Installation Guides¶
In this section, you will learn how to install Particl Marketplace, additional software, and how to backup your data.
Table of Contents
Particl Marketplace¶
To get started with Particl Marketplace, you need to download and install the Particl Desktop client software. Its installation is very easy and won’t take you more than a few minutes!
Download¶
Choose the correct version to download.
Windows file version
Mostly you will be fine by downloading the particl-desktop-X.X.X-win.exe
installer file. It supports any version of Windows.
Download sources
Particl Homepage: https://particl.io/downloads/
Particl Github: https://github.com/particl/particl-desktop/releases/latest
Attention
NEVER download Particl clients from 3rd party websites! Bad actors are constantly trying to distribute malware-infected versions of popular cryptocurrency wallets to steal your funds! So always download from official sources only.
MacOS file version
Mostly you will be fine by downloading the particl-desktop-X.X.X-mac.dmg
installer image. It supports any version of MacOS, including 10.15 (Catalina) or greater.
Download sources
Particl Homepage: https://particl.io/downloads/
Particl Github: https://github.com/particl/particl-desktop/releases/latest
Attention
NEVER download Particl clients from 3rd party websites! Bad actors are constantly trying to distribute malware-infected versions of popular cryptocurrency wallets to steal your funds! So always download from official sources only.
Linux file version
Depending on your Linux distribution, you can choose between different packages, including Debian-based .deb
, .rpm
packages, a distribution independent .AppImage
version.
Once you know which Linux distribution you are running, it’s straightforward to find out which package manager you have and which package will suit you. The distribution independent .AppImage
file will make your installation experience a blast.
Download sources
Particl Homepage: https://particl.io/downloads/
Particl Github: https://github.com/particl/particl-desktop/releases/latest
Attention
NEVER download Particl clients from 3rd party websites! Bad actors are constantly trying to distribute malware-infected versions of popular cryptocurrency wallets to steal your funds! So always download from official sources only.
Installation process¶
Windows installation
Verify the checksum of the file.
Open the downloaded particl-desktop-X.X.X-win.exe installer file.
Follow the installation instructions
An executable file will be added to your desktop and into the application launcher menu. Use this to start Particl Desktop.
Assign allow-rules to your computer`s firewall and antivirus software. On a standard Windows installation, Microsoft Defender pops up.
Ignoring step 5 might cause a degraded blockchain sync experience and everything takes longer than expected or might cause communications problems. If you are unsure how to apply rules to your firewall and anti-virus software, please review the vendor’s documentation of your installed programs.
MacOS installation
Verify the checksum of the file.
Open the downloaded particl-desktop-X.X.X-mac.dmg installer image by pressing CONTROL + MOUSE-RIGHT ◳ and click Open from the appearing shortcut menu. Do not just double-click the icon.
Drag and drop the Particl Desktop.app file into the Applications folder.
Open the Applications folder and locate the Particl Desktop.app file.
Press CONTROL + MOUSE-RIGHT ◳ on the Particl Desktop.app file and click Open.
On the first launch, your computer’s firewall must get a rule to allow Particl Desktop to communicate with the blockchain.
From now on you will be able to start Particl Desktop from the Launchpad or Spotlight (e.g., COMMAND ⌘ + SPACE and type “Particl” > hit ENTER ↵) search.
Linux installation
Verify the checksum of the file.
Navigate to where you’ve downloaded your installer file in the terminal.
Depending on your package manager, this command will vary.
Debian-based installation
sudo apt install particl-desktop-x.x.x-linux.deb
RPM-based installation
sudo dnf -i particl-desktop-x.x.x-linux.rpm
AppImage
chmod a+x particl-desktop-x.x.x-linux.AppImage ./particl-desktop-x.x.x-linux.AppImage
On the first launch, your computer’s firewall must get a rule to allow Particl Desktop to communicate with the blockchain.
An application launcher will be added your applications menu when using .deb
or .rpm
installations. Click it to start the Particl Desktop client.
Tip
If you want to launch it from the terminal, quotation marks may be required because there is a space in the name (Particl Desktop).
user@linux:~> which "Particl Desktop"
/usr/bin/Particl Desktop
user@linux:~> "/usr/bin/Particl Desktop"
(Particl Desktop:16887)
Congratulations! You have installed Particl Marketplace.
Hint
Loading and Syncing Times
Because the Particl Marketplace’s content is hosted on distributed Networks for payments and exchange, the marketplace may take a few minutes to sync. It may take even a few more minutes to load all marketplace listings fully. This is to be normally expected and will get much faster as the Particl team improves the marketplace.
Checksum verification¶
Obtain the checksum code from the official download sources for the downloaded file. Each file has its own checksum.
Being your own bank with blockchain-related products shifts some responsibilities to you. One of them is to take security seriously. Please make sure that the file you’ve downloaded isn’t compromised in any way by verifying its checksum.
Checksum verification command with terminal
Open Windows Explorer
Press SHIFT ⇧ + MOUSE-RIGHT ◳ on the Download folder and choose Open command window here or Open power shell here.
Type the following command into the terminal while changing
filename
for the real and complete filename of the downloaded file and hit ENTER ↵.CertUtil -hashfile filename SHA256
Checksum verification command with terminal
Tip
Prerequisite: Head into System Preferences and select Keyboard > Shortcuts > Services. Find New Terminal at Folder in the settings and enable the checkbox.
Open Finder
Press MOUSE-RIGHT ◳ on the Download folder of the file and you’re shown the services > open terminal command to open the terminal at this location.
Type the following command into the terminal while changing
filename
for the real filename of the downloaded file.shasum -a 256 filename
Checksum verification command with terminal
Open a terminal in the Download-folder of the file and type the following command by changing
filename
for the real filename of the downloaded file.sha256sum filename
Once that is done, compare the checksum output you’ve received in the step above with the checksum stated in the official download sources. The screenshot below shows you an example of this checksum highlighted from the GitHub release notes Verification section.
Troubleshooting checksum mismatch
If the output does not match, try to download the file again. Verify that you did not unzip or rename the file. In some cases, it might be possible that antivirus software may alter files, be sure to have a solution on your own in that case.
Attention
If all attempts fail to have a matching number, do not install Particl Desktop unless you know what you are doing and try to reach out to Particl Support for assistance.
Starting Particl Desktop¶
You have two options: startup with the launcher icon (recommended) or a terminal command.
Startup with Launcher¶
Launching Particl Desktop with Launcher
Open your Start Menu by pressing WIN ⊞ Key
Start typing
Particl
Click on the Particl Desktop launcher icon.
Launching Particl Desktop with Launcher
Open Spotlight (e.g., COMMAND ⌘ + SPACE)
Type
Particl
Click on the Particl Desktop launcher icon.
Launching Particl Desktop with Launcher
Open your applications menu
Click on Particl Desktop launcher icon
Startup from Terminal¶
Sometimes it is handy to start Particl Marketplace from the terminal, aka command line. It gives you plenty of output and information about what is happening in the background.
Launching Particl Desktop from terminal
Open Windows Explorer
Press SHIFT ⇧ + MOUSE-RIGHT ◳ on the Installation folder (e.g.,
C:/Program Files/Particl
) and choose Open command window here or Open power shell here.Type the following command into the terminal and hit ENTER ↵.
“Particl Desktop.exe”
Launching Particl Desktop from terminal
Open Terminal (e.g., COMMAND ⌘ + SPACE and type “terminal” > hit ENTER ↵)
Type in this command:
/Applications/Particl\ Desktop.app/Contents/MacOS/Particl\ Desktop
Launching Particl Desktop from terminal
Open a terminal in the folder where you’ve installed Particl Desktop and type the following command.
./Particl\ Desktop
Backup Account and Data¶
File locations¶
After a successful installation of Particl Desktop, the main application has been installed into the standard location of your operating system. Once the Particl Desktop is run the first time, it will create user-specific data within your user account. These include settings, log files, wallets, and the blockchain data itself. From time to time, it is a reasonable measure to backup these data to an encrypted external resource.
## Windows paths
"%UserProfile%\AppData\Roaming\Particl"
"%userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\particl-bot"
"%userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\particl-market"
"%userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\Particl Desktop"
## MacOS paths
"~/Library/Application Support/Particl"
"~/Library/Application Support/particl-bot"
"~/Library/Application Support/particl-market"
"~/Library/Application Support/Particl Desktop"
## Linux paths
"~/.particl"
"~/.particl-bot"
"~/.particl-market"
"~/.config/particl-desktop"
## Launcher path
"/opt/Particl Desktop/Particl Desktop"
See also
Other sources for useful or more in-depth information:
Particl Wiki - Backup & Restore wallet
Install Tor (Network Privacy)¶
Attention
The only privacy setting not turned on by default is the ability to keep your IP address anonymous when using Particl. This is done by routing your client’s connection through Tor, a networking protocol designed to anonymize your IP address.
Danger
Always make sure your Tor is up-to-date with the latest version. This is a critical requirement that, if not followed, can heavily compromise your online privacy and potentially let other people spy on your online activity.
Tor isn’t enabled by default on Particl because it requires extra care from you to be truly safe. It’s a network that runs independently from Particl on your computer and needs you to keep critical security considerations in mind.
To make sure you don’t download a compromised version of Tor, always download it from their official website. What good would updating Tor do to you if it lets the door wide open to hackers? To avoid any man-in-the-middle-attack, always verify the cryptographic signature of the Tor files you download, even if it’s from Tor’s official website. To do so, follow this tutorial on how to verify Tor signatures written by the Tor team itself.
The Tor network can be installed using three different methods. Always make sure that, regardless of the installation method you choose, Tor is running the latest version before using it.
Using the Tor browser¶
Download the Tor Browser and install it on your computer.
Launch the Tor browser.
Connect to the Tor network by clicking on Connect or configure your connection parameters by clicking on Configure.
Once connected, leave the Tor Browser running in the background of your computer.
Using the Tor daemon¶
Download the Tor Browser and install it on your computer.
Open Windows Explorer and navigate to the Tor installation directory (e.g.,
C:/Program Files/Tor Browser
).Go into the
Tor
directory, hold down SHIFT ⇧ and click with MOUSE-RIGHT ◳.Open Open command window here from the menu.
In the terminal that pops up, type:
tor.exe –service install
Verify that Tor service is running, type:
sc query "Tor" | find "RUNNING"
Tip
If not already in place install homebrew. Put this code into the terminal.
xcode-select --install
ruby -e "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)"
echo "export PATH=/usr/local/bin:/usr/local/sbin:$PATH" >> ~/.profile
Enable Tor on Particl Desktop¶
Enable Tor support for Particl Desktop with the proper proxy instructions. Either you add a special argument to the command you use to launch Particl Desktop, or you make it a permanent setting.
Enable by default from GUI¶
Open Particl Desktop and click on Particl Desktop Settings in the bottom left corner
Go to Core network connection and put into the Connect via Proxy field
127.0.0.1:9150
if you are using the Tor Browser OR127.0.0.1:9050
if you are using the Tor daemonHit Save changes and restart Particl Desktop
Enable by default from commandline¶
Open the configuration file:
nano ~/.particl/particl.conf
If you are using Tor Browser add this line to the configuration file:
proxy=127.0.0.1:9150
If you are using Tor daemon add this line to the configuration file:
proxy=127.0.0.1:9050
Note
From now on, Particl Desktop will try to connect with the settings you made. That means if Tor is not running on your machine, then Particl Desktop has no access to the internet.
Enable with terminal startup¶
Launching Particl With Tor
Open Windows Explorer and press SHIFT ⇧ + MOUSE-RIGHT ◳ on the Installation folder (e.g.,
C:/Program Files/Particl
) and choose Open command window here or Open power shell here.If you are using Tor Browser, type following commands into the terminal and hit ENTER ↵.
“Particl Desktop.exe” -proxy=127.0.0.1:9150
If you are using Tor daemon, type following commands into the terminal and hit ENTER ↵.
“Particl Desktop.exe” -proxy=127.0.0.1:9050
Launching Particl With Tor
Open Terminal (e.g., COMMAND ⌘ + SPACE and type “terminal” > hit ENTER ↵)
Type in this command if you are using Tor Browser:
/Applications/Particl\ Desktop.app/Contents/MacOS/Particl\ Desktop -proxy=127.0.0.1:9150
Type in this command if you are using Tor daemon:
/Applications/Particl\ Desktop.app/Contents/MacOS/Particl\ Desktop -proxy=127.0.0.1:9050
Launching Particl With Tor
Open a terminal in the folder where you’ve installed Particl Desktop and type the following command if you are using Tor Browser.
./Particl\ Desktop -proxy=127.0.0.1:9150
type the following command if you are using Tor daemon.
./Particl\ Desktop -proxy=127.0.0.1:9050
Important Considerations¶
Keep Tor up-to-date¶
Tor needs to always be updated to the latest version. This is a critical requirement that, if not followed, can heavily compromise your online privacy. Tor updates contain very important security fixes to keep your identity confidential.
As the network itself is widely targeted by hackers due to the privacy it provides, unpatched versions of Tor are considered unsafe to use. If exploited, a compromised version of Tor may leak your true identity and even let others spy on your online activity.
Updating Tor
Open the Tor Browser
Check if the browser prompts you to update the a newer version.
Updating Tor
Open Terminal (e.g., COMMAND ⌘ + SPACE and type “terminal” > hit ENTER ↵)
Type this line of code and hit ENTER ↵
brew update && brew upgrade
Updating Tor
Open a Terminal and run the upgrade procedure depending on your package manager.
Example
sudo apt update && sudo apt-upgrade
Depending on your linux flavor this command may vary. There are multiple package-managers out there, but their usage is quite the same.