Skip to main content

Publish a Package

Before you can call functions in a Move package (beyond an emulated Sui execution scenario), that package must be available on the Sui network. When you publish a package, you are actually creating an immutable Sui object on the network that anyone can access.

To publish your package to the Sui network, use the publish CLI command in the root of your package. Use the --gas-budget flag to set a value for the maximum amount of gas the transaction can cost. If the cost of the transaction is more than the budget you set, the transaction fails and your package doesn't publish.

tip

Beginning with the Sui v1.24.1 release, the --gas-budget flag is no longer required for CLI commands.

$ sui client publish --gas-budget 5000000

If the publish transaction is successful, your terminal or console responds with the details of the publish transaction separated into sections, including transaction data, transaction effects, transaction block events, object changes, and balance changes.

In the Object Changes table, you can find the information about the package you just published in the Published Objects section. Your response has the actual PackageID that identifies the package (instead of <PACKAGE-ID>) in the form 0x123...ABC.

╭─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮
│ Object Changes │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Created Objects: │
│ ... │
| |
│ Mutated Objects: │
│ ... │
| |
│ Published Objects: │
│ ┌── │
│ │ PackageID: <PACKAGE-ID> │
│ │ Version: 1 │
│ │ Digest: <DIGEST-HASH> │
│ │ Modules: my_module │
│ └── │
╰─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯

Your currently active address now has three objects (or more, if you had objects prior to this example). Assuming you are using a new address, running the sui objects command reveals what those objects are.

$ sui client objects

╭───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮
│ ╭────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮ │
│ │ objectId │ <OBJECT-ID> │ │
│ │ version │ 10 │ │
│ │ digest │ <DIGEST-HASH> │ │
│ │ objectType │ <PACKAGE-ID>::my_module::Forge │ │
│ ╰────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯ │
│ ╭────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮ │
│ │ objectId │ <OBJECT-ID> │ │
│ │ version │ 10 │ │
│ │ digest │ <DIGEST-HASH> │ │
│ │ objectType │ 0x0000..0002::coin::Coin │ │
│ ╰────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯ │
│ ╭────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮ │
│ │ objectId │ <OBJECT-ID> │ │
│ │ version │ 10 │ │
│ │ digest │ <DIGEST-HASH> │ │
│ │ objectType │ 0x0000..0002::package::UpgradeCap │ │
│ ╰────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯ │
╰───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯

The objectId field is the unique identifier of each object.

  • Coin object: You received the Coin object from the Testnet faucet. It's value is slightly less than when you received it because of the cost of gas for the publish transaction.
  • Forge object: Recall that the init function runs when the package gets published. The init function for this example package creates a Forge object and transfers it to the publisher (you).
  • UpgradeCap object: Each package you publish results in the receipt of an UpgradeCap object. You use this object to upgrade the package later or to burn it so the package cannot be upgraded.

Interact with the package

Now that the package is on chain, you can call its functions to interact with the package. You can use the sui client call command to make individual calls to package functions, or you can construct more advanced blocks of transactions using the sui client ptb command. The ptb part of the command stands for programmable transaction blocks. In basic terms, PTBs allow you to group commands together in a single transaction for more efficient and cost-effective network activity.

For example, you can create a new Sword object defined in the package by calling the new_sword function in the my_module package, and then transfer the Sword object to any address:

$ sui client ptb \
--assign forge @<FORGE-ID> \
--assign to_address @<TO-ADDRESS> \
--move-call <PACKAGE-ID>::my_module::new_sword forge 3 3 \
--assign sword \
--transfer-objects "[sword]" to_address \
--gas-budget 20000000
info

You can pass literal addresses and objects IDs by prefixing them with '@'. This is needed to distinguish a hexadecimal value from an address in some situations.

For addresses that are in your local wallet, you can use their alias instead (passing them without '@', for example, --transfer-objects my_alias).

Make sure to replace <FORGE-ID>, <TO-ADDRESS>, and <PACKAGE-ID> with the actual objectId of the Forge object, the address of the recipient (your address in this case), and the packageID of the package, respectively.

After the transaction executes, you can check the status of the Sword object by using the sui client objects command again. Provided you used your address as the <TO-ADDRESS>, you should now see a total of four objects:

╭───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮
│ ╭────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮ │
│ │ objectId │ <OBJECT-ID> │ │
│ │ version │ 11 │ │
│ │ digest │ <DIGEST-HASH> │ │
│ │ objectType │ <PACKAGE-ID>::my_module::Forge │ │
│ ╰────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯ │
│ ╭────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮ │
│ │ objectId │ <OBJECT-ID> │ │
│ │ version │ 11 │ │
│ │ digest │ <DIGEST-HASH> │ │
│ │ objectType │ 0x0000..0002::coin::Coin │ │
│ ╰────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯ │
│ ╭────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮ │
│ │ objectId │ <OBJECT-ID> │ │
│ │ version │ 11 │ │
│ │ digest │ <DIGEST-HASH> │ │
│ │ objectType │ <PACKAGE-ID>::my_module::Sword │ │
│ ╰────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯ │
│ ╭────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮ │
│ │ objectId │ <OBJECT-ID> │ │
│ │ version │ 10 │ │
│ │ digest │ <DIGEST-HASH> │ │
│ │ objectType │ 0x0000..0002::package::UpgradeCap │ │
│ ╰────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯ │
╰───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯

Congratulations! You have successfully published a package to the Sui network and modified the blockchain state by using a programmable transaction block.

  • Debugging: Print values to aid in logic debugging.
  • Package Upgrades: Upgrading packages published on the Sui network.
  • Publish a Move Package: More details about using the CLI to publish a package.
  • Programmable Transaction Blocks: PTBs are collections of transactions that are executed together.
  • Sui Client PTB CLI: The client ptb command allows you to specify the transactions for execution in a programmable transaction block directly from your CLI or through bash scripts.
  • App Examples: End-to-end examples that include smart contract logic and frontend code.