---
sidebar_position: 2
---

# Getting started

Semaphore provides an official CLI to set up your project with Hardhat. If your NPM version is 5.2 or higher you can use NPX:

```bash
npx @semaphore-protocol/cli create my-app --template monorepo-ethers
```

Otherwise, install `@semaphore-protocol/cli` globally and run the `create` command:

```bash
npm i -g @semaphore-protocol/cli
semaphore create my-app --template monorepo-ethers
```

:::info
The supported templates are: [`contracts-hardhat`](https://github.com/semaphore-protocol/semaphore/tree/main/packages/cli-template-contracts-hardhat), [`monorepo-ethers`](https://github.com/semaphore-protocol/semaphore/tree/main/packages/cli-template-monorepo-ethers), [`monorepo-subgraph`](https://github.com/semaphore-protocol/semaphore/tree/main/packages/cli-template-monorepo-subgraph).
:::

:::info
The [`semaphore CLI`](https://github.com/semaphore-protocol/semaphore/tree/main/packages/cli) can also be used to get group data from a supported network (e.g. `semaphore get-groups --network sepolia`).
:::

To start working on your project, install the dependencies:

```bash
cd my-app
yarn
```

## Output

The `create` command will create a directory called my-app (or whatever name you choose) inside the current folder. That directory will contain the initial project structure, which includes a simple contract, a task to deploy it, some tests and a Next.js application (the web-app folder) to interact with that contract.

```
my-app
├── .yarn
├── apps
│   └── contracts
│   │   └── contracts
|   │   │   └── Feedback.sol
│   │   └── tasks
|   │   │   └── deploy.ts
│   │   └── test
|   │   │   └── Feedback.ts
│   │   └── hardhat.config.ts
│   │   └── package.json
│   │   └── tsconfig.json
│   └── web-app
├── .editorconfig
├── .env
├── .env.example
├── .eslintignore
├── .eslintrc.json
├── .gitignore
├── .prettierignore
├── .prettierrc.json
├── .yarnrc.yml
├── package.json
├── README.md
└── tsconfig.json
```

The `Feedback.sol` contract creates a Semaphore group, allows users to join that group with their Semaphore identity, and finally allows group members to send an anonymous feedback.

## Usage

### Compile contracts

Go to the `contracts` folder:

```bash
cd apps/contracts
```

And compile your contracts:

```bash
yarn compile
```

### Test contracts

Test your contracts:

```bash
yarn test
```

Generate a test coverage report:

```bash
yarn test:coverage
```

Or a test gas report:

```bash
yarn test:report-gas
```

### Deploy contracts

Follow the instructions below to deploy your contracts:

In the project root folder:

1. Add your environment variables in the `.env` file.

   :::note
   You should at least set a valid Infura API Key (you could use Alchemy as well) and a private key with some ethers.
   :::

2. Go to the `apps/contracts` folder and deploy your contract.

   ```bash
   yarn deploy --semaphore <semaphore-address> --group <group-id> --network sepolia
   ```

   :::note
   Check the Semaphore contract addresses [here](/deployed-contracts).
   :::

   :::caution
   The group id is a number.
   :::

### Start app

Start the application:

```bash
yarn dev
```

:::info
If you want to see the code of a comprehensive application built on top of Semaphore see the [boilerplate](https://github.com/semaphore-protocol/boilerplate/tree/main). For more info about the core libraries, keep reading the next guides.
:::
