The app manages access; the network records balances.
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A library card helps you use a library. It does not contain the books or the library’s borrowing register.
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From a public address to a verified signatureStep 1 / 4
An address is public receiving information. It is not the private key that authorizes actions.
An address is public receiving information. It is not the private key that authorizes actions.The local signing system uses secret authorization material. It produces a signature; the private key is not sent along with it.A verifier checks the signed request under the account’s rules. A valid signature does not by itself prove that the action is safe.Balances belong to network state. A wallet is an interface and signing system, not a box containing coins.
Animated local teaching model. No wallet, RPC or live blockchain data. Some labels and hashes are abbreviated for readability.
The balance lives on the network
A wallet displays information about accounts, often by asking a node for data. Deleting the app does not delete those network balances. Restoring access depends on the account’s authorization and recovery method.
Different wallets keep different things
A software wallet may keep encrypted key material on the device. A hardware wallet performs signing inside a separate device. A watch-only wallet can keep public addresses without having the keys needed to authorize spending.
The interface adds a useful view
Labels, cached activity and preferences may exist only in a particular app. Those details can disappear when you reinstall or switch software even though the underlying account remains. A token being hidden in the interface is different from a zero onchain balance.
Know what your backup restores
A recovery phrase may restore key-based accounts, but an app’s labels or a contract wallet’s configuration can require separate information. Read the wallet’s recovery instructions before relying on an assumption about what one backup covers.
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Does uninstalling a wallet app erase its accounts’ onchain balances?
The network records balances. The app provides a way to read and authorize activity.