docs(readme): clarify key setup and remove obsolete env var advice - #183
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Closes #148. Users repeatedly try to configure the CLI with NSEC_PRIVKEY/MOSTROPUBKEY and hit 'Failed to get context keys: Invalid secret key'. Those variables are not read: keys are derived from a mnemonic the CLI generates on first run (NIP-06), so there is no key-generation step at all. - Add a 'You do not bring your own nsec' section listing the obsolete variable names and what replaced them. - Document that .env files are not auto-loaded (no dotenv support) and give the 'set -a; source .env; set +a' recipe. - Document the previously undocumented TRANSPORT / --transport option. - Add FAQ entries for the 'Invalid secret key' error, 'how do I generate my keys', and ignored .env files.
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Estimated code review effort: 1 (Trivial) | ~5 minutes Mergeability Score: 🟡 Moderate · up to The README currently gives an inaccurate explanation and fix for the invalid-key error and uses ambiguous wording about the required RELAYS setting, which could misdirect users during setup. The impact is limited to documentation, but these issues should be corrected before merging. Possibly related PRs
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| | Variable people try | Reality | | ||
| |---|---| | ||
| | `NSEC_PRIVKEY` | Obsolete. Removed when the CLI moved to mnemonic-derived keys (NIP-06). | |
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For administrators upgrading from older releases, NSEC_PRIVKEY was renamed to ADMIN_NSEC rather than removed by the mnemonic migration; the current init_context still parses that same separately supplied admin secret under its new name. Calling it merely obsolete can lead administrators to discard the credential instead of renaming the environment variable, leaving all admin commands unusable.
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| ## Troubleshooting / FAQ | ||
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| **`MOSTRO_PUBKEY not set`** — Export it or pass `-m <npub>`. Same for `RELAYS`. | ||
| **`Failed to get context keys: Invalid secret key`** — You are setting `NSEC_PRIVKEY` (or another obsolete key variable). The CLI no longer accepts a user-supplied `nsec`: it derives its keys from a mnemonic it generates itself. `unset NSEC_PRIVKEY` and just set `MOSTRO_PUBKEY` and `RELAYS`. See [You do not bring your own `nsec`](#you-do-not-bring-your-own-nsec). |
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For users seeing this exact error, the advice cannot resolve it: Failed to get context keys was emitted by older releases where NSEC_PRIVKEY was mandatory for every invocation, so unsetting it only changes the failure to NSEC_PRIVKEY not set. Current releases no longer emit this message at all; the troubleshooting step needs to tell affected users to upgrade first, and to rename the variable to ADMIN_NSEC if they use admin commands.
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Actionable comments posted: 2
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Inline comments:
In `@README.md`:
- Line 560: Clarify the README sentence after the MOSTRO_PUBKEY guidance so it
explicitly states that RELAYS is a valid required variable and only its
correctly spelled form is read; remove the ambiguous “Same for RELAYS” phrasing
while preserving the underscore warning for MOSTRO_PUBKEY.
- Line 556: Update the invalid-key FAQ entry to reflect the actual CLI behavior:
admin commands parse ADMIN_NSEC and report parse failures, while normal commands
derive user keys from their generated mnemonic. Remove the obsolete NSEC_PRIVKEY
diagnosis and the unset NSEC_PRIVKEY remediation, directing users to the
appropriate ADMIN_NSEC or normal-command configuration instead.
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The 'Failed to get context keys' message no longer exists in the code (removed in e77a298). Today only admin commands parse a user-supplied key, and they report 'Failed to parse ADMIN_NSEC'; normal commands derive keys from the generated mnemonic. Rewrite the FAQ entry accordingly and drop the unset NSEC_PRIVKEY remediation. Also give RELAYS its own entry instead of the ambiguous 'Same for RELAYS' trailing an underscore warning about MOSTRO_PUBKEY.
1 participant
Closes #148.
Problem
Users following the README (or older guides) try to configure the CLI with
NSEC_PRIVKEY/MOSTROPUBKEYand get:Neither variable is read by the CLI. Keys are derived from a BIP39 mnemonic the CLI generates itself on first run (NIP-06), so there is no key-generation step at all — but the README never says this explicitly, and it never says that the
.envworkaround suggested in the issue thread doesn't work either (there is no dotenv dependency inCargo.toml, so a.envnext to the binary is simply ignored).Changes (README only)
nsec" section under How identities and keys work, with a table of the variable names people try (NSEC_PRIVKEY,MOSTROPUBKEY,PRIVKEY,NSEC) and what each one actually is. Answers @xissburg's request for key-generation docs: the answer is that no key generation is needed, so noranastep either..envfiles" subsection in Configuration: states plainly that.envis not auto-loaded, and gives theset -a; source .env; set +arecipe for people who want to keep a file (updates @arkanoider's advice for current versions).TRANSPORT/-t, --transport, which existed insrc/cli.rsbut was missing from both env-var tables and the global-flags list.Invalid secret keyerror, "how do I generate my keys?", and "my.envis ignored". Also noted theMOSTRO_PUBKEYunderscore in the existing entry.Test plan
src/cli.rs(get_env_var,resolve_mostro_pubkey,resolve_relays,init_context) and confirmed no dotenv dependency inCargo.toml.Summary by CodeRabbit
TRANSPORTconfiguration, automatic detection, and supported protocols..envfiles.