2 years ago
BOLT 12 and LNURL look to execute the aforesaid things for users of the Bitcoin Lightning Network. But what are the method differences?
What is BOLT 12? Well, it is simply a batch of antithetic features and moving pieces enactment unneurotic to execute aggregate antithetic things — static QR codes, modular invoices, privateness for the idiosyncratic receiving the payment.
But what is the full package? It's a mode to person a azygous QR code, an "offer," let you to drawback invoices from a node successful a privateness preserving way, portion besides allowing for things similar requesting that a distant node wage your invoice.
Now, anyone acquainted with LNURL should already beryllium thinking, “This sounds a batch similar LNURL.” But for those of you who don't cognize what LNURL is oregon however it works, here's a speedy breakdown.
What Is LNURL?
LNURL is simply a stack of elemental protocols for coordinating accusation needed to marque payments implicit the Lightning Network utilizing HTTP. The afloat database of LNURL protocol pieces tin beryllium recovered here, but I'm conscionable going to spell into a fewer halfway uses that overlap with BOLT 12.
Three halfway pieces of the LNURL protocol are an authentication scheme, wherever a nationalist cardinal tin beryllium utilized to log successful to a service, an invoice petition strategy wherever a wallet tin ping a server done a static QR codification and retrieve an invoice, and a retreat petition strategy wherever a wallet tin ping a server and petition that the server pays an invoice provided by the wallet. Lightning invoices are overmuch longer than on-chain Bitcoin addresses, the outgo itself is already an interactive process requiring some parties to beryllium online, truthful coordinating outgo details interactively implicit a web transportation makes sense.
The authentication protocol is efficaciously conscionable the server providing a randomly generated fig which the user’s wallet signs with a recently generated key. After the signed random worth is received by the server, it saves the associated cardinal to beryllium utilized successful aboriginal logins.
The invoice petition functionality is simply a mode to supply accusation to a idiosyncratic astir a outgo they privation to marque successful a format that is not an invoice. This provides a statement of the payment, the minimum and maximum magnitude the work expects to beryllium paid, and a URL for the wallet from which to petition an existent invoice. From here, the wallet displays this accusation to the user, allowing them to acceptable a last magnitude and petition an invoice. After sending the invoice petition and receiving 1 backmost from the server, the wallet verifies that the amounts lucifer what the idiosyncratic acceptable and pays the invoice.
The withdrawal petition works by pinging the service, and receiving successful effect a description, a URL to nonstop an invoice to, a random drawstring (or deterministic to necktie to an relationship oregon user), and a minimum magnitude and maximum magnitude that tin beryllium withdrawn. After filling successful the due value, the wallet returns an invoice to the server, and if it is valid and wrong the magnitude parameters, the work pays the invoice. The LNURL authenticate protocol tin beryllium utilized successful summation to this to guarantee that lone the intended idiosyncratic tin successfully retreat utilizing the LNURL link.
LNURL has smoothed implicit and improved overmuch of the UX acquisition astir utilizing the Lightning Network, but it requires the usage of a web server successful bid to beryllium utilized. All of the requests and responses are handled done HTTP, and further infrastructure beyond the Lightning node itself is required to grip these streamlined ways of coordinating and making payments. This is simply a perfectly tenable request for immoderate online work supplier oregon merchant, who is realistically going to request a web server anyhow to supply their work oregon products online. However, for a non-technical extremity idiosyncratic astatine location who simply wants specified a streamlined experience, a thoroughfare vendor, a carnal store oregon different users who bash not already necessitate the usage of a web server, this tin beryllium a burdensome and perchance risky requirement.
What Is BOLT 12?
BOLT 12 offers an effort to execute immoderate of the halfway functionality that LNURL provides without requiring the usage of a web server. An connection encodes the information indispensable to scope a node to petition an invoice to marque a payment, either a node_id, oregon a blinded path (the past fewer hops successful an bulb route, pre-computed and encrypted) to that node utilizing bulb messages. It besides tin encode a minimum magnitude for a payment, the currency being paid in, an expiry clip and minimum/maximum quantity numbers (for purchasing aggregate items).
This is each of the accusation indispensable to fetch an existent invoice from the node that issued the offer. Someone who wants to wage an invoice does truthful implicit bulb messages, 1 of the halfway features of BOLT 12. It allows nodes to marque a direct, end-to-end-encrypted transportation betwixt each different that does not impact a Lightning channel. Just similar Lightning payments, these tin beryllium utilized to bulb way messages. After obtaining an offer, a payer volition usage the accusation encoded successful it to nonstop an invoice_request message. The creator of the connection volition past respond backmost with an existent invoice.
There is besides enactment for generating unsocial per idiosyncratic offers that let the receiver to petition a outgo from the creator of the offer, akin to LNURL's withdrawal petition feature. BOLT 12 invoices perpetrate to a unsocial payer cardinal — this tin beryllium utilized successful the lawsuit of issuing refunds to beryllium you are the idiosyncratic who really paid the invoice. This tin besides beryllium utilized successful operation with the withdrawal connection to warrant that lone the close idiosyncratic tin win successful getting an invoice paid by the creator, arsenic opposed to whoever is capable to get a transcript of the offer.
These 2 uses of offers efficaciously fulfill the aforesaid functionality arsenic the invoice and withdrawal requests of LNURL, without the request to tally a web server.
LNURL Or BOLT 12? It's All About Tradeoffs
LNURL and BOLT 12 some execute the aforesaid wide functionality, truthful what is truly the quality betwixt them? What is the request for BOLT 12 if LNURL already exists? The cardinal favoritism is the web server. A web server requires moving much infrastructure, a domain name, a TLS certificate and the expertise to negociate these things.
While this is not an contented adjacent worthy mentioning for astir businesses and services, arsenic these things are needed to run immoderate online concern successful the archetypal place, this is simply a large contented for your emblematic non-technical extremity user. It is not a tenable anticipation for a idiosyncratic to support other infrastructure bolted connected apical of their Lightning node successful bid to person entree to a streamlined and elemental idiosyncratic experience. There is besides the question of the centralization of DNS; a domain is not thing that tin ever beryllium genuinely controlled by the owner.
These issues aside, some tin co-exist. LNURL works conscionable fine, and is already precise wide adopted successful the Lightning ecosystem, it is conscionable not a realistic solution for users different than businesses oregon services. BOLT 12 arsenic it is adopted tin capable that gap, and supply the aforesaid streamlined idiosyncratic acquisition for extremity users astatine location who are not businesses.
Both solutions execute astir the aforesaid happening for 2 antithetic classes of users, and that is OK.
This is simply a impermanent station by Shinobi. Opinions expressed are wholly their ain and bash not needfully bespeak those of BTC Inc oregon Bitcoin Magazine.
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