Discord Bot Service Setup on Raspberry Pi 5

This guide provides step-by-step instructions to compile a Go-based Discord bot and set it up as a systemd service on a Raspberry Pi 5. By the end of this guide, your Discord bot will run automatically on startup and can be managed using standard systemctl commands.

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Table of Contents

• Prerequisites
• Compiling the Go Binary
• Setting Up the Systemd Service
  • 1. Create the Service File
  • 2. Configure the Service File
  • 3. Reload Systemd and Enable the Service
  • 4. Start and Test the Service
• Environment Variables
  • Method 1: Define in Service File
  • Method 2: Use an Environment File
• Commands Summary
• Conclusion

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Prerequisites

• Raspberry Pi 5 with Raspberry Pi OS installed.
• Go Programming Language installed on your development machine.
• Go-based Discord bot source code.
• User account with sudo privileges on the Raspberry Pi.
• Internet connection for the Raspberry Pi.
• OpenAI API Key (if your bot uses OpenAI services).

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Compiling the Go Binary

To ensure your Go binary is compatible with the Raspberry Pi 5 architecture, you need to compile it for Linux ARM64.

1. Set the Go Environment Variables:

   export GOOS=linux
   export GOARCH=arm64
   

2. Compile the Go Program:

   Navigate to your Go project's root directory and run:

   go build -o /home/pi/discord-bot /path/to/your/main.go
   

   • Replace /home/pi/discord-bot with the desired output path on your Raspberry Pi.
   • Replace /path/to/your/main.go with the path to your main.go file.

3. Transfer the Binary to Raspberry Pi (if compiled elsewhere):

   Use scp or another file transfer method:

   scp /path/to/discord-bot pi@raspberry_pi_ip:/home/pi/discord-bot
   

4. Set Executable Permissions on Raspberry Pi:

   chmod +x /home/pi/discord-bot
   

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Setting Up the Systemd Service

1. Create the Service File

On your Raspberry Pi, create a new service file:

sudo vim /etc/systemd/system/discord-bot.service

2. Configure the Service File

Paste the following content into the file:

[Unit]
Description=Discord Bot Service
After=network-online.target
Requires=network-online.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=pi
WorkingDirectory=/home/pi/
ExecStart=/home/pi/discord-bot
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=5s

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

• User: Replace pi with your username if different.
• WorkingDirectory: The directory where your binary resides.
• ExecStart: The path to your Go binary.

3. Reload Systemd and Enable the Service

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable discord-bot.service

4. Start and Test the Service

sudo systemctl start discord-bot.service
sudo systemctl status discord-bot.service

• Verify that the service is active (running).

• To view real-time logs:

  sudo journalctl -u discord-bot.service -f
  

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Environment Variables

If your Discord bot requires environment variables (e.g., OPENAI_API_KEY), you need to provide them to the service.

Method 1: Define in Service File

Edit the service file:

sudo vim /etc/systemd/system/discord-bot.service

Add the Environment directive under the [Service] section:

Environment="OPENAI_API_KEY=your_api_key_here"

Replace your_api_key_here with your actual API key.

Method 2: Use an Environment File

1. Create an Environment File:

   sudo vim /home/pi/discord-bot.env
   

2. Add Your Environment Variables:

   OPENAI_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
   

3. Secure the Environment File:

   sudo chown pi:pi /home/pi/discord-bot.env
   sudo chmod 600 /home/pi/discord-bot.env
   

4. Modify the Service File to Include the Environment File:

   sudo vim /etc/systemd/system/discord-bot.service
   

   Add the following line under the [Service] section:

   EnvironmentFile=/home/pi/discord-bot.env
   

5. Reload Systemd and Restart the Service:

   sudo systemctl daemon-reload
   sudo systemctl restart discord-bot.service
   

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Commands Summary

Command	Description	Usage
clear	Deletes a specified number of recent messages	!clear [number], e.g., !clear 5
mute	Mutes a user for a specified duration	!mute [@user] [duration], e.g., !mute @user 10m
move	Moves a user to another voice channel	!move [@user] [channel], e.g., !move @random afk
ping	Checks the bot's latency or responsiveness	!ping
roll	Rolls a random number	!roll
help	Provides help information for commands	!help
weather	Shows the current weather for a specified location	!weather [location], e.g., !weather London
joke	Tells a random joke	!joke
fact	Provides a random fact	!fact
8ball	Gives a magic 8-ball style answer to a question	!8ball [question], e.g., !8ball Will I be rich?
reverse	Reverses the input text	!reverse [text], e.g., !reverse Hello World
mock	Mocks the input text in a playful way	!mock [text], e.g., !mock Hello
ask	Ask OpenAI ChatGPT o1 model	!ask [question], e.g., !ask When is the Singularity
poll	Creates a poll with options	!poll [question] [options], e.g., !poll Best pet? | Dog | Cat
quote	Provides a random inspirational quote	!quote

Compiling the Go Binary

export GOOS=linux
export GOARCH=arm64
go build -o /home/pi/discord-bot /path/to/your/main.go

Setting Up the Service

sudo vim /etc/systemd/system/discord-bot.service

Service File Content:

[Unit]
Description=Discord Bot Service
After=network-online.target
Requires=network-online.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=pi
WorkingDirectory=/home/pi/
ExecStart=/home/pi/discord-bot
EnvironmentFile=/home/pi/discord-bot.env  # Only if using an environment file
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=5s

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Enabling and Starting the Service

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable discord-bot.service
sudo systemctl start discord-bot.service

Checking Service Status and Logs

sudo systemctl status discord-bot.service
sudo journalctl -u discord-bot.service -f

Environment Variables

Create Environment File:

sudo vim /home/pi/discord-bot.env

Set Permissions:

sudo chown pi:pi /home/pi/discord-bot.env
sudo chmod 600 /home/pi/discord-bot.env

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Conclusion

You have successfully compiled your Go-based Discord bot and set it up as a systemd service on your Raspberry Pi 5. The bot will now start automatically on boot and can be managed using systemctl commands.

Tips:

• Managing the Service:

  • Stop the Service: sudo systemctl stop discord-bot.service
  • Restart the Service: sudo systemctl restart discord-bot.service
  • Disable the Service at Boot: sudo systemctl disable discord-bot.service

• Security:

  • Keep your API keys secure by limiting file permissions.
  • Avoid hardcoding sensitive information into your code or service files.

• Troubleshooting:

  • Check logs using journalctl if the bot isn't working as expected.
  • Ensure the binary is executable and compiled for the correct architecture.

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