> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.inheribase.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Get Started with Inheribase in 10 Minutes

> A guided walkthrough from cold start to a fully protected digital asset — account creation, wallet setup, passkey, first upload, and your first guardian.

This guide walks you through the exact steps to secure your first digital asset in Inheribase, starting from a completely fresh account. By the end, you will have a non-custodial encrypted vault with a trusted Guardian protecting it — in 10 minutes or less.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create your account">
    Your Inheribase vault begins at the application dashboard.

    1. Navigate to **[app.inheribase.com](https://app.inheribase.com)**.
    2. Enter your email address to begin the account creation process.
    3. Open the email from Inheribase and enter the **secure one-time code** to verify your identity.

    Once verified, you are taken directly into the onboarding flow.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Connect your wallet">
    Inheribase uses non-custodial smart accounts to ensure you maintain absolute ownership over your vault. No third party — including Inheribase — can access or freeze your assets.

    1. After email verification, you are prompted to connect or generate a secure wallet.
    2. The protocol automatically provisions a **smart contract wallet** bound to your identity. You do not need MetaMask or any external wallet for this step.
    3. You receive **\$1.00 in trial credits** automatically, which you can use to test file uploads before purchasing additional Vault Credits.

    <Info>
      An external crypto wallet (MetaMask, Coinbase Wallet) is only required for advanced on-chain operations. See [Requirements](/getting-started/requirements) for details.
    </Info>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set up your passkey">
    Your passkey is the cryptographic root of your vault. It ties your encryption keys to your biological footprint or dedicated hardware — making them impossible to phish or brute-force remotely.

    1. Click **Set Up Passkey** when prompted during onboarding.
    2. Use your device's built-in biometric authentication: **Face ID**, **Touch ID**, **Windows Hello**, or a **hardware security key**.
    3. Complete the biometric or PIN prompt from your operating system to register the passkey.

    <Warning>
      Save your emergency recovery codes immediately. Inheribase provides one-time recovery codes during passkey setup. Store them in a physical safe or a location that does not depend on your device. If you lose access to your passkey device and do not have these codes, your vault cannot be decrypted.
    </Warning>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Upload your first file">
    With your vault cryptographically secured, you are ready to seal your first asset.

    1. From the dashboard, navigate to the **Vault** view.
    2. Click **Secure Asset**, or drag a file directly into the upload zone. Start with something simple — a scan of an important document or a private text file works well.
    3. Inheribase encrypts the file using **AES-256-GCM locally in your browser**. Your unencrypted data never leaves your device.
    4. Click **Confirm**. The file is sent to the high-speed temporary cache and concurrently anchored permanently on the **Arweave network**. Once Arweave confirms the transaction, the file status updates from `temporary` to `permanent`.

    <Tip>
      You receive an **Arweave Transaction ID (TXID)** for each uploaded file. This ID is cryptographic proof that your file exists permanently on the permaweb, independent of Inheribase's infrastructure.
    </Tip>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Invite your first Guardian">
    Encryption protects your data while you are alive. Guardians make inheritance possible. They hold encrypted fragments of your vault key using Shamir's Secret Sharing — no single Guardian can access your vault alone, but a threshold of them can cooperate to release it to your heirs.

    1. Navigate to the **Network** tab, or go to **People → Guardians**.
    2. Click **Add Guardian**.
    3. Choose someone you trust with your legacy — a spouse, an attorney, or a close friend.
    4. Enter their **name and email address**. They receive a secure invitation to store an encrypted fragment of your master key.
    5. (Optional, but strongly recommended) Invite two additional Guardians to complete a standard **2-of-3 Shamir's Secret Sharing** threshold. With this configuration, any two of your three Guardians are sufficient to reconstruct the key — protecting against one Guardian becoming unavailable.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## What's next?

You have established a non-custodial digital vault, sealed an asset with zero-knowledge encryption, and designated a Guardian to protect it. From here, you can deepen your estate plan:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="How It Works" icon="diagram-project" href="/getting-started/overview">
    Understand the full Seal, Assign, Monitor, Deliver succession lifecycle.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Guardians" icon="shield-halved" href="/features/guardians">
    Learn how guardian key sharing works and how to choose the right threshold.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Heirs" icon="users" href="/features/heirs">
    Designate recipients and understand the heir claim experience.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Release & Monitoring" icon="bell" href="/features/release-monitoring">
    Configure your Dead Man's Switch cadence and release triggers.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>