RPC Reference

TALER provides a comprehensive JSON-RPC interface for programmatic interaction with the blockchain, wallet, and network. This reference documents all available RPC methods.

Getting Started with TALER RPC

Enabling RPC Access

1. Configure RPC in taler.conf

Create or edit your configuration file:

Linux/macOS: ~/.taler/taler.conf Windows: %APPDATA%\TALER\taler.conf

# Enable RPC server
server=1

# RPC credentials (required)
rpcuser=yourusername
rpcpassword=yourpassword

# Optional: bind to specific IP
rpcbind=127.0.0.1

# Optional: allow connections from specific IP
rpcallowip=127.0.0.1

# Optional: custom RPC port (default: 23333)
rpcport=23333

2. Start talerd with RPC enabled

talerd -daemon

Making RPC Calls

Using taler-cli (recommended)

taler-cli [options] <command> [params]

Example:

taler-cli getblockcount
taler-cli getbalance
taler-cli sendtoaddress "TFNxSh9X75WguDWRj4FbRELK8GUP37xu4E" 10.5

Using curl (HTTP POST)

curl --user yourusername:yourpassword \
  --data-binary '{"jsonrpc":"1.0","id":"curltest","method":"getblockcount","params":[]}' \
  -H 'content-type: text/plain;' \
  http://127.0.0.1:23333/

Response format:

{
  "result": 123456,
  "error": null,
  "id": "curltest"
}

RPC Methods by Category

Blockchain Information

Query blockchain state, blocks, transactions, and chain statistics.

Mempool (Transaction Pool)

Inspect and manage transactions waiting to be confirmed.

UTXO Set

Query unspent transaction outputs and proof verification.

Advanced Blockchain Control

Advanced operations for testing and blockchain management.

Mining & Generating

Control block generation for both proof-of-work (PoW) and proof-of-stake (PoS).

Note: For production staking, use setgeneratepos true with an encrypted and unlocked wallet. See Mining & Staking Guide for details.

Raw Transactions

Create, decode, sign, and broadcast raw transactions.

Creating Transactions

Decoding Transactions

Signing Transactions

Broadcasting Transactions

PSBT Operations

Combining Transactions

Wallet Management

Manage wallet files, encryption, backups, and key pools.

Wallet Operations

Wallet Encryption & Security

Important: Always encrypt your wallet before staking. See Security Best Practices for details.

Key Pool Management

Addresses & Labels

Generate and manage wallet addresses.

Address Generation

Address Types: "legacy", "p2sh-segwit", "bech32" (default depends on wallet configuration)

Labels & Organization

Multi-Signature Addresses

Balances & Transaction History

Query wallet balances and transaction information.

Balance Information

Transaction History

Sending Transactions

Send TALER coins from the wallet.

Simple Sending

Example:

taler-cli sendtoaddress "TFNxSh9X75WguDWRj4FbRELK8GUP37xu4E" 10.5
taler-cli sendmany "" '{"TAddr1":10,"TAddr2":5.5}'

Transaction Management

UTXO Management

Control which unspent outputs are available for spending.

Example - Lock a UTXO:

taler-cli lockunspent false '[{"txid":"abc123...","vout":0}]'

Example - Unlock all UTXOs:

taler-cli lockunspent true

Importing & Exporting

Import and export keys, addresses, and wallet data.

Importing

Exporting

Security Warning: Never share exported private keys or wallet dumps. Anyone with access to private keys can spend your coins.

Signing & Verifying Messages

Sign messages with wallet addresses and verify signatures.

Example:

# Sign a message
taler-cli signmessage "TFNxSh9X75WguDWRj4FbRELK8GUP37xu4E" "Hello TALER"

# Verify the signature
taler-cli verifymessage "TFNxSh9X75WguDWRj4FbRELK8GUP37xu4E" "H1234..." "Hello TALER"

Staking (Proof-of-Stake)

Monitor and manage proof-of-stake minting/staking.

For detailed staking setup instructions, see Mining & Staking Guide.

Network Information

Query peer connections and network statistics.

Peer Management

Network Statistics

Ban Management

Example - Ban an IP:

taler-cli setban "192.168.1.100" "add" 86400

Network Control

Server Control & Information

Control the TALER daemon and query system information.

Example:

# Get help for a command
taler-cli help getblockcount

# Check server uptime
taler-cli uptime

# Stop the daemon
taler-cli stop

Deprecated Methods

The following methods are deprecated and maintained for backward compatibility only. They may be removed in future versions.

Error Handling

RPC calls return errors in the following format:

{
  "result": null,
  "error": {
    "code": -5,
    "message": "Invalid address"
  },
  "id": "curltest"
}

Common Error Codes

RPC Authentication

TALER RPC uses HTTP Basic Authentication. Configure credentials in taler.conf:

rpcuser=yourusername
rpcpassword=yourpassword

Security Best Practices:

• Use a strong, randomly generated password
• Never expose RPC to the public internet
• Use rpcallowip to restrict access to specific IPs
• Consider using SSH tunneling for remote access
• Use HTTPS/TLS if exposing RPC remotely (requires reverse proxy)

Additional Resources

• Node Setup Guide: Running a TALER Node
• Command Line Reference: talerd & taler-cli
• Security Best Practices: Wallet Security
• Staking Guide: Mining & Staking
• Docker Deployment: Docker Setup

For questions or support, visit the TALER Community on Telegram.