Implementation:Nautechsystems Nautilus trader TradingNode Init

Field	Value
sources	https://github.com/nautechsystems/nautilus_trader, https://nautilustrader.io/docs/
domains	algorithmic trading, live trading infrastructure, event-driven systems
last_updated	2026-02-10 12:00 GMT

Overview

Concrete tool for initializing a live trading node provided by NautilusTrader.

Description

The TradingNode class is the top-level entry point for deploying live trading strategies. Its constructor accepts a TradingNodeConfig and an optional asyncio event loop. During initialisation, it:

Validates and stores the configuration.
Resolves an asyncio event loop (caller-supplied, running, or newly created).
Constructs a NautilusKernel that owns all core subsystems (data engine, execution engine, risk engine, portfolio, cache, message bus, clock).
Creates a TradingNodeBuilder wired to the kernel's engines and infrastructure.
Logs whether cache and message-bus database backing are enabled.
Initialises internal state flags (_is_built, task references, stream processors).

The companion TradingNodeConfig is a frozen (immutable) msgspec struct inheriting from NautilusKernelConfig. It provides typed fields for trader identity, engine configs, and client mappings, with sensible defaults for every parameter.

Usage

Import and instantiate TradingNode when building a live trading application. Pair it with TradingNodeConfig to declaratively set trader identity, engine parameters, and client configurations.

Code Reference

Source Location

Item	Path
TradingNode class	`nautilus_trader/live/node.py` lines 39-100
TradingNodeConfig	`nautilus_trader/live/config.py` lines 308-342

Signature

class TradingNode:
    def __init__(
        self,
        config: TradingNodeConfig | None = None,
        loop: asyncio.AbstractEventLoop | None = None,
    ) -> None: ...

class TradingNodeConfig(NautilusKernelConfig, frozen=True):
    environment: Environment = Environment.LIVE
    trader_id: TraderId = "TRADER-001"
    data_engine: LiveDataEngineConfig = LiveDataEngineConfig()
    risk_engine: LiveRiskEngineConfig = LiveRiskEngineConfig()
    exec_engine: LiveExecEngineConfig = LiveExecEngineConfig()
    data_clients: dict[str, LiveDataClientConfig] = {}
    exec_clients: dict[str, LiveExecClientConfig] = {}

Import

from nautilus_trader.live.node import TradingNode
from nautilus_trader.config import TradingNodeConfig

I/O Contract

Inputs

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
config	None	No	Declarative configuration for the node. Defaults to `TradingNodeConfig()`.
loop	None	No	Event loop to use. If `None`, the constructor resolves one automatically.

Outputs / Exposed Attributes

Attribute	Type	Description
kernel	`NautilusKernel`	The core kernel owning all engines and infrastructure.
trader_id	`TraderId`	The trader identifier (read-only property).
machine_id	`str`	The host machine identifier (read-only property).
instance_id	`UUID4`	Unique instance identifier for this node run.
trader	`Trader`	The internal `Trader` that manages strategies and actors.
cache	`CacheFacade`	Read-only cache facade for instruments, orders, and positions.
portfolio	`PortfolioFacade`	Read-only portfolio facade for balances and P&L.

Usage Examples

Minimal Live Node

import asyncio
from nautilus_trader.live.node import TradingNode
from nautilus_trader.config import TradingNodeConfig

config = TradingNodeConfig(
    trader_id="TRADER-001",
)

node = TradingNode(config=config)

Custom Event Loop

import asyncio
from nautilus_trader.live.node import TradingNode
from nautilus_trader.config import TradingNodeConfig

loop = asyncio.new_event_loop()

node = TradingNode(
    config=TradingNodeConfig(trader_id="TRADER-002"),
    loop=loop,
)

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