In this article, we will cover the creation of a basic project for interacting with the Aragon ecosystem. We will go through installing the necessary dependencies, setting up the environment, and adding libraries for working with Aragon OSx.­­

1. Creating a Project and Installing Dependencies

First, let's ensure that we have the necessary dependencies installed:

• NodeJS (version >= 18) - Used to run JavaScript code outside the browser and is the foundation for many development tools.

• Yarn - A package manager that allows quick installation and management of project dependencies.

To check if the dependencies are installed, run the following commands:
node -v  # Check Node.js version
yarn -v  # Check Yarn version

If any dependency is missing, install it using the following command:
npm install -g yarn  # Install Yarn

­Now we can create a new project and install the required packages. It is important to note that Aragon is constantly being updated, so always check the latest package versions in the documentation.

Installing Hardhat

Hardhat is a framework for working with blockchains and smart contracts, allowing for easy testing and deployment.

Install Hardhat with the following command:
yarn add hardhat

Creating a Hardhat Project

Run the following command to initialize a project:
npx hardhat

Next, choose the project type and install the necessary dependencies:

• Select Create a basic sample project.

• Specify the project directory.

• Confirm the creation of hardhat.config.ts.

After creating the project, check its structure:

2. Configuring Access and Services

To interact with the Ethereum network, we need Infura—an RPC service that allows communication with the blockchain without running our own node.

Registering and Configuring Infura

1. Go to Infura and sign up.

2. Create a new project in the Infura Dashboard.

3. Enable support for the Ethereum Sepolia test network.

Adding API Keys to the .env File

To securely store secret keys, create a .env file in the project's root directory and add the necessary environment variables.

Install the dotenv package:
yarn add dotenv

Add the following variables to the .env file:

INFURA_KEY=your_infura_api_key
PRIVATE_KEY=your_wallet_private_key

3. Configuring the Network

Now we will configure Hardhat to work with the Ethereum Sepolia test network.

Open the hardhat.config.ts file and add network support. In the networks section, we define the list of networks Hardhat can connect to. Each network requires an RPC URL and accounts for signing transactions.

• url: This is the endpoint for the Ethereum node. In this case, we use Infura, which allows us to connect to the network without running our own node.

• accounts: An array containing the private key used to sign transactions. We use the .env file to store this key securely.

import { HardhatUserConfig } from "hardhat/config";
import "@nomicfoundation/hardhat-toolbox";
import * as dotenv from "dotenv";

dotenv.config();

const config: HardhatUserConfig = {
  solidity: {
    version: "0.8.19",
    settings: {
      optimizer: {
        enabled: true,
        runs: 200,
      },
    },
  },
  networks: {
    sepolia: {
      url: `https://sepolia.infura.io/v3/${process.env.INFURA_KEY}`,
      accounts: [process.env.PRIVATE_KEY!],
    },
  }
};

export default config;

4. Installing Aragon Packages

To work with Aragon, we need to install the following packages
yarn add @aragon/osx

This package contains the core libraries for working with Aragon OSx
yarn add @aragon/osx-artifacts

This package contains artifacts used for compiling smart contracts
yarn add @aragon/osx-commons-configs

Includes common configurations necessary for interacting with Aragon
yarn add @aragon/osx-ethers

Adds Ethereum API support through the Ethers.js library.

GitHub Repo
https://github.com/Mirko-Solutions/aragon2-examples/tree/main

Congratulations! 🎉 We have prepared a project for working with Aragon. In the next article, we will take a closer look at each of the installed packages and their use.