# Crypto Wallets
📁 Crypto Wallets — Chapter Description
This chapter documents the setup, use, and maintenance of cryptocurrency wallets, with a focus on self-custody, security, and interoperability across devices and nodes.
It covers both software wallets (e.g. Sparrow Wallet, Ledger Live) and hardware wallets (e.g. Coldcard, Ledger Stax, Trezor Model T), including their integration with personal infrastructure such as full nodes.
The emphasis is on maintaining control over private keys, ensuring verifiable and reproducible setups, and documenting practical workflows such as transactions, updates, and recovery procedures.
Topics include wallet installation and upgrades, hardware wallet pairing, node connectivity, backup and recovery strategies, and security considerations.
This chapter reflects a self-sovereign approach to digital assets, prioritising open-source tools, local verification, and minimal trust in third parties.
# Ledger Live AppImage on Linux Mint — Persistent Launcher & Update Workflow
## 🎯 Objective
Create and maintain a stable Ledger Live setup on Linux Mint that:
- uses a **custom persistent icon**
- survives **log out / reboot**
- continues to work after **AppImage updates**
- avoids repeated manual configuration
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## 🧩 Overview
Ledger Live is run as an AppImage stored in a fixed location, with a `.desktop` launcher pointing to:
- a **static AppImage filename**
- a **separate, permanent icon file**
This ensures updates only affect the binary, not the launcher or icon.
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## ⚙️ Folder Structure
### ✔ Behaviour
- Not affected by updates
- Not tied to Ledger Live version
- No need to re-download
### ❗ Do NOT
- delete or move the icon
- change the icon path
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# ⚡ Auto vs Manual Updates
## 🧠 In-App Auto Update Behaviour
When clicking **“Update” inside Ledger Live**:
- downloads a new AppImage (usually to `~/Downloads` or `/tmp`)
- launches the new version
- does **not reliably**:
- replace existing AppImage
- preserve filename
- remove older versions
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## ⚠️ Impact on This Setup
Your launcher points to:
If auto-update downloads a new version:
- Desktop shortcut → still opens old version
- New version → only runs manually
- Multiple AppImages may accumulate
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## ❌ Why Auto Update Is Not Ideal
- breaks single-file structure
- introduces version drift
- creates duplicate binaries
- reduces predictability
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## ✅ Recommended Approach — Manual Update
### ✔ Benefits
- deterministic behaviour
- single source of truth
- launcher always correct
- no duplicates
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## 🔁 Optional Hybrid Approach
1. Allow Ledger Live to download update
2. Then manually replace:
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## 💡 Maintenance Notes
- Only one AppImage should exist
- Icon remains unchanged indefinitely
- Launcher requires no further edits
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## ✅ Conclusion
This setup provides a clean, reliable, and controlled way to run Ledger Live on Linux Mint.
By separating:
- executable (AppImage)
- icon (static asset)
- launcher (fixed reference)
you achieve a **stable, repeatable, low-maintenance workflow**.
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## 🔁 Update Command (Final)
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## 💡 Guiding Principle
> One AppImage. One path. One launcher.
# 🔐 SHA256 Verification
## 🎯 Objective
Verify that the downloaded Ledger Live AppImage has not been corrupted or altered before replacing the existing binary.
This adds a simple integrity check to the update workflow.
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## 🧠 Why This Matters
An AppImage is a standalone executable.
Before moving it into the permanent location, it is good practice to verify:
- the download completed properly
- the file is not corrupted
- the checksum matches the official release value
This is especially useful when manually managing binaries.
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## ✅ Step 1 — Generate the local SHA256 hash
Run:
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## ✅ Step 2 — Compare with the official hash
Check the SHA256 value published by Ledger for that exact version and verify that:
- the version matches
- the filename matches
- the hash matches exactly
If the hashes differ, do **not** use the file.
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## ⚠️ Important
A valid file size alone is not enough.
Example:
- correct size → suggests a complete download
- matching SHA256 → confirms integrity
Both checks are useful, but SHA256 is the stronger verification.
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## ✅ Recommended Verification Flow
### 1. Check file size
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## ❌ If the Hash Does Not Match
Do not move the file into `~/AppImages`.
Instead:
rm ~/Downloads/ledger-live-desktop-2*.AppImage
Then download it again and repeat the check.
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## 🧩 Practical Note
For routine use, checking file size may be enough to catch obvious failures such as the earlier **75-byte corrupted AppImage**.
For stronger assurance, especially with wallet-related software, SHA256 verification is the better habit.
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## 💡 Guiding Principle
> Verify first. Replace second.