NEAR Protocol CLI installation and setup guide.

Guide for installing, setting up, verifying, and using NEAR Protocol CLI (near-cli-rs) on all platforms, including obtaining the absolute path of the near bi...

NEAR Tools - NEAR CLI Installation & Setup

CRITICAL FOR AGENTS: Before calling any near command, you MUST find the absolute path of the near binary (e.g., using which near or whereis near) and use that absolute path in your commands. This ensures consistency across different shell environments.

This skill provides comprehensive guidance for installing and setting up the NEAR Protocol CLI (near-cli-rs) on any platform.

Installation Methods

Choose the installation method that works best for your system:

Option 1: Shell Script (Linux, macOS, WSL)

Best for: Most Linux and macOS users

curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -LsSf https://github.com/near/near-cli-rs/releases/latest/download/near-cli-rs-installer.sh | sh

if not add near to PATH: find the near binary by whereis near

Add to PATH:

# Temporary (current session only)
export PATH="$HOME/.cargo/bin:$PATH"

# Permanent (add to your shell config)
echo 'export PATH="$HOME/.cargo/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.bashrc  # For bash
echo 'export PATH="$HOME/.cargo/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.zshrc   # For zsh

Reload your shell or run:

source ~/.bashrc   # or ~/.zshrc

Option 2: npm/npx (Any Platform with Node.js)

Best for: JavaScript/TypeScript developers, Windows users

Run directly without installation:

npx near-cli-rs

Install globally:

npm install -g near-cli-rs

Or add to package.json:

npm install --save-dev near-cli-rs

Then use:

npx near-cli-rs

Option 3: Windows Installer

Best for: Windows users without Node.js or Cargo

1. Visit: https://github.com/near/near-cli-rs/releases/latest
2. Download the Windows MSI installer (e.g., near-cli-rs-installer-x64.msi)
3. Double-click the installer and follow the wizard
4. The installer automatically adds NEAR CLI to your PATH

Option 4: Cargo (Rust)

Best for: Rust developers, custom builds

Prerequisites: Install Rust first from https://rustup.rs/

Install:

cargo install near-cli-rs

Or install latest from git:

cargo install --git https://github.com/near/near-cli-rs

Linux users may need:

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt install libudev-dev

# Fedora/Red Hat
sudo dnf install libudev-devel

Verification

After installation, verify it's working:

near --version

Expected output:

near-cli-rs 0.23.6  # or newer version

If the command is not found:

1. Make sure the installation directory is in your PATH:

   echo $PATH | grep cargo  # Check if cargo/bin is in PATH
   

2. If not found, add it manually:

   export PATH="$HOME/.cargo/bin:$PATH"
   

3. Test again:

   near --version
   

Configuration

View Configuration Location

near --help
# Output will show where config is stored, typically:
# "near CLI configuration is stored in ~/.config/near-cli/config.toml"

View Available Commands

near --help

Main command groups:

• account - Manage accounts (view, create, import, export)
• tokens - Manage token assets (NEAR, FT, NFT)
• staking - Manage staking (view, add, withdraw)
• contract - Manage smart contracts (deploy, call functions)
• transaction - Operate transactions
• config - Manage connections in config.toml

First Steps

View Your Account Summary

If you already have a NEAR account:

near account view-account-summary <your-account.near> network-config mainnet now

Example:

near account view-account-summary near network-config mainnet now

Import an Existing Account

If you have a seed phrase or key:

near account import-account

Follow the interactive prompts to sign in.

Create a New Account

If you don't have an account yet:

near account create-account

Follow the prompts to create a new account (requires existing account to fund it).

Troubleshooting

"near: command not found"

Cause: NEAR CLI is not in your PATH

Solution:

# For shell script installation
export PATH="$HOME/.cargo/bin:$PATH"

# For npm global installation
export PATH="$(npm config get prefix)/bin:$PATH"

# Make it permanent by adding to ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc

"Permission denied" when running installer

Cause: Lack of execute permissions

Solution:

chmod +x near-cli-rs-installer.sh
./near-cli-rs-installer.sh

"near-cli-rs-installer.sh: No such file"

Cause: Download didn't work or file name changed

Solution:

# Check the releases page manually
curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/near/near-cli-rs/releases/latest | grep "browser_download_url" | grep "installer.sh"

Installation hangs or is slow

Cause: Network issues or slow connection

Solution:

# Use a longer timeout with curl
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -LsSf --connect-timeout 30 --max-time 300 https://github.com/near/near-cli-rs/releases/latest/download/near-cli-rs-installer.sh | sh

Version Information

• Latest stable version: 0.23.6 (as of documentation date)
• Check for updates: Visit https://github.com/near/near-cli-rs/releases
• Update: Re-run the installation command with the desired version

Additional Resources

• Official GitHub: https://github.com/near/near-cli-rs
• NEAR Protocol Docs: https://docs.near.org/
• NEAR Stack Overflow: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/nearprotocol
• NEAR Discord: https://discord.gg/near

Quick Reference

# Install (Shell script)
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -LsSf https://github.com/near/near-cli-rs/releases/latest/download/near-cli-rs-installer.sh | sh

# Install (npx)
npx near-cli-rs

# Verify installation
near --version

# View account
near account view-account-summary <account-id> network-config mainnet now

# Import account
near account import-account

# Help
near --help
near account --help
near tokens --help