Getting Started with WarpCoin
This guide takes you from a clone of the repository to a running node, a wallet, mining, and your first payment. WarpCoin is a single Go binary with no third-party dependencies.
1. Get the binary
The fastest path is to download a prebuilt build for Windows,
macOS, or Linux — one self-contained warpcoin executable, no installer. Unpack
the archive and you are ready to go:
tar xzf warpcoin-v1.1.0-*.tar.gz # macOS/Linux
cd warpcoin-v1.1.0-*
./warpcoin version
Prefer to build from source? Requires Go 1.24+:
git clone https://github.com/kevinsegal/warpcoin
cd warpcoin
make build # produces ./bin/warpcoin
# or: go build -o bin/warpcoin ./cmd/warpcoin
Verify either way:
./warpcoin info
2. Create a wallet
WarpCoin supports multiple wallets, each recoverable from a seed phrase.
./warpcoin wallet new --name primary # 12-word recovery phrase
./warpcoin wallet new --name savings --words 24
./warpcoin wallet list # all wallets; * marks the default
./warpcoin wallet address # address of the default wallet
wallet new prints a recovery phrase once — write it down and store it
offline; it is the only way to restore the wallet. The keystore is also
encrypted at rest (PBKDF2-SHA256 + AES-256-GCM): wallet new prompts for a
passphrase, or supply one via WARP_WALLET_PASSPHRASE / --passphrase-file, or
pass --plaintext (not recommended).
Restore or move a wallet with its phrase (or a raw private key):
./warpcoin wallet import --name restored --mnemonic "word word … word"
./warpcoin wallet import --name cold --key <hex-private-key>
./warpcoin wallet use savings # switch the default wallet
Wallets live in ~/.warpcoin/wallets/. Value and contract commands accept
--wallet <name> to choose which one signs (defaulting to the store default).
See the Wallet Platform guide for the full reference.
3. Run a node (and mine)
Start a full node that mines to your wallet:
./bin/warpcoin node --mine --miner-address $(./bin/warpcoin wallet address)
This listens for peers on :8338 and serves JSON-RPC on 127.0.0.1:8339. On a
brand-new local network the difficulty starts low, so blocks are found quickly
and your balance grows.
Check status and balance from another terminal:
./bin/warpcoin status
./bin/warpcoin balance
4. Join an existing network
Point your node at one or more seeds (or a DNS seed domain):
./bin/warpcoin node --seeds seed1.example.net:8338,seed2.example.net:8338
Your node performs a handshake, discovers more peers, and syncs the chain by height.
5. Send a payment
./bin/warpcoin send --to <recipient-address> --amount 12.5 --fee 0.0001
The transaction is built, signed locally, and broadcast. A miner includes it in a block within roughly the 30-second target block time; check the recipient's balance afterward:
./bin/warpcoin balance <recipient-address>
6. Mine with extra hardware
Attach a standalone miner (CPU here; a GPU miner targets the same API) to any node:
./bin/warpcoin miner --rpc http://127.0.0.1:8339 --address <your-address> --cpus 8
See the Mining guide for the work format and GPU integration.
7. Run a block explorer
./bin/warpcoin explorer --http 0.0.0.0:8340
# Browse http://localhost:8340 · supply API at /api/supply
8. Run the market data service
./bin/warpcoin market --http 0.0.0.0:8341
# CoinGecko/CMC ticker + orderbook API; dashboard at http://localhost:8341
Prefer a GUI?
The desktop app bundles a node, a multi-wallet manager (create with a recovery phrase or import by phrase/key, switch wallets from a dropdown), and a miner with a dashboard for Windows and macOS.
Deploying servers
For seed, DNS-seed, verifier, explorer, market, and miner roles via Docker, systemd, or Kubernetes, see the deployment guide.
Common flags
| Flag | Used by | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
--datadir |
node, explorer, dnsseed | chain data directory |
--p2p |
node, explorer, dnsseed | P2P listen address (default :8338) |
--rpc |
node, explorer, dnsseed | JSON-RPC address (default 127.0.0.1:8339) |
--seeds |
node, explorer, dnsseed | comma-separated peers to dial |
--maxpeers |
node | peer cap (raise for seeds) |
--mine, --miner-address, --cpus |
node | enable mining |
--explorer |
node | also serve the explorer on this address |
--http |
explorer, market | HTTP listen address |
--domain, --dns |
dnsseed | DNS seed domain and listen address |