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 EOSIO 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 EOSIO software. Installing EOSIO will also install the cleos tool.
Learn about asymmetric cryptography (public and private keypair) in the context of an EOSIO 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:

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

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.