web3_clientVersion | Ethereum

Ethereum API method that returns the client type and version running on the Ethereum node. This information can be useful to developers to verify that a node they are connecting to is compatible with their needs.

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Parameters

• none

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Response

• string — a string identifying the type of client, version, operating system, and language version running on the node

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web3_clientVersion code examples

const ethers = require("ethers");



// Create a ChainstackProvider instance for Ethereum mainnet

const chainstack = new ethers.ChainstackProvider("mainnet");



const clientVersion = async () => {

  const version = await chainstack.send("web3_clientVersion");

  console.log(`Client version: ${version}`);

};



clientVersion();

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Use case

A use case for the web3_clientVersion method can be to verify which client is running to then decide which method to run.

Let’s say you have a DApp that needs to retrieve all of the transaction receipts in a block; the Erigon client has a method for this, eth_getBlockReceipts, but with Geth, this method is only available starting from V1.13.0. You can use the web3_clientVersion method in your logic to identify which client you are using to see if you have the method available.

Here is an implementation of this use case using web3.js:

const { Web3, Web3PluginBase } = require("web3");

const NODE_URL = "CHAINSTACK_NODE_URL";

const web3 = new Web3(NODE_URL);



// Define the ExtraMethods class

class ExtraMethods extends Web3PluginBase {

  pluginNamespace = 'extra';



  async getBlockReceipts(blockNumber) {

    return this.requestManager.send({

      method: 'eth_getBlockReceipts',

      params: [blockNumber],

    });

  }

}



web3.registerPlugin(new ExtraMethods());



// Get client version

async function getClient() {

  const client = await web3.eth.getNodeInfo();

  return client;

}



// Extract the client's name and version

async function getClientName() {

  const clientVersion = await getClient();

  

  // Split the clientVersion string by '/'

  let parts = clientVersion.split('/');

  

  // Split the second part by '-' and take the first element

  let version = parts[1].split('-')[0];



  // Concatenate the client name and version

  let clientNameWithVersion = parts[0] + '/' + version;

  console.log(clientNameWithVersion);

  return clientNameWithVersion;

}



// Parse version from version string

function parseVersion(versionString) {

  const versionMatch = versionString.match(/(\d+\.\d+\.\d+)/);

  return versionMatch ? versionMatch[1] : null;

}



// Compare versions

function isVersionGreaterThanOrEqual(v1, v2) {

  const v1Parts = v1.split('.').map(Number);

  const v2Parts = v2.split('.').map(Number);



  for (let i = 0; i < Math.max(v1Parts.length, v2Parts.length); i++) {

    const num1 = v1Parts[i] || 0;

    const num2 = v2Parts[i] || 0;



    if (num1 > num2) return true;

    if (num1 < num2) return false;

  }

  return true; // versions are equal

}



// Get the receipts based on the client

async function getAllReceipts(blockId) {

  const clientNameWithVersion = await getClientName();

  const [clientName, clientVersion] = clientNameWithVersion.split('/');



  if (clientName === 'Geth') {

    const version = parseVersion(clientVersion);

    if (isVersionGreaterThanOrEqual(version, '1.13.0')) {

      console.log('Client is Geth with supported version.');

      const receipts = await web3.extra.getBlockReceipts(blockId);

    return receipts;

    } else {

      console.log('Client is Geth, but version is not supported.');

    }

  } else if (clientName === 'erigon') {

    console.log('Client is Erigon');

    const receipts = await web3.extra.getBlockReceipts(blockId);

    return receipts;

  } else {

    console.log('Client version is not Geth or Erigon');

  }

}



async function main() {

  try {

    const receipts = await getAllReceipts('latest');

    if (receipts !== undefined) {

      console.log(receipts);

    }

  } catch (error) {

    console.error(error);

  }

}



main();

Let’s break down the code:

1. The getBlockReceipts Method:
   The getBlockReceipts function is a part of the ExtraMethods class, which extends the functionality of the web3 object via the Web3PluginBase. This method uses this.requestManager.send to call the eth_getBlockReceipts JSON-RPC method, passing a single parameter blockNumber. The function formats the input and output values and returns the resulting receipts. This method is accessible through web3.extra.getBlockReceipts due to the registration of the ExtraMethods plugin with web3.registerPlugin(new ExtraMethods()).
2. The getClient Function:
   This function retrieves the client version using the web3.eth.getNodeInfo call, which internally calls the web3_clientVersion JSON-RPC method without parameters. It formats the returned value and provides the full client version string.
3. The getClientName Function:
   getClientName calls getClient to get the complete client version string. It then extracts both the client’s name and its version by splitting the version string at the first / and - characters. The function concatenates these parts to form a string in the format “ClientName/Version”.
4. The getAllReceipts Function:
   This function uses getClientName to retrieve the name and version of the client in a combined format. It checks if the client is Geth and, if so, further verifies whether its version is greater than or equal to 1.13.0 using the parseVersion and isVersionGreaterThanOrEqual functions. If the client is Geth with a supported version or Erigon, the function proceeds to fetch block receipts using web3.extra.getBlockReceipts. If the client is neither a supported version of Geth nor Erigon, it logs a message indicating this.
5. Version Parsing and Comparison:
   Additional functions parseVersion and isVersionGreaterThanOrEqual are included for parsing the version string and comparing it against a specified minimum version. parseVersion extracts the semantic version number from the client version string, and isVersionGreaterThanOrEqual compares this version against the specified minimum version, 1.13.0 in this case.
6. Main Function and Execution Flow:
   The main function serves as the entry point for execution. It attempts to call getAllReceipts with a specified block identifier, handling any exceptions and logging the results if available.