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Synopsis

fishnet init [OPTIONS]
Interactive setup wizard that initializes Fishnet for first use. Creates the encrypted vault, stores the first API credential, configures security policies, and optionally sets up system-level permissions.

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Arguments

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--master-password
string
Master password for vault encryption. If not provided, you will be prompted interactively.
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--store-derived-key-in-keychain
boolean
default:"false"
Store the derived encryption key in the system keychain (macOS only) to avoid entering the master password on every command.
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--first-service
string
API service name for the first credential (e.g., “openai”, “anthropic”). If not provided, you will be prompted.
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--first-name
string
Name for the first credential (e.g., “production”, “dev”). If not provided, you will be prompted.
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--first-key
string
API key value for the first credential. If not provided, you will be prompted.
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--daily-budget-usd
number
Daily spending budget in USD. If not provided, you will be prompted (default: 10.0).
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--rate-limit-per-minute
number
Maximum requests per minute. If not provided, you will be prompted (default: 60).
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--apply-system
boolean
default:"false"
Apply system-level user and permission setup commands. Without this flag, commands are shown in dry-run mode.

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Examples

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Interactive setup

fishnet init
Prompts: 
Master password: ********
Confirm master password: ********
First API service: openai
First credential name: production
First API key: sk-...
Daily LLM budget (USD) [10.0]: 50
Rate limit per minute [60]: 100
Output: 
System user + permissions setup: dry-run
  sudo useradd -r -s /bin/false fishnet
  sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/fishnet
  sudo chown fishnet:fishnet /var/lib/fishnet
  sudo chmod 700 /var/lib/fishnet
Re-run with --apply (or --apply-system) to execute.
Fishnet init complete.
Stored first credential 'openai:production', config written to ~/.config/fishnet/fishnet.toml
Run: fishnet start

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Non-interactive setup

fishnet init \
  --master-password "my-secure-password" \
  --first-service openai \
  --first-name production \
  --first-key sk-... \
  --daily-budget-usd 50 \
  --rate-limit-per-minute 100

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Setup with keychain integration (macOS)

fishnet init --store-derived-key-in-keychain
Output: 
[fishnet] vault derived key stored in macOS Keychain

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Apply system setup

fishnet init --apply-system
Output: 
System user + permissions setup: applying 4 command(s)
System user + permissions setup: complete.

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Behavior

  • Creates encrypted SQLite database for credential storage
  • Validates master password (minimum 8 characters recommended: 12+)
  • Stores the first API credential in the vault
  • Creates or updates fishnet.toml configuration file
  • Sets file permissions to owner-only (mode 0600)
  • Displays system setup commands (requires —apply-system to execute)

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Error messages

Password mismatch: 
master password confirmation does not match
The password and confirmation do not match. Try again. Empty password: 
master password cannot be empty
The master password cannot be blank. Weak password warning: 
[fishnet] warning: master password length is short; consider at least 12+ characters
Password is less than 8 characters. This is a warning, not an error. Failed to store credential: 
failed to store first credential: <error>
Could not add the credential to the vault.

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Exit codes

  • 0 - Initialization completed successfully
  • 1 - Error occurred (password mismatch, validation failed, etc.)

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