How-To-Create-Key-Pairs

Overview

This how-to guide provides instructions on how to create a keypair consisting of a public key and a private key for signing transactions in an Antelope blockchain.

Before you begin

Make sure you meet the following requirements:

• Install the currently supported version of cleos

Note

The cleos tool is bundled with the Antelope software. Installing Antelope will also install the cleos tool.

• Learn about asymmetric cryptography (public and private keypair) in the context of an Antelope blockchain.

Command Reference

See the following reference guide for cleos command line usage and related options:

• cleos create key command and its parameters

Procedure

The following steps show how to create a public/private keypair, display them on the console, and save them to a file:

1. Create a public/private keypair and print them to the console:

cleos create key --to-console

Where:

• --to-console = The option parameter to print the keypair to the console

Example Output

Private key: 5KPzrqNMJdr6AX6abKg*******************************cH
Public key: EOS4wSiQ2jbYGrqiiKCm8oWR88NYoqnmK4nNL1RCtSQeSFkGtqsNc

2. Create a public/private keypair and save it to a file:

cleos create key --file pw.txt

Where:

• --file = The option parameter to save the keypair to a file
• FILE_TO_SAVEKEY = The name of the file to save the keypair

Example Output

saving keys to pw.txt

To view the saved keypair stored in the file:

cat pw.txt

Private key: 5K7************************************************
Public key: EOS71k3WdpLDeqeyqVRAAxwpz6TqXwDo9Brik5dQhdvvpeTKdNT59

Summary

By following these instructions, you are able to create public/private keypairs, print them to the console, and save them to a file.