GuideTools4 min read
The SDK: KEEL from code
Use KEEL’s engine from your own code: prepare projects, reuse PartsReusable components included in a work, with their own identities and permissions.For exampleSeveral artworks can share the same verified drawing library.Full glossary entry →, read chain values, build previews, and plan releases.
Select an underlined word to see what it means.
In this guide
// Prepared data snapshot
// KEEL.data contains:
// { supply: 8 }
// Your drawing reads it
rings = KEEL.data.supplyIn a real prepared layer, the values are frozen and include the source chain and block.
What is an SDK?
SDK means software development kit. KEEL’s SDK gives an application ready-made functions for describing a project, checking inputs, finding required PartsReusable components included in a work, with their own identities and permissions.For exampleSeveral artworks can share the same verified drawing library.Full glossary entry →, and preparing contract review data.
You can use a creator interface without writing code. If you are building an interface yourself, the SDK lets you express the same decisions in a program.
| Tool | Its job in the workshop |
|---|---|
| SDK | Describe the work and prepare its choices and contract data. |
| Builder | Inspect files and assemble the exact resources and outputs. |
| Protocol | Define the shared records, fingerprints, and data rules. |
| Viewer | Recover resources and reconstruct the presentation. |
| Studio Core | Support the site’s preparation, delivery, and publication workflows. |
| MCP | Let an assistant call a bounded set of these tools. |
Technical detail: package entry points
Use the package whose job matches your integration. Some preparation packages require Node.js.
| Package | Purpose |
|---|---|
| @keel/sdk | Planning, validation, presentation, and contract helpers |
| @keel/builder | Local builds, verification, cost models, and upload plans |
| @keel/protocol | Portable types, canonical data, integrity |
| @keel/viewer | Resource recovery and presentation reconstruction |
| @keel/studio-core | Shared Studio workflow primitives |
| @keel/mcp | Tool and resource server for assistants |
Start with the decisions you already know.
Describe the work and ask for a plan. The planner keeps supplied choices and returns missing questions, required modules, and next tools. It can tell you what is needed before a full chain or sale decision is made.
In the example below, the result is a local plan for Tidal Study. It needs the drawing library and seed utility. A seed is an input used to make a generated result reproducible.
Technical example: run a local SDK plan (no upload)
import { planKeelProject } from "@keel/sdk/engine";
const plan = planKeelProject({
title: "Tidal Study",
outcome: "explore",
runtime: "p5",
});
console.log(plan.nextQuestions);
console.log(plan.modules.required);
console.log(plan.nextTools);
// Inspect the questions and suggested tools before building.A plan becomes a build, then a review.
Resolve the required PartsReusable components included in a work, with their own identities and permissions.For exampleSeveral artworks can share the same verified drawing library.Full glossary entry → to exact versions on the selected chain. Build the intended ShellThe opening program and interface around creator content. The canonical KEEL verification shell owns the protected checks and K controls.For exampleOpen the K control to inspect the files and checks behind the displayed work.Full glossary entry → and resource composition, preview it, and retain the identities of the source and output.
If the current publication path cannot find its registered shell or PartsReusable components included in a work, with their own identities and permissions.For exampleSeveral artworks can share the same verified drawing library.Full glossary entry →, it must explain what is missing. It must not create an unannounced replacement shell.
Choose the right environment for the code.
Some SDK helpers prepare local files and need Node.js, the program that runs JavaScript outside a browser. A webpage should import the browser-compatible entry point for its particular job.
The setup below is for a source checkout. After building it, run the local planning example from an application that links the SDK package.
Technical detail: source setup and browser imports
The source workspace specifies Node.js 22+ and pnpm 10.15.0. Install and build inside the keel-sdk checkout. The root SDK import includes Node-oriented code; browser consumers should use the documented /engine, /presentation, /contract-controls, or /abi entry point for their task. The /inline-viewer-graph build path is Node-side preparation.
# Run inside your keel-sdk source checkout.
pnpm install
pnpm build
# Then run the planning example in a linked consumer package.
# No chain publication is performed by that example.Let a chain value become part of the work.
A character’s health can set its glow. A collection’s supply can change a drawing. The SDK can read supported contract values and prepare them as named variables before the artwork starts.
The prepared data layer records the chain and block it came from. It is a snapshot for that build. A continuously updating work needs an explicitly designed refresh path.
Source detail: data before drawing
readOnchainData performs the reads. buildOnchainDataFragment emits a classic script in the data phase. assertOnchainDataRoundTrip checks what that script publishes. The sandbox reports the decoded data layer and variables without executing project source in its host process. See the Chain data guide for the supported types and build order.
Build tools around the engine.
Modules are PartsReusable components included in a work, with their own identities and permissions.For exampleSeveral artworks can share the same verified drawing library.Full glossary entry → used by the work, such as a runtime or data layer. Editor and SDK plugins are the planned way to extend the tools around that work: a custom inspector, workflow, or admin panel.
Keep those two extension points separate. A future editor plugin is not a requirement for a collector to open an artwork.