Geth

geth is the the command line interface for running a full ethereum node implemented in Go. It is the main deliverable of the Frontier Release

Capabilities

By installing and running geth, you can take part in the ethereum frontier live network and

mine real ether
transfer funds between addresses
create contracts and send transactions
explore block history
and much much more

Install

Supported Platforms are Linux, Mac Os and Windows.

We support two types of installation: binary or scripted install for users. See Install instructions for binary and scripted installs.

Developers and community enthusiast are advised to read the Developers' Guide, which contains detailed instructions for manual build from source (on any platform) as well as detailed tips on testing, monitoring, contributing, debugging and submitting pull requests on github.

Interfaces

Javascript Console: geth can be launched with an interactive console, that provides a javascript runtime environment exposing a javascript API to interact with your node. Javascript Console API includes the web3 javascript Ðapp API as well as an additional admin API.
JSON-RPC server: geth can be launched with a json-rpc server that exposes the JSON-RPC API
Command line options documents command line parameters as well as subcommands.

Basic Use Case Documentation

Note buying and selling ether through exchanges is not discussed here.

License

The Ethereum Core Protocol licensed under the GNU Lesser General Public License. All frontend client software (under cmd) is licensed under the GNU General Public License.

Troubleshooting

If something went wrong first read our Troubleshooting checklist as well as the FAQ. If you still didn't find your answer please open an issue on GitHub or contact our help desk on helpdesk@ethereum.org.

Reporting

Security issues are best sent to security@ethereum.org or shared in PM with devs on one of the channels (see Community and Suppport).

Non-sensitive bug reports are welcome on github. Please always state the version (on master) or commit of your build (if on develop), give as much detail as possible about the situation and the anomaly that occurred. Provide logs or stacktrace if you can.