0

I've got some Go code that successfully generates private keys and vanity addresses as described by the wiki.

So I have all the parameters around the private key but I'm not sure what to do with that info to make it usable by the bitcoin core application.

Should I build a wallet.dat file to point the wallet software at? What's the format for that file? Is there an alternative format so I can import my new key alongside my old keys instead of replacing the existing file so that the software has more control of what the structure of the wallet.dat is?

I could layout the key in the same format that paper wallet QR codes use but I'm not sure what I'd do with that string for a desktop computer to accept it.

What format should I put the raw private key into and where should I put it for wallet software to use it?

Corey Ogburn
  • 154
  • 1
  • 1
  • 7
  • That sounds perfect! The second answer calls it [Wallet Import Format or WIF](https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Wallet_import_format) and that's 100% what I was after! I guess that makes this question a duplicate. EDIT: they deleted their comment, but not after linking to [this question](https://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/5941/how-do-i-import-a-private-key-into-bitcoin-qt). – Corey Ogburn Aug 18 '17 at 20:07
  • My bad didnt mean to post as comment. Reposted as an answer – Christoph Winter Aug 18 '17 at 20:09

1 Answers1

1

In Core, go to "Help" and "Debug Window". Go to the console and type importprivkey [key]. This might also interest you: How do I import a private key into Bitcoin-Qt?

Christoph Winter
  • 137
  • 4
  • 1
    It might also be worth mentioning [WIF](https://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/5941/how-do-i-import-a-private-key-into-bitcoin-qt) in the answer as for what format that key needs to be in. – Corey Ogburn Aug 18 '17 at 20:09