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README.md

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+# neptune-explorer
+
+A web-based block explorer for the [Neptune blockchain](https://neptune.cash).  neptune-explorer provides a basic HTML view and a REST RPC API.
+
+As of 2024-05-22 this code is running at https://explorer.neptune.cash.
+
+Some [design notes](./doc/design_notes.md) are available.
+
+## Installing
+
+### Compile from Source -- Linux Debian/Ubuntu
+
+```
+git clone https://github.com/Neptune-Crypto/neptune-explorer.git
+cd neptune-explorer
+cargo install --locked --path .
+```
+
+### Windows, Mac
+
+not tested or supported.   Please let us know if you get it work.  patches accepted.
+
+## Running
+
+1. install [neptune-core](https://github.com/Neptune-Crypto/neptune-core) and start it, or otherwise find a running neptune-core instance.
+2. start neptune-explorer
+
+```
+nohup neptune-explorer 2>&1 > /path/to/logs/neptune-explorer.log &
+```
+
+Notes:
+* The block-explorer automatically uses the same network (mainnet, testnet, etc) as the neptune-core instance it is connected to, and the network is displayed in the web interface.
+* if neptune-core RPC server is running on a non-standard port, you can provide it with the `--port` flag.
+* Site name can be specified with the `--site-name` flag.
+
+
+## Connecting via Browser
+
+Just navigate to http://localhost:3000/
+
+(note: the port is not yet configurable.)
+
+
+## SSL/TLS, Nginx, etc.
+
+If hosting for public use, it is suggested to use nginx or similar in reverse-proxy mode to connect to `http://localhost:3000`.  Nginx can then handle SSL/TLS certs and connections, as neptune-explorer has no built-in support for that.
+
+
+## Logging
+
+All logging is output to standard out.
+
+The log level can be set through the environment variable `RUST_LOG`. Valid values are: `trace`, `debug`, `info`, `warn`, and `error`. The default value is `info`. E.g.: `RUST_LOG=trace cargo run`.