- Getting Started with Simplewallet
- Opening simplewallet for the first time
- Running Simplewallet in JSON RPC mode
- Running simplewallet headless in JSON RPC mode
- Automating all the things
To get simplewallet, you can build from source on Github, or download the latest release version for your system. Official releases package simplewallet with other utilities, including the full node monero daemon, bitmonerod.
Once simplewallet is installed, you will want to generate a new wallet.
Download the official releases for your system from getmonero.org.
Unzip and save the downloaded files in a place you will remember.
Getting started is pretty much as simple as typing "simplewallet" - no wonder it's called that!
-
Open the command line:
Windows: Open "Command Prompt"
OS X: Open "Terminal"
Linux: Varies by distro, but I'm guessing you know how!
-
Navigate to where you saved the official release:
In Windows, type something like
cd C:\Programs\monero-release\
, specifying the path to where you installed simplewallet.In the OS X or Linux, type
cd /path/to/where/you/installed/the/release/
-
Open simplewallet:
If you want to connect to a monero daemon node on the same machine as your wallet, this is as easy as typing
simplewallet.exe
on Windows or./simplewallet
on OS X and Linux.If you do not want to run a daemon node, you can connect to publicly available nodes by typing
./simplewallet --daemon-address <address>:<port>
. For example,./simplewallet --daemon-address node.moneroclub.com:8880
(Use
simplewallet.exe
if on Windows.)You will be prompted for a name for your wallet. Choose whatever you like. For the remainder of this tutorial, we will use the wallet name
ChromeWallet
. Then choose a password (this will encrypt your wallet keys when your wallet is not open). We'll usexxxx
.At this point, your wallet will open and display a number of things, including your wallet's address and its secret recovery seed. You probably want to write down your seed in a secure place. However, if you forget or do not want to at this time, the wallet extension gives you the opportunity to see your seed later in the browser.
Finally, type
refresh
and thenexit
. Your wallet has been generated and saved, and you're ready for the last step!
To open your wallet in Linux/OS X, you'll use the command:
./simplewallet --wallet-file ChromeWallet --password xxxx --rpc-bind-ip 127.0.0.1 --rpc-bind-port 18082
Note the extra commands --rpc-bind-ip 127.0.0.1
and --rpc-bind-port
. This is what lets
the Chrome extension talk to simplewallet. You can choose any port you wish, but 18082 is a
good choice if you are unsure. When you open the Chrome extension for the first time, you
will be taken to a configuration page where you will tell the extension what port you chose.
If you want to connect to a remote node, you add the --daemon-address
argument. For example:
./simplewallet --wallet-file ChromeWallet --password xxxx --rpc-bind-ip 127.0.0.1 --rpc-bind-port 18082 --daemon-address node.moneroclub.com:8880
If you are running the wallet in RPC mode, you probably don't want to have to leave your command line open all the time. Depending on your system, one of these solutions might help you keep your wallet offscreen.
Switch to Linux. J/K, to be completed soon...
I recommend using screen
to be able to run your wallet in the background.
screen ./simplewallet --wallet-file ChromeWallet --password xxxx --rpc-bind-ip 127.0.0.1 --rpc-bind-port 18082
When you first do this, it will look like a normal command line window. However, if you type
cntl
+a
+d
, it will detach to the background. To return to the screen later, type screen -r
in a terminal.
Now that you've walked through the Simplewallet 101 tutorial, I'll leave you with this: how to write a script that does all this stuff for you so that you don't have to remember it every time.
I use shell scripts to simplify things. In the terminal, write nano run_wallet_chrome.sh
.
The bit after nano
will be the name of your script... feel free to use something else.
The nano text editor will open in your terminal. Write the following:
#!/bin/sh
PASS=$1
screen ./simplewallet --wallet-file ChromeWallet --password ${PASS} --rpc-bind-ip 127.0.0.1 --rpc-bind-port 18082
Include --daemon-address
if appropriate.
Then, save your script by typing cntl
+x
followed by y
.
Finally, make your script executable: chmod +x run_wallet_chrome.sh
.
Now whenever you want to run your wallet in rpc mode, you just type ./run_wallet_chrome.sh xxxx
.
Notice that your password should follow run_wallet_chrome.sh
. This helps keep your wallet
somewhat protected by not including your password as clear text in the shell script itself.
As before, if you want it to run headless, just type cntl
+a
followed by d
.
Simplewallet should now run in the background on your computer until you either restart your machine or close simplewallet (you can do this from the extension), at which point you will need to start it again.
If you would like to make it so you can double-click your run script and it will automatically execute in OS X, right click on it and select "Open With" > "Other". Find "Utilities" and choose "Terminal". Select "Always Open With" and click "Open". In Linux, try these instructions: askubuntu.com.
On Windows, we will write a "batfile" to do all of this for us.
Open a text editor, and copy your simplewallet command. Ex:
set /p Input=Enter password:
simplewallet.exe --wallet-file ChromeWallet --password "%Input%" --rpc-bind-ip 127.0.0.1 --rpc-bind-port 18082
Now save as a .bat file, ex: run_wallet_chrome.bat
.
Make sure that you change File Type ".txt" to "All Files" so that your script saves properly.
You can run your script by simply double-clicking the file. I recommend making a shortcut (available in menu by right clicking on the file) and move the shortcut someplace convenient, like your desktop.