Secure Tezos Hardware Signer

Originally engineered for Baktz, Russignol is the fastest Raspberry Pi Zero 2 hardware signer — built for uncompromising security and reliability.

Get Started Watch Demo

Why Russignol?

Your private keys never leave the device. Key generation and PIN setup happen exclusively on the touchscreen.

Intuitive touch controls for PIN entry. View signing activity at a glance.

Sign blocks in under 6ms with no garbage collection pauses — at least 2x faster than comparable signers.

A companion CLI utility handles host configuration automatically — fully automated and verifiable.

Hardened by Default: Sleep soundly with a purpose-built Linux distribution. No WiFi, no Bluetooth, no SSH, no logins — attack vectors are eliminated, not just disabled.
Memory-Safe Implementation: Built in Rust for guaranteed memory safety. Cryptographic operations use the audited and formally verified blst library — no buffer overflows, no exploits.
Tiny Attack Surface: Just 7.4MB compressed — fewer binaries means fewer vulnerabilities. Audit the entire system, not thousands of unknown packages.
Instant Recovery: Back online in 3.8 seconds after a power cycle. Minimize missed blocks during restarts or unexpected reboots.
Built to Last: No more prematurely worn-out SD cards — no risky key migrations, no downtime, no unhappy delegators. F2FS expands to use your entire card for maximum wear leveling. Your storage will outlive the hardware.

Watch a full walkthrough — from 3-second boot to live signing — and see how Russignol keeps your keys safe.

Download the setup utility for your host architecture from GitHub Releases.

curl -L -o russignol https://github.com/RichAyotte/russignol/releases/latest/download/russignol-amd64 && chmod +x russignol

curl -L -o russignol https://github.com/RichAyotte/russignol/releases/latest/download/russignol-aarch64 && chmod +x russignol

Download and flash the Russignol image to your SD card. This can run on any Linux machine with an SD card reader — it doesn't need to be your baker.

./russignol image download-and-flash

Insert the SD card into your Pi Zero 2 and connect it via USB. On the touchscreen, create your PIN and generate your signing keys.

On your baker host, run the setup wizard to configure it to use the keys on your Russignol device.

./russignol setup