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Quickstart

In this guide, you will

  1. Set up the Aztec sandbox (local development environment) locally
  2. Install the Aztec development kit
  3. Use Aztec.js to deploy an example contract that comes with the sandbox
  4. Use Aztec.js to interact with the contract you just deployed

... in less than 10 minutes.

Prerequisites​

  • Node.js >= v18 (recommend installing with nvm)

Install Docker​

Aztec tooling requires the Docker daemon to be running, and this is easily achieved via Docker Desktop. See this page of the Docker docs for instructions on how to install Docker Desktop for your operating system. Note: if installing via Docker Desktop, you do NOT need to keep the application open at all times (just Docker daemon).

Installing and running the Docker daemon can also be achieved by installing Docker Engine, see these instructions.

However installed, ensure Docker daemon is running. See start Docker daemon.

Note on Linux​

If you are running Linux, you will need to set the context (because Docker Desktop runs in a VM by default). See this page for more information. You can do this by running:

docker context use default

Install the Sandbox​

You can run the Sandbox using Docker.

To install the latest Sandbox version, run:

bash -i <(curl -s install.aztec.network)

If Docker has been installed on your linux server but you encounter the error "Docker is not running. Please start Docker and try again". If you're encountering this issue, it's likely because Docker is running with root user privileges. In such cases, consider managing Docker as a non-root user to resolve the problem.

This will install the following:

  • aztec - launches various infrastructure subsystems (sequencer, prover, pxe, etc).
  • aztec-nargo - aztec's build of nargo, the noir compiler toolchain.
  • aztec-sandbox - a wrapper around docker-compose that launches services needed for sandbox testing.
  • aztec-up - a tool to upgrade the aztec toolchain to the latest, or specific versions.
  • aztec-builder - A useful tool for projects to generate ABIs and update their dependencies.

Once these have been installed, to start the sandbox, run:

aztec-sandbox

This will attempt to run the Sandbox on localhost:8080, so you will have to make sure nothing else is running on that port or change the port defined in ./.aztec/docker-compose.yml. Running the installation again will overwrite any changes made to the docker-compose.yml.

Congratulations, you have just installed and run the Aztec Sandbox!

     /\        | |
    /  \    ___| |_ ___  ___
   / /\ \  |_  / __/ _ \/ __|
  / ____ \  / /| ||  __/ (__
 /_/___ \_\/___|\__\___|\___|

In the terminal, you will see some logs:

  1. Sandbox version
  2. Contract addresses of rollup contracts
  3. PXE (private execution environment) setup logs
  4. Initial accounts that are shipped with the sandbox and can be used in tests

What's next?​

To deploy a smart contract to your sandbox and interact with it using Aztec.js, go to the next page.

To skip this and write your first smart contract, go to the Aztec.nr getting started page.