Docs
Powered by

Storage

Storage is where a project's source bytes live. The chain commits to those bytes by hash, and a backend holds them. Storage is stateless in the CLI: there is no config file, so you select a backend per command with a flag, or set it in the environment.

Backends

Backend What it is Notes
fs local disk (the default) no public URL; for local development
cloud S3, R2, or a CDN needs a public read base (--public-base or ABX_S3_PUBLIC_BASE)
ipfs IPFS Pinata, or a local Kubo node
arweave Arweave permanent; uses Turbo by default

Select a backend with --backend, or set ABX_STORAGE_BACKEND. The order is the flag, then the environment, then the fs default. Secrets are read from the environment only, for example ABX_S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID and ABX_S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY for cloud, or PINATA_JWT for IPFS.

Commands

  • abx storage show: the resolved backend, and where each setting came from.
  • abx storage upload <path>: upload one file and print its locator, which is the URI that abx attach takes.
  • abx storage balance: Arweave upload credits and the funded address.
  • abx storage topup --usd <n>: buy Arweave upload credits.
  • abx storage backup-key --out <path>: copy the managed storage key to a path you choose.

Arweave and Turbo

Arweave uploads go through Turbo by default. Uploads under 100 KB are free and need no setup. Larger uploads use prepaid credits. On the first upload, a managed Arweave key is created at .abx-self-host/arweave-key.json; it signs uploads and holds the credits, and it is reused across projects. Read paths such as serve and verify never create a key.

Credits attach to an identity. --storage-signer selects it: arweave, the default, uses the managed key; eth uses your EVM signing key as the Turbo identity, so credits sit on that address. With eth and --sign, a browser wallet signs each upload with no gas.

Check credits with abx storage balance before concluding that an upload needs funding, since both the managed key and the ETH wallet can hold credits. Back up the managed key with abx storage backup-key before topping up. A gateway or provider is swappable, because the on-chain hash is the anchor.