modify count in deployment manifest:

deployment:
  myapp:
    dcloud:
      profile: myapp
      count: 3  # Run 3 instances

Then update deployment:

akash tx deployment update deploy.yaml --dseq <dseq> --from my-wallet

Troubleshooting

Deployment Issues

Problem: Deployment not creating

# Check if wallet has enough AKT
akash query bank balances $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

# Check deployment status
akash query deployment list --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

# Common causes:
# - Insufficient AKT balance (need ~5 AKT minimum)
# - Wrong chain-id (use akashnet-2 for mainnet)
# - Invalid manifest file

Problem: No bids from providers

# Check if providers are online
akash query provider list

# Try increasing price in manifest
profiles:
  placement:
    dcloud:
      pricing:
        myapp:
          denom: uakt
          amount: 2000  # Increase from 1000 to 2000

# Try different region
profiles:
  placement:
    westcoast:
      attributes:
        region: us-west

Problem: Deployment closing unexpectedly

# Check escrow balance
akash query deployment get --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a) --dseq <dseq>

# Common causes:
# - Escrow balance depleted
# - Wallet out of AKT
# - Provider closed your lease

# Add more AKT
akash tx deployment deposit --from my-wallet --amount 10000000uakt --dseq <dseq>

Runtime Issues

Problem: Application not accessible

# Check service status
akash query service list --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

# Check if port is exposed correctly
# In manifest:
expose:
  - port: 80
    as: 80
    to:
      - global: true  # Must have this

# Check application logs
akash logs --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider> --from my-wallet --tail 100

# Common causes:
# - Application crashed
# - Port not exposed
# - Service not ready (health checks)

Problem: Application running but errors in logs

# View detailed logs
akash logs --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --from my-wallet --follow

# Check resource usage
akash query status --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address>

# Common causes:
# - OOM (out of memory) - increase memory in manifest
# - CPU throttling - increase CPU units
# - Storage full - increase storage size
# - Network issues - check DNS and connectivity

Problem: Database connection failing

# Check if database is running
akash logs --dseq <dseq> --provider <provider-address> --from my-wallet --filter "postgres"

# Check connection string in env
# env:
#   - DATABASE_URL=postgresql://postgres:password@postgres:5432/db

# Ensure database service is defined in manifest
services:
  postgres:
    image: postgres:15
    env:
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=password
      - POSTGRES_DB=myapp

Performance Issues

Problem: High latency

# Check provider location
akash query provider get --provider <provider-address>

# Choose provider closer to your users
profiles:
  placement:
    myregion:
      attributes:
        region: us-east

Problem: Resource shortages

# Increase resources in manifest
profiles:
  compute:
    myapp:
      resources:
        cpu:
          units: 2      # Was 1, increase to 2
        memory:
          size: 2Gi     # Was 1Gi, increase to 2Gi
        storage:
          size: 20Gi    # Was 10Gi, increase to 20Gi

Network Issues

Problem: Cannot connect to Akash network

# Check connectivity to Akash RPC nodes
curl -s https://akash-rpc.polkachu.net/status

# Try different RPC endpoint
akash config chain-id akashnet-2
akash config node https://akash-rpc.polkachu.net:443

# Check wallet connection
akash query bank balances $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

Problem: DNS resolution failing

# Check if Akash services is working
akash query service list --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a)

# Try using IP address directly
# Get URI from:
akash query service list --owner $(akash keys show my-wallet -a) --dseq <dseq>

Contact Support

Support Channels

DurianLAB Support: - Email: admin@durianlab.tech - Discord: DurianLAB Community - Documentation: docs.durianlab.tech

Akash Network Support: - Email: support@akash.network - Discord: Akash Discord - Forum: forum.akash.network - Documentation: akash.network/docs

Support Hours

  • Email: 24-48 hour response time
  • Discord: Community support 24/7,staff 9-5 EST UTC-5)
  • Emergency: For critical issues, email admin@durianlab.tech with subject "URGENT: [Issue Description]"

Before Contacting Support

Please have the following information ready:

  1. Deployment ID (DSEQ number)
  2. Wallet Address (Your Akash address)
  3. Error Messages (Copy/paste exact errors)
  4. Steps to Reproduce (What you were trying to do)
  5. Log Snippets (Last 50-100 lines from logs)
  6. Screenshots (If applicable)

Example Support Request:

Subject: Deployment Not Creating - DSEQ123456

Hi Support,

I'm unable to create a deployment. Here are the details:

Deployment ID: DSEQ123456
Wallet Address: akash1abc...xyz
Command Ran: akash tx deployment create deploy.yaml --from my-wallet

Error Message:
"Error: insufficient funds for gas and fees"

What I tried:
1. Checked wallet balance: 2 AKT
2. Added more AKT to wallet
3. Still getting same error

Please help!

Best regards,
[Your Name]

Additional Resources

Documentation

Tutorials

Community

Tools

Video Tutorials

Getting Started with Akash

[![Akash Tutorial](https://img.youtube.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/0.jpg)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ) *Duration: 15 minutes*

Deploying Your First Application

[![Deploy Tutorial](https://img.youtube.com/vi/dQw4w9WgXcQ/0.jpg)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ) *Duration: 20 minutes*

Glossary

Term Definition
AKT Akash Token - Native cryptocurrency used for payments
SDL Stack Definition Language - YAML file describing deployment
DSEQ Deployment Sequence - Unique ID for each deployment
GSEQ Group Sequence - ID for deployment group
OSEQ Order Sequence - ID for deployment order
Provider Node hosting workloads on Akash network
Tenant User deploying workloads on Akash network
Lease Agreement between tenant and provider
Escrow Deposited AKT tokens for deployment payment
Mainnet Production Akash network (akashnet-2)
Testnet Testing network (free AKT, reset periodically)

Last Updated: 2026-04-01 Version: 1.0.0