# key subcommands
This section describes the subcommands for for the key command available from palomad.
# add
Generates a public and private key pair for an account so that you can receive funds, send funds, create bonding transactions, and so on.
TIP
For security purposes, run this command on an offline computer.
Syntax
palomad keys add <your-key-name>
where <your-key-name> is the name of the account. It references the account number used to derive the key pair from the mnemonic. When you want to send a transaction, you will use this name to identify your account.
To specify the path (0, 1, 2, ...) you want to use to generate your account, you can append the optional --account flag. By default, account 0 is generated.
The command generates a 24-word mnemonic and saves the private and public keys for account 0 simultaneously. You are prompted to specify a passphrase that is used to encrypt the private key of account 0 on disk. Each time you want to send a transaction, this password is required. If you lose the password, you can always recover the private key by using the mnemonic phrase.
DANGER
To prevent theft or loss of funds, ensure that you keep multiple copies of your mnemonic and store it in a secure place and that only you know how to access it. If someone is able to gain access to your mnemonic, they are able to gain access to your private keys and control the accounts associated with them.
TIP
After you have triple-checked your mnemonic and safely stored it, you can delete bash history to ensure no one can retrieve it.
history -c
rm ~/.bash_history
To generate more accounts from the same mnemonic, run:
palomad keys add <your-key-name> --recover --account 1
You are prompted to specify a passphrase and your mnemonic. To generate a different account, change the account number.
DANGER
- Do not use the same passphrase for multiple keys. Do not lose or share your mnemonic with anyone.
Example
palomad keys add myAccount
In some cases, you might need to recover your key. If you have the mnemonic that was used to generate your private key, you can recover it and re-register your key. Issuing the following command will prompt you to enter your 24-word mnemonic.
Syntax
palomad keys add <yourKeyName> --recover
For information about generating multisignature accounts and signing transactions, see Sign with a multisig account.
# delete
Delete the given keys from the keybase backend.
Note that removing offline or ledger keys will remove only the public key references stored locally, i.e. private keys stored in a ledger device cannot be deleted with the CLI.
Syntax
palomad keys delete <key name>
# export
Export private key.
Syntax
palomad keys export <name>
# import and import-hex
Import ASCII armored or hex encoded private keys into the local keybase.
Syntax
palomad keys import <name> <keyfile>
palomad keys import-hex <name> <keyfile>
# list
Prints list of all keys stored by this key manager.
Syntax
palomad keys list
# list-key-types
Prints list of all supported key types.
Syntax
palomad keys list-key-types
# migrate
Migrate keys from amino to proto serialization format.
TIP
It is recommended to run in 'dry-run' mode first to verify all key migration material.
Syntax
palomad migrate
# mnemonic
Compute the bip39 mnemonic for some input entropy. The default is the system entropy, to pass your own entropy, append flag --unsafe-entropy
Syntax
palomad mnemonic
# parse
Parse address from hex to bech32 and vice versa.
Syntax
palomad keys parse <hex-or-bech32-address>
# rename
Rename an existing key from the keybase backend.
Note that renaming offline or ledger keys will rename only the public key references stored locally, i.e. private keys stored in a ledger device cannot be renamed with the CLI.
Syntax
palomad keys rename <old name> <new name>
# show
Retrieves an address for a specified account. The address is prefixed by Paloma-, for example paloma15h6vd5f0wqps26zjlwrc6chah08ryu4hzzdwhc. To receive funds, you must give an account address to the sender.
Syntax
palomad keys show <account-name>
Example
palomad keys show myAccount
To show a validator's address, append the --bech=val flag to the end of the command statement, as shown in the following example:
palomad keys show accountExample --bech=val
To show the validator consensus address that is generated when the node is created by palomad init and the Tendermint signing key for the node, use the tendermint command, as shown in the following example:
palomad tendermint show-address