5.4 KiB
Keyring
Create, import, export and delete keys using the CLI keyring {synopsis}
The keyring holds the private/public keypairs used to interact with the node. For instance, a validator key needs to be set up before running the node, so that blocks can be correctly signed. The private key can be stored in different locations, called "backends", such as a file or the operating system's own key storage.
Add keys
You can use ethermintd keys for help about the keys command and ethermintd keys [command] --help for more information about a particular subcommand.
To create a new key in the keyring, run the add subcommand with a <key_name> argument. For the purpose of this tutorial, we will solely use the test backend, and call our new key mykey. This key will be used in the next section.
ethermintd keys add mykey --keyring-backend test
# Put the generated address in a variable for later use.
MY_VALIDATOR_ADDRESS=$(ethermintd keys show mykey -a --keyring-backend test)
This command generates a new 24-word mnemonic phrase, persists it to the relevant backend, and outputs information about the keypair. If this keypair will be used to hold value-bearing tokens, be sure to write down the mnemonic phrase somewhere safe!
By default, the keyring generates a eth_secp256k1 keypair. The keyring also supports ed25519 and secp256k1 keys, which may be created by passing the --algo flag. A keyring can of course hold both types of keys simultaneously.
Keyring Backends
OS
The os backend relies on operating system-specific defaults to handle key storage
securely. Typically, an operating system's credential sub-system handles password prompts,
private keys storage, and user sessions according to the user's password policies. Here
is a list of the most popular operating systems and their respective passwords manager:
- macOS (since Mac OS 8.6): Keychain
- Windows: Credentials Management API
- GNU/Linux:
GNU/Linux distributions that use GNOME as default desktop environment typically come with
Seahorse. Users of KDE based distributions are
commonly provided with KDE Wallet Manager.
Whilst the former is in fact a libsecret convenient frontend, the latter is a kwallet
client.
os is the default option since operating system's default credentials managers are
designed to meet users' most common needs and provide them with a comfortable
experience without compromising on security.
The recommended backends for headless environments are file and pass.
File
The file stores the keyring encrypted within the app's configuration directory. This
keyring will request a password each time it is accessed, which may occur multiple
times in a single command resulting in repeated password prompts. If using bash scripts
to execute commands using the file option you may want to utilize the following format
for multiple prompts:
# assuming that KEYPASSWD is set in the environment
yes $KEYPASSWD | ethermintd keys add me
yes $KEYPASSWD | ethermintd keys show me
# start ethermintd with keyring-backend flag
ethermintd --keyring-backend=file start
::: tip The first time you add a key to an empty keyring, you will be prompted to type the password twice. :::
Password Store
The pass backend uses the pass utility to manage on-disk
encryption of keys' sensitive data and metadata. Keys are stored inside gpg encrypted files
within app-specific directories. pass is available for the most popular UNIX
operating systems as well as GNU/Linux distributions. Please refer to its manual page for
information on how to download and install it.
::: tip
pass uses GnuPG for encryption. gpg automatically invokes the gpg-agent
daemon upon execution, which handles the caching of GnuPG credentials. Please refer to gpg-agent
man page for more information on how to configure cache parameters such as credentials TTL and
passphrase expiration.
:::
The password store must be set up prior to first use:
pass init <GPG_KEY_ID>
Replace <GPG_KEY_ID> with your GPG key ID. You can use your personal GPG key or an alternative
one you may want to use specifically to encrypt the password store.
KDE Wallet Manager
The kwallet backend uses KDE Wallet Manager, which comes installed by default on the
GNU/Linux distributions that ships KDE as default desktop environment. Please refer to
KWallet Handbook for more
information.
Testing
The test backend is a password-less variation of the file backend. Keys are stored
unencrypted on disk.
:::danger
Provided for testing purposes only. The test backend is NOT recommended for use in production environments.
:::
In Memory
The memory backend stores keys in memory. The keys are immediately deleted after the program has exited.
:::danger
Provided for testing purposes only. The memory backend is NOT recommended for use in production environments.
:::