Installation

Install Erst CLI and get ready to debug Stellar smart contracts

There are multiple ways to install Erst depending on your environment and preferences.

Prerequisites

Before installing Erst, ensure you have:

• Go 1.24.0 or higher
• Rust 1.70 or higher (for building from source)
• Git (for cloning the repository)

For Rust installation, visit rustup.rs. For Go, visit go.dev/doc/install.

Installation methods

Go install

The simplest way to install Erst if you have Go installed:

go install github.com/dotandev/hintents/cmd/erst@latest

This will install the erst binary to your $GOPATH/bin directory. Make sure this directory is in your PATH.

Verify the installation:

erst version

Build from source

For the latest development version or to contribute to Erst:

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/dotandev/hintents.git
   cd hintents
   
2. Install Go dependencies

   go mod download
   
3. Build the Rust simulator

   cd simulator
   cargo build --release
   cd ..
   

   The Rust simulator (erst-sim) is a critical component that integrates with soroban-env-host to replay transactions.

4. Build the CLI

   make build
   

   This creates the erst binary in the bin/ directory.

   For an optimized release build:

   make build-release
   
5. Add to PATH (optional)

   export PATH="$PATH:$(pwd)/bin"
   

   Add this line to your ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc to make it permanent.

Development setup

If you plan to contribute to Erst or need a full development environment:

1. Clone and navigate

   git clone https://github.com/dotandev/hintents.git
   cd hintents
   
2. Install dependencies

   go mod download
   cd simulator && cargo fetch && cd ..
   
3. Build components

   cd simulator
   cargo build --release
   cd ..
   make build
   
4. Run tests

   Verify your setup by running the test suites:

   # Go tests
   go test ./...
   
   # Rust tests
   cargo test --release -p erst-sim
   
5. Set up pre-commit hooks (optional)

   pip install pre-commit
   pre-commit install
   

   This ensures code quality checks run before each commit.

Verify installation

After installation, verify that Erst is working correctly:

Check version

erst version

The erst doctor command checks your environment and reports any configuration issues.

Configuration

Cache directory

Erst caches transaction data and simulation results in ~/.erst/cache by default. You can change this location:

export ERST_CACHE_DIR=/path/to/custom/cache

RPC endpoints

You can configure custom RPC endpoints for different networks:

export ERST_RPC_MAINNET=https://your-mainnet-rpc.com
export ERST_RPC_TESTNET=https://your-testnet-rpc.com

Updating Erst

Go install

Update to the latest version:

go install github.com/dotandev/hintents/cmd/erst@latest

From source

Pull the latest changes and rebuild:

cd hintents
git pull origin main
make clean
cd simulator && cargo build --release && cd ..
make build

Auto-update

Erst includes an auto-update checker that notifies you when new versions are available:

erst upgrade

The upgrade command checks for updates and displays installation instructions.

Troubleshooting

Command not found

If you get a “command not found” error:

1. Ensure $GOPATH/bin is in your PATH:

   echo $PATH | grep -q "$GOPATH/bin" || echo 'export PATH="$PATH:$GOPATH/bin"' >> ~/.bashrc
   source ~/.bashrc
   

2. Verify the binary location:

   which erst
   

Rust simulator errors

If you encounter errors related to the Rust simulator:

1. Ensure you built the simulator:

   cd simulator && cargo build --release
   

2. Check Rust version:

   rustc --version  # Should be 1.70+
   

Permission denied

If you get permission errors:

chmod +x $(which erst)

Cache issues

If you experience cache-related problems:

erst cache clear --force

This will delete all cached transaction data. You’ll need to re-fetch transactions from the network.

Next steps

Now that Erst is installed, learn how to debug your first transaction:

Quick start guide

Debug a failed transaction in minutes