For the Bitcoin Extension to accept deposits it requires a special kind of public key called an “Xpub” (this would also include Zpub, Tpub etc). It is a type of HDKey (Hierarchical Deterministic Key) which is used to generate an infinite number of Bitcoin public addresses that are all tied to the same master private key. Most hardware wallets use an Hierarchical Deterministic wallet system and will display their Xpub string in the settings.
! It is important to note that the wallet used for your Warm Storage should not be used for anything else. All deposits made to addresses in the wallet will be detected and credited to users associated with the addresses.
To find your wallet’s Xpub you can follow one of the hardware wallet links or use Electrum and follow along with our guide below:
Electrum setup guide
Wallet setup
Download the Electrum desktop application here: https://electrum.org/#home
After installing, if you are asked for the server you would like to connect to, select the “auto” option. Once this is done done, a wallet setup wizard should be shown as seen below:
Name the wallet appropriately, e.g. app_id_warm_storage, and click next.
You should be prompted to select the wallet type. Select “standard” and click next.
Select “Create a new seed" and click next. Electrum will now display a 12 word seed phrase. It is important to safely write these down and store them securely (See our recommendations of best practices). Your wallet can be completely recreated using the phrase words and anyone with access to them can access all funds in the wallet.
Next, Electrum will prompt you to re-enter the seed phrase to ensure you have it stored correctly. Enter it and continue.
Lastly, you will be prompted to enter a password, which is used to encrypt the wallet file. Enter a secure password and store this separately from your seed phrase in a password manager.
Congrats! Electrum is set up. It should now display the wallet like so:
Getting your HDKey
Once you have Electrum setup you can retrieve the Xpub/HDkey which Rehive requires to accept user deposits.
Select Wallet from the top menu bar and then select the Information option. This should open a prompt that looks like this:
The string of text inside the Master Public Key box is the Xpub/HDKey string Rehive Bitcoin Extension requires. Copy this key and enter it as required in the Warm Storage onboarding in the Bitcoin Extension inside the Rehive Dashboard.
While this key is not going to allow access to the funds of the wallet, it does allow whoever has it to track and generate all wallet addresses, so it should be treated as relatively sensitive information so it should be shared with any untrusted parties.
Finding your first address
Click on the “Addresses” tab in the main Electrum window. If this tab is not being shown by default first go to View -> Show addresses via the main menu bar. This should open up a page showing a list of newly generated addresses for your wallet like below:
Right click on the first entry in the list and select Copy ->Address. Paste this address into the First Address generated field in the Warm Storage onboarding in the Bitcoin Extension on Rehive’s Dashboard.
Your Warm Storage should be setup and ready to go!