How do I change my token symbol on substrate-node-template?

Question

I am running the substrate-node-template and I notice that the token symbol is UNIT and under the accounts tab in polkadot{.js} it shows up as MUNIT. How can I change my token symbol?

Answer 1

One way you can change your token symbol is in the chain_spec.rs file, you can add something like this:

let mut properties = Properties::new();
properties.insert("tokenSymbol".into(), "DOT".into());
properties.insert("tokenDecimals".into(), 12.into());
properties.insert("ss58Format".into(), 42.into());

For example you can edit your chain_spec's development config like this:

pub fn development_config() -> Result<ChainSpec, String> {
    let wasm_binary = WASM_BINARY.ok_or_else(|| "Development wasm not available".to_string())?;
    
    // Give your base currency a unit name and decimal places
    let mut properties = Properties::new();
    properties.insert("tokenSymbol".into(), "DOT".into());
    properties.insert("tokenDecimals".into(), 12.into());
    properties.insert("ss58Format".into(), 42.into());

    Ok(ChainSpec::from_genesis(
        // Name
        "Development",
        // ID
        "dev",
        ChainType::Development,
        move || {
            testnet_genesis(
                wasm_binary,
                // Initial PoA authorities
                vec![authority_keys_from_seed("Alice")],
                // Sudo account
                get_account_id_from_seed::<sr25519::Public>("Alice"),
                // Pre-funded accounts
                vec![
                    get_account_id_from_seed::<sr25519::Public>("Alice"),
                    get_account_id_from_seed::<sr25519::Public>("Bob"),
                    get_account_id_from_seed::<sr25519::Public>("Alice//stash"),
                    get_account_id_from_seed::<sr25519::Public>("Bob//stash"),
                ],
                true,
            )
        },
        // Bootnodes
        vec![],
        // Telemetry
        None,
        // Protocol ID
        None,
        // Properties
        Some(properties),
        // Extensions
        None,
    ))
}

Alternatively you can also make this change in the plain chain spec file. Take a look here: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/paritytech/polkadot/master/node/service/res/rococo.json