> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://developer.litprotocol.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Quickstart
> Store a secret in Lit Agent Keychain, approve an agent's public key, and read it from Node, the CLI or an MCP client such as Claude Code.
You need a browser for the owner steps and Node 22+ on the agent's machine. Nothing is installed globally; every command runs through `npx`.
The examples below use the latest published `@lit-protocol/keychain`. Pin an exact version
(`@lit-protocol/keychain@2.0.6`, for example) in anything you deploy, and check the
[npm page](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@lit-protocol/keychain) for release notes before upgrading.
## 1. Generate an agent identity
On the machine that will run the agent:
```sh theme={null}
npx @lit-protocol/keychain init ./agent-identity.json
```
This writes a mode-0600 file containing an Ed25519 key pair and prints its `publicKey`. Share **only the public key** with the owner. The file is never overwritten if it already exists.
## 2. Sign in and store a secret
Open [keychain.litprotocol.com](https://keychain.litprotocol.com) and sign in with Google, a wallet or a passkey. Each method can own a vault; Google needs neither a wallet nor a passkey. See [Sign-in and recovery](/keychain/sign-in-and-recovery) for the custody tradeoffs.
Choose **Add secret**, then either **Store a secret** (the agent receives the value) or **Connect a service** (the agent runs one reviewed action and never sees the key). Name it in `UPPER_SNAKE_CASE`, for example `OPENAI_API_KEY`, and paste the value. It is encrypted in your browser before upload.
Open the secret, paste the agent's public key under **Authorized agents**, give it a name and click **Approve agent**. One wallet prompt or passkey touch signs the policy. Permissions default to 30 days; you can pick any length or remove the expiry.
Click **Agent config** to download `OPENAI_API_KEY.keychain.json`. It contains public locators plus a scoped execution key that pays for Lit execution. It is not a backup and holds no secret value, but keep it private.
An agent approved for several secrets needs only one file: click **Config ยท all secrets** next to its name under **Authorized agents** to download a config naming every secret in the vault that key may use. The `keychain run`, `get` and `use` commands take one config; the MCP server also accepts several.
Give the config file to the agent alongside its identity. Keep both files out of version control.
## 3. Read the secret
```sh theme={null}
npm install @lit-protocol/keychain
```
```js theme={null}
import { readFile } from "node:fs/promises";
import { Keychain } from "@lit-protocol/keychain";
const identity = JSON.parse(await readFile("./agent-identity.json", "utf8"));
const config = JSON.parse(await readFile("./OPENAI_API_KEY.keychain.json", "utf8"));
const keychain = new Keychain(identity.privateKey, config);
try {
const secret = await keychain.get("OPENAI_API_KEY");
// Use it in your trusted application here. Never log it.
} finally {
keychain.destroy();
}
```
`run` decrypts the secret and places it in a child process's environment under its own name. The CLI itself prints nothing.
```sh theme={null}
npx @lit-protocol/keychain run ./agent-identity.json ./OPENAI_API_KEY.keychain.json -- python agent.py
```
Prefer `run` over `get` whenever a tool, not your code, needs the value. `--env SECRET=VAR` renames a variable, `--only A,B` selects secrets, and `--file SECRET=PATH` writes a mode-0600 file that is removed when the command exits, for tools that only read credentials from a path.
The package ships a local stdio MCP server. Register it with absolute paths:
```sh theme={null}
claude mcp add lit-keychain -- npx -y @lit-protocol/keychain mcp /absolute/path/agent-identity.json /absolute/path/OPENAI_API_KEY.keychain.json
```
Codex takes the same command after `codex mcp add lit-keychain --`. JSON clients (Cursor, Windsurf) take it as `command: "npx"` with the same arguments. Start with the `agent_public_key`, `list_actions` and `list_secrets` tools; `get_secret` puts plaintext into model context, so call it only when you mean to.
Before the first execution request, the SDK attests the Lit endpoint: an Intel TDX quote chained to Intel's root, the boot event log replayed into the RTMRs, the measured release checked against the on-chain whitelist on Base, and in Node the live TLS certificate bound to the enclave. Any failure blocks the request. See [Security model](/keychain/security#attested-lit-endpoint).
## 4. Revoke, rotate, renew
Everything is on the secret's page in the dashboard:
* **Revoke** removes one agent. The action fetches the current policy on every request, so the agent's next request is denied.
* **Disable** switches the secret off for every agent without deleting it.
* **Rotate & approve** encrypts a new value and moves the existing agents to it in one signature. Downloaded configs keep working.
* **Renew permissions** sets a new expiry any number of days from now, or **Never expire** removes it so access lasts until you revoke or disable it.
If you suspect a credential leaked, also revoke it at the provider. Revocation cannot recall plaintext an agent already received.
## Next steps
Every command and tool, the three credential files, and what each `Access denied:` message means.
Let an agent read a Stripe balance or post to Slack without ever holding the key.
Add a second owner credential and download a backup before storing anything valuable.
What the operator can see, what it can never do, and the limits of revocation.