Radicle

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Overview

• Run it directly to get a managed peer-to-peer code collaboration platform
• Inherit it in your own infrastructure to add decentralized Git hosting

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What this template manages

• Radicle node (seed node)
• Radicle HTTP API
• Git repository hosting
• Peer-to-peer networking
• Identity and authentication
• Web UI on port 8080 (httpd)

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Quick start (run directly)

1. Load templates

monk load MANIFEST

2. Run Radicle seed node

monk run radicle/seed

3. Customize configuration (recommended via inheritance)

• Preferred: inherit and override variables as shown below.
• Alternative: fork/clone and edit the variables in radicle.yaml, then monk load MANIFEST and run.

• HTTP API: http://localhost:8080
• Connect with Radicle CLI (rad)

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Configuration

variables:
  radicle-image-tag: "latest"              # Radicle image tag
  httpd-port: "8080"                       # HTTP API port
  p2p-port: "8776"                         # P2P networking port
  node-alias: "my-seed"                    # node alias/name
  external-address: "seed.example.com:8776" # external P2P address

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Use by inheritance (recommended for teams)

namespace: myteam

seed:
  defines: runnable
  inherits: radicle/seed
  variables:
    node-alias: "team-seed"
    external-address: "git.myteam.com:8776"
    httpd-port: "8080"
    p2p-port: "8776"

monk run myteam/seed

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Ports and connectivity

• Service: radicle-httpd on TCP port 8080 (HTTP API)
• Service: radicle-node on TCP port 8776 (P2P network)
• Git over HTTP: accessible via HTTP API
• From Radicle CLI, connect to seed node using node ID and address

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Persistence and data

• Data path: ${monk-volume-path}/radicle:/app/.radicle
• Git repositories: stored in Radicle storage
• Node identity and configuration persisted in data path

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Features

• Peer-to-Peer: No central server, censorship-resistant
• Git Native: Built on Git, compatible with existing workflows
• Cryptographic Identity: Key-based authentication
• Offline-First: Work locally, sync when connected
• Social Coding: Issues, patches, and discussions
• Seed Nodes: Public nodes for discovery and availability
• Secure: End-to-end encrypted, signed commits

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Radicle CLI Usage

# Initialize a repository
rad init

# Push to Radicle network
rad push

# Clone a repository
rad clone rad://...

# Configure seed node
rad config set seed.default <seed-node-id>@<seed-address>:8776

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Seed Node

• Discovery: Help peers find each other
• Availability: Always-online repository hosting
• Replication: Backup copies of repositories
• HTTP Gateway: Web access to repositories

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Identities

• Device ID: Unique identifier for each device
• Project ID: Unique identifier for each project
• Peer ID: Unique identifier for each peer

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Use cases

• Decentralized open-source development
• Censorship-resistant code collaboration
• Private team collaboration without GitHub
• Air-gapped environments
• Sovereign infrastructure
• Web3 and crypto projects

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Integration with Git

# Add Radicle as remote
git remote add rad rad://...

# Push to Radicle
git push rad main

# Pull from Radicle
git pull rad main

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Related templates

• Combine with monitoring tools for observability
• Integrate with CI/CD pipelines for automated workflows

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Troubleshooting

• Access HTTP API at http://localhost:8080 to verify the seed node is running.
• Check node status:

rad node status

• View node ID and peer list:

rad self
rad node peers

• Check logs:

monk logs -l 500 -f radicle/seed

• For connectivity issues:
  • Verify P2P port 8776 is accessible from external networks
  • Check firewall rules allow incoming connections on port 8776
  • Ensure external-address matches your actual public address
• For synchronization issues, check seed node connectivity and peer list
• Monitor disk space for repository storage under ${monk-volume-path}/radicle
• Ensure system time is synchronized (important for P2P networking)