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## Install smart contract on peers 

The IBM blockchain console manages the deployment  of smart contracts rather than the development. For smart contract development, you can use the IBM Blockchain Platform Visual Studio (VS) Code extension. 

Use your console to perform these steps: 

1. Click the Smart contracts  tab to install one or more smart contracts. 

2. Click Install smart contract  to upload the smart contract package file in .cds  format. 

Note:  The smart contract package file must be less than 4 MB in size. 

You can use the IBM Blockchain Visual Studio code extension to create a smart contract package in .cds  format. When you install the package from the Smart contracts  tab, you can select one or more peer nodes to install the smart contracts on. 

3. If only one peer exists in the console, the smart contract is installed on it. Otherwise, you are prompted to select a peer on which to install the smart contract. After you select the peers that you want, click Install smart contract . 

Installed smart contracts are listed under “Installed smart contracts” sections of Smart Contracts tab, as seen in Figure 4-41. 

<img src='content_image/989147.jpg'>

4. You can navigate to the Nodes  tab and click a peer that is managed by your console. There, you see the list of smart contracts that are installed on an individual peer. 

## Instantiate a smart contract and specify endorsement policy 

Smart contracts are instantiated on a channel. Any console member with peers that are joined to a channel can instantiate a smart contract and specify the associated endorsement policy. 

The combination of installation and instantiation is a powerful feature. That way, a peer to use a single smart contract across many channels. Peers might want to join multiple channels that use the same smart contract, but with different sets of network members able to access the data. A peer can install the smart contract once, and then use the same smart contract 

