Change port 8333 to other. (Running multiple docker instances)

Question

My question is:

• can I change port 8333 on the network connection to any other port (8334 f.e.) without making my node "blind" to the other peers in the network? Will it still sync/push transaction data?

The core of this question is that I want to run multiple docker node instances on a single VM, with docker ports mapped to local ports.

node1 (:8333 -> :8333)

node2 (:8334 -> :8334)

...

Answer 1

Yes you can and the node will still sync and push transaction data.

Most of the nodes are behind NAT and not reachable anyway from the internet. These nodes are initiating connection against random nodes and then the communication become bidirectional, allowing to receive blocks.

Nodes that are exposed to the internet are important, to bootstrap nodes behind NAT and for SPV clients.