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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://cantonfoundation-issue-365-details-history.mintlify.app/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

The Canton Console is an interactive Scala REPL that connects to Canton nodes for administration, debugging, and automation. It provides direct access to participant, sequencer, and mediator operations through a typed API. For full operational documentation, see the Global Synchronizer section, which covers node setup and management in detail. This page provides a brief orientation to the Console as a development and operations tool.

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Overview

The Console is bundled with the Canton distribution. When you start a Canton process, the Console is available as an interactive shell. You can also connect a remote Console to a running node.
For operational guidance — node setup, party management, topology administration, debugging workflows — see the Canton Console group under Global Synchronizer. This page focuses on the Console as a CLI development tool.
What you can do with the Console:
  • Party management — Create parties, list hosted parties, manage party-to-participant mappings
  • Package management — Upload DAR files, inspect deployed packages, check package dependencies
  • Synchronizer connections — Connect participants to synchronizers, list connections, manage reconnection
  • Topology management — View and modify the topology state (key rotations, namespace delegations, party allocations)
  • Health monitoring — Check node status, view active connections, inspect processing queues
  • Debugging — Inspect transaction trees, check conflict states, trace command processing

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Quick Examples

// List all parties hosted on this participant
participant.parties.list()

// Upload a DAR package
participant.participant1.dars.upload("dars/CantonExamples.dar")

// Check participant health
participant.health.status

// List connected synchronizers
participant.synchronizers.list_connected()

// Allocate a new party
participant.parties.enable("Alice")

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Node References

The Console organizes operations by node type. Each node type exposes a different set of commands: Validator (participant) — The most commonly used reference. The console object is named participant. Handles party management, package uploads, ledger operations, and synchronizer connections. 
participant.parties.list()
participant.dars.upload(darPath)
participant.synchronizers.connect_local(synchronizer)
Sequencer node — Manages message ordering for a synchronizer. 
sequencer.health.status
Mediator node — Handles transaction confirmation for a synchronizer. 
mediator.health.status

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Running the Console

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Embedded Console

When you start Canton with a configuration file, the Console starts automatically: 
canton --config my-config.conf
The Console prompt appears after the node finishes initializing. Node references (participant, sequencer, mediator) are pre-bound based on your configuration.

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Remote Console

You can connect a Console to a node running elsewhere: 
canton remote-console --host localhost --port 2902
This is useful for managing nodes in staging or production environments without SSH access to the node machine.

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Scripting

The Console supports loading Scala scripts for repeatable operations: 
// In the Console
load("/path/to/my-script.sc")
Scripts have access to the same node references and APIs as the interactive Console. Common uses include:
  • Automated party setup for test environments
  • Topology configuration for multi-node deployments
  • Health check routines that run periodically
  • Data export scripts for auditing

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Tab Completion

The Console provides tab completion for discovering available commands. Type a node reference followed by a period, then press Tab: 
participant.<TAB>
  dars    synchronizers    health    id    keys    parties    topology    ...
This is the fastest way to explore the API without referring to documentation.