Configure Nodes with seictl

Install and use the seictl CLI to patch Sei node configuration and genesis files safely with merge-patch workflows.

seictl is a purpose-built CLI that helps Sei node patch configuration TOML files (app.toml, client.toml, config.toml) and JSON genesis files.

You can find the seictl GitHub repository here

Features

• Configuration Management: Patch Sei daemon configuration files (app.toml, client.toml, config.toml)
• Genesis Management: Apply merge patches to genesis JSON files
• Universal Patching: Apply merge patches to any TOML or JSON file
• Smart Target Detection: Automatically detects which configuration file to modify based on patch content
• Flexible Output: Write to stdout, a specific file, or modify files in-place
• Atomic Writes: Safe file modifications using atomic write operations
• Merge Patch Algorithm: Intelligently merges patches with existing configurations

Installation

Pre-built Binaries (Recommended)

Pre-built binaries are available for Linux, macOS, and Windows. Download the latest release from the releases page.

Quick Install

Linux (x86_64)

curl -LO https://github.com/sei-protocol/seictl/releases/latest/download/seictl_Linux_x86_64.tar.gz
tar -xzf seictl_Linux_x86_64.tar.gz
sudo mv seictl /usr/local/bin/

Linux (ARM64)

curl -LO https://github.com/sei-protocol/seictl/releases/latest/download/seictl_Linux_arm64.tar.gz
tar -xzf seictl_Linux_arm64.tar.gz
sudo mv seictl /usr/local/bin/

Linux (ARMv7)

curl -LO https://github.com/sei-protocol/seictl/releases/latest/download/seictl_Linux_armv7.tar.gz
tar -xzf seictl_Linux_armv7.tar.gz
sudo mv seictl /usr/local/bin/

macOS (Apple Silicon)

curl -LO https://github.com/sei-protocol/seictl/releases/latest/download/seictl_Darwin_arm64.tar.gz
tar -xzf seictl_Darwin_arm64.tar.gz
sudo mv seictl /usr/local/bin/

macOS (Intel)

curl -LO https://github.com/sei-protocol/seictl/releases/latest/download/seictl_Darwin_x86_64.tar.gz

tar -xzf seictl_Darwin_x86_64.tar.gz
sudo mv seictl /usr/local/bin/

Windows (x86_64)

# Download from: https://github.com/sei-protocol/seictl/releases/latest/download/seictl_Windows_x86_64.zip
# Extract and add to PATH

Verify Installation

seictl --version

Verify Download (Optional)

All releases include a checksums.txt file for verification, e.g.:

# Download checksums
curl -LO https://github.com/sei-protocol/seictl/releases/latest/download/checksums.txt

# Verify (Linux/macOS)
sha256sum -c checksums.txt 2>&1 | grep seictl_Linux_x86_64.tar.gz

Build from Source

If you prefer to build from source or need a specific configuration:

Prerequisites

• Go 1.24.5 or higher

Build

git clone https://github.com/sei-protocol/seictl.git
cd seictl
go build -o seictl

Install via Go

go install github.com/sei-protocol/seictl@latest

Usage

seictl [global options] command [command options] [arguments...]

Global Options

• --home <path>: Sei home directory (default: ~/.sei, can be set via SEI_HOME environment variable)

Commands

Patch Command

patch

Apply a merge-patch to any TOML or JSON file. This is a universal patching command that works with any file format, not just Sei-specific configurations.

seictl patch --target <file-path> [patch-file]

Options:

• --target <path>: Path to the TOML or JSON file to patch (required)
• -o, --output <path>: Write output to specified file
• -i, --in-place-rewrite: Modify the target file in-place

Examples:

# Patch any TOML file
seictl patch --target /path/to/config.toml patch.toml

# Patch any JSON file from stdin
echo '{"new_key": "value"}' | seictl patch --target /path/to/data.json

# Patch and save to a new file
seictl patch --target myconfig.toml patch.toml -o modified.toml

# Patch and modify in-place
seictl patch --target settings.json patch.json -i

Note: The file extension (.toml or .json) is used to determine the format automatically.

Genesis Commands

genesis patch

Apply a merge-patch to the Sei genesis JSON file.

seictl genesis patch [patch-file]

Options:

• -o, --output <path>: Write output to specified file
• -i, --in-place-rewrite: Modify the genesis file in-place

Examples:

# Patch from file and output to stdout
seictl genesis patch patch.json

# Patch from stdin
echo '{"chain_id": "sei-testnet"}' | seictl genesis patch

# Patch and save to a new file
seictl genesis patch patch.json -o genesis-modified.json

# Patch and modify the original file in-place
seictl genesis patch patch.json -i

Config Commands

config patch

Apply a merge-patch to a Sei configuration TOML file.

seictl config [--target <app|client|config>] patch [patch-file]

Options:

• --target <type>: Specify which configuration file to patch (app, client, or config)
  • If not specified, the target is automatically detected based on the patch content
• -o, --output <path>: Write output to specified file
• -i, --in-place-rewrite: Modify the configuration file in-place

Examples:

# Patch with auto-detection
seictl config patch patch.toml

# Explicitly specify the target config
seictl config --target app patch patch.toml

# Patch from stdin and output to stdout
echo 'minimum-gas-prices = "0.01usei"' | seictl config patch

# Patch and modify in-place
seictl config --target app patch patch.toml -i

# Patch and save to specific location
seictl config patch patch.toml -o /path/to/output.toml

Configuration Targets

The config command can work with three different configuration files:

app.toml

Application-level configuration including:

• Gas prices and block settings
• State management (state-sync, state-commit, state-store)
• EVM configuration
• Telemetry and monitoring
• API, gRPC, and Rosetta endpoints
• IAVL and WASM settings

client.toml

Client-level configuration including:

• Chain ID
• Keyring backend
• Output format
• Node endpoint
• Broadcast mode

config.toml

Node-level configuration including:

• Proxy app and database settings
• Logging configuration
• RPC and P2P settings
• Mempool and consensus parameters
• State sync and block sync
• Transaction indexing

Merge Patch Behavior

The merge patch algorithm works as follows:

1. Nested merging: Patches are merged recursively into nested structures
2. Null deletion: Setting a value to null removes that key from the configuration
3. Addition: New keys in the patch are added to the configuration
4. Replacement: Existing scalar values are replaced with patch values

Example:

Original:

[api]
enable = true
address = "tcp://0.0.0.0:1317"

Patch:

[api]
address = "tcp://0.0.0.0:1318"
swagger = true

Result:

[api]
enable = true
address = "tcp://0.0.0.0:1318"
swagger = true

Examples

Update Minimum Gas Prices

echo 'minimum-gas-prices = "0.02usei"' | seictl config patch -i

Enable API Endpoint

cat > patch.toml << EOF
[api]
enable = true
address = "tcp://0.0.0.0:1317"
EOF

seictl config --target app patch patch.toml -i

Modify Genesis Chain ID

echo '{"chain_id": "sei-mainnet-1"}' | seictl genesis patch -i

Update Multiple Configuration Sections

cat > patch.toml << EOF
minimum-gas-prices = "0.01usei"

[telemetry]
enabled = true
prometheus-retention-time = 60

[api]
enable = true
swagger = true
EOF

seictl config patch patch.toml -i

Patch a Custom TOML Configuration

# Patch any TOML file outside the Sei directory structure
cat > custom-patch.toml << EOF
[database]
host = "localhost"
port = 5432
EOF

seictl patch --target /etc/myapp/config.toml custom-patch.toml -i

Patch a Custom JSON Data File

# Modify any JSON file
echo '{"version": "2.0", "debug": true}' | seictl patch --target /path/to/settings.json -i

Using Custom Sei Home Directory

# Via environment variable
export SEI_HOME=/custom/path/.sei
seictl config patch patch.toml

# Via flag
seictl --home /custom/path/.sei config patch patch.toml

Command Comparison

When to Use Each Command

• patch: Use for patching any arbitrary TOML or JSON file on your system. Requires explicit --target path.
• genesis patch: Use specifically for Sei genesis files. Automatically uses $HOME/.sei/config/genesis.json.
• config patch: Use specifically for Sei configuration files with automatic target detection. Automatically uses files in $HOME/.sei/config/.

File Locations

By default, seictl looks for configuration files in the following locations:

• Genesis: $HOME/.sei/config/genesis.json
• App config: $HOME/.sei/config/app.toml
• Client config: $HOME/.sei/config/client.toml
• Node config: $HOME/.sei/config/config.toml

Where $HOME is the value of the --home flag or the SEI_HOME environment variable.

Safety Features

• Atomic Writes: All file modifications use atomic write operations (write to temp file, then rename)
• Permission Preservation: In-place modifications preserve original file permissions
• Format Validation: Validates file extensions before processing (must be .toml or .json)
• Target Validation: Prevents accidental modification of wrong configuration files
• Auto-detection Safety: Refuses to proceed if patch could apply to multiple targets
• Early Validation: Checks file format and existence before reading patch data