NEAR CLI extensions system

NEAR CLI is built to scale. The number of possible features is endless. Instead of choosing only some of them, we are creating an Extensions System that will empower our users to choose, build and share NEAR CLI functionality.

How it works

Extensibility is achieved by translating a NEAR CLI invocation of the form near (?<command>[^ ]+) into an invocation of an external tool near-cli-${command} that then needs to be present in one of the user's $PATH directories. It means that you can write it in any language and with the use of any framework, it just needs to be called near-cli-{extension-name} and be installed on your system. This approach is inspired by Cargo.

How to build an extension

As mentioned above, any binary can become an extension, but we are encouraging developers to use Rust, Clap, and a set of libraries developed by NEAR. Here is some of them:

• near-cli-builder - CLI specific helpers to make your life easier and follow the standards of NEAR CLI at the same time (NOTE: Under development)
• near-api-rs - Rust library to interact with accounts and smart contracts on NEAR. (NOTE: Under development)
• near-jsonrpc-client-rs - Lower-level JSON RPC API for interfacing with the NEAR Protocol.

Example

Core NEAR CLI does not have validator specific functionality, but we can add it as a simple bash script:

near-cli-staking-pool-info

#!/bin/sh
POOL_ID=$1
near execute view-method network mainnet contract "name.near" call "get_fields_by_pool" '{"pool_id": "'"$POOL_ID"'"}' at-final-block

Make sure that this script is in your $PATH and has proper permissions to be executed. Then call it like this:

$ near staking-pool-info aurora.near
{
  "country": "Gibraltar",
  "country_code": "gi",
  "github": "auroraisnear",
  "twitter": "auroraisnear",
  "telegram": "auroraisnear",
  "url": "https://aurora.dev/",
  "city": "Gibraltar",
  "description": "Aurora validator fees are spent on supporting the Rainbow Bridge infrastructure, keeping the bridge free and accessible to everyone (except for the gas fees).",
  "logo": "https://aurora.dev/static/favicon-32x32.png",
  "name": "Aurora"
}