> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://firehose.streamingfast.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://firehose.streamingfast.io/firehose/overview.md).

# Deployment Guide

This deployment guide provides **chain-agnostic** instructions for deploying Firehose. The concepts, commands, and deployment patterns shown here can be applied to any blockchain that has Firehose support.

{% hint style="info" %}
We use [dummy-blockchain](https://github.com/streamingfast/dummy-blockchain) as our example throughout this guide. This is a simple test blockchain that demonstrates all Firehose concepts without the complexity of a real blockchain.
{% endhint %}

## Prerequisites

Before starting, you'll need:

1. **Firecore binary**: Download from [firehose-core releases](https://github.com/streamingfast/firehose-core/releases)
2. **Dummy blockchain binary**: Install the example blockchain client

### Installing Dummy Blockchain

```bash
# Install the dummy blockchain binary
go install github.com/streamingfast/dummy-blockchain@latest

# Verify installation
dummy-blockchain --help
```

The dummy blockchain can be run standalone with:

```bash
dummy-blockchain start --store-dir=<data-dir> --block-rate=180
```

## Deployment Options

Choose your deployment approach based on your needs:

### 🏠 [Single Machine Deployment](/firehose/overview/single-machine-deployment.md)

**Recommended for**: Development, testing, small-scale production

* All components run on one machine
* Shared local storage between components
* Simpler setup and management
* Lower resource requirements

### 🏢 [Distributed Deployment](/firehose/overview/distributed-deployment.md)

**Recommended for**: Production, high-availability, scalability

* Components run as separate processes/services
* Shared object storage (cloud storage)
* Horizontal scalability
* Production-ready architecture

## Architecture Overview

Both deployment patterns use the same core [Firehose architecture](/firehose/architecture.md):

1. **Reader**: Manages the blockchain node and extracts block data
2. **Merger**: Combines one-block files into merged block files
3. **Relayer**: Streams live blocks to consumers
4. **Firehose**: Serves historical and live block data via gRPC
5. **Substreams Tier 1**: Handles consumer requests and coordinates parallel processing
6. **Substreams Tier 2**: Executes WASM modules for parallel historical data transformation

{% hint style="info" %}
**About Substreams**: Substreams is a high-performance parallel data transformation engine that runs alongside Firehose. It enables users to define custom data pipelines in Rust/WASM that execute directly within your infrastructure. Running Substreams adds significant value for users while reusing the same block storage as Firehose. See [Substreams Component](/firehose/architecture/components/substreams.md) for details.
{% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %}
For detailed information about each component, see the [Architecture Components](/firehose/architecture/components.md) documentation.
{% endhint %}