Generate Payment and Stake Keys

Dingo - Generate Payment and Stake Keys

✅ This guide assumes your files are in the $HOME/dingo folder. Adjust paths below if necessary.

Step 1 - Obtain the protocol parameters

cd ~/dingo
cardano-cli conway query protocol-parameters \
--testnet-magic 2 \
--out-file params.json

---

Step 2 - Generate a new payment key pair

Generate a new payment key pair (payment.skey and payment.vkey)

⚠️ On an air-gapped machine

cd ~/dingo
cardano-cli conway address key-gen \
--verification-key-file payment.vkey \
--signing-key-file payment.skey

---

Step 3 - Generate a new stake address key pair

Generate a new stake address key pair (stake.skey and stake.vkey)

⚠️ On an air-gapped machine

cardano-cli conway stake-address key-gen \
--verification-key-file stake.vkey \
--signing-key-file stake.skey

---

Step 4 - Generate your stake address

Generate a stake address from the stake address verification key and store it in stake.addr

⚠️ On an air-gapped machine

cardano-cli conway stake-address build \
--stake-verification-key-file stake.vkey \
--out-file stake.addr \
--testnet-magic 2

---

Step 5 - Generate payment address

Generate a payment address for the payment key (payment.vkey) and stake key (stake.vkey) and store it in payment.addr

cardano-cli conway address build \
--payment-verification-key-file payment.vkey \
--stake-verification-key-file stake.vkey \
--out-file payment.addr \
--testnet-magic 2

Display your payment address by running:

cat payment.addr

✅ Copy only payment.addr to your hot environment. Keep payment.skey on your air-gapped machine.

---

Step 6 - Fund your payment address

On testnets you can use the Cardano faucet to get test ADA. Select the Preview testnet and paste your payment.addr.

After funding your account, check your payment address balance.

cardano-cli conway query utxo \
--address $(cat payment.addr) \
--testnet-magic 2