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

# Secrets

> Share an API key or password with a coding agent without ever pasting it into the conversation.

**Secrets** lets you hand an API key or password to a coding agent **without
ever pasting the value into the conversation**. You store the secret once; Dax
hands the agent a one-line instruction and injects the real value only into the
single command that needs it — after you approve. Works fully offline.

## Open it

Press <kbd>⌃</kbd> <kbd>⌥</kbd> <kbd>V</kbd> from any app.

## How it works

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the palette">
    Press <kbd>⌃</kbd> <kbd>⌥</kbd> <kbd>V</kbd>. The Secrets palette floats
    up.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add a secret">
    Give it a **name** (with autocomplete for common ones) and the **value**.
    The value is stored in your Mac's **Keychain**; you can show/hide it in the
    field.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Paste the instruction">
    Dax gives you a **paste-ready line** for the agent, like
    `dax run --secret OPENAI_API_KEY -- <your command>`.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Approve the injection">
    When the agent runs that, the local **Dax broker** asks you to **approve**.
    Approve and the real value is injected into *that command's* environment
    only — never printed, never stored in the chat.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  **Why it's safe.** The value lives in the Keychain and is released to a
  single command run through the broker, only on your explicit approval. It
  never appears in the conversation, the terminal scrollback, or any log.
</Tip>

## Privacy

Entirely local. The broker runs on your Mac; secrets never leave it.