synopsis: Modules generally handle a subset of the state and, as such, they need to define the related subset of the genesis file as well as methods to initialize, verify and export it.
The subset of the genesis state defined from a given module is generally defined in a `./internal/types/genesis.go` file, along with the `DefaultGenesis` and `ValidateGenesis` methods. The struct defining the module's subset of the genesis state is usually called `GenesisState` and contains all the module-related values that need to be initialized during the genesis process.
See an example of `GenesisState` type definition from the nameservice tutorial
Next we present the main genesis-related methods that need to be implemented by module developers in order for their module to be used in Cosmos SDK applications.
### `DefaultGenesis`
The `DefaultGenesis()` method is a simple method that calls the constructor function for `GenesisState` with the default value for each parameter. See an example from the `nameservice` module:
The `ValidateGenesis(genesisState GenesisState)` method is called to verify that the provided `genesisState` is correct. It should perform validity checks on each of the parameter listed in `GenesisState`. See an example from the `nameservice` module:
Other than the methods related directly to `GenesisState`, module developers are expected to implement two other methods as part of the [`AppModuleGenesis` interface](./module-manager.md#appmodulegenesis) (only if the module needs to initialize a subset of state in genesis). These methods are [`InitGenesis`](#initgenesis) and [`ExportGenesis`](#exportgenesis).
### `InitGenesis`
The `InitGenesis` method is executed during [`InitChain`](../core/baseapp.md#initchain) when the application is first started. Given a `GenesisState`, it initializes the subset of the state managed by the module by using the module's [`keeper`](./keeper.md) setter function on each parameter within the `GenesisState`.
The [module manager](./module-manager.md#manager) of the application is responsible for calling the `InitGenesis` method of each of the application's modules, in order. This order is set by the application developer via the manager's `SetOrderGenesisMethod`, which is called in the [application's constructor function](../basics/app-anatomy.md#constructor-function)
See an example of `InitGenesis` from the nameservice tutorial
The `ExportGenesis` method is executed whenever an export of the state is made. It takes the latest known version of the subset of the state managed by the module and creates a new `GenesisState` out of it. This is mainly used when the chain needs to be upgraded via a hard fork.
See an example of `ExportGenesis` from the nameservice tutorial.