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Lightning Common Structures

structureslightning_common_structures

This object represents the number of blocks required for an on-chain lightning-related transaction to be confirmed. It is used for estimating the transaction fee rate (feerate) for different transaction types in the context of permissionless transactions performed by the node. Different target types are background, normal, and high_priority.

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
backgroundintegerUsed for transactions that can tolerate slower confirmation times when the transaction fee rate decreases. These transactions are not time-sensitive and can afford to wait longer for confirmation. The recommended range is 12 to 144 blocks to ensure a low feerate.
normalintegerUsed for transactions that we want to confirm promptly, without significant delay (e.g, transactions for opening payment channels). These transactions are important but not critical. Suggested value is 6 blocks to ensure a moderate feerate.
high_priorityintegerUsed for transactions that require quick confirmation to prevent potential loss of funds (e.g. redeeming a Hashed Time Lock Contract (HTLC) on the blockchain before it times out). These transactions are time-critical and must be confirmed promptly to ensure the security of funds. Recommended value for high_priority is 1-2 blocks to ensure a high feerate.

Using the recommended values in the above table with a coin that has a block time of 10 minutes, the equivalent time in minutes is:

  • background: 120 minutes to 1440 minutes (2 hours to 1 day).
  • normal: 60 minutes (one hour).
  • high_priority: 10 to 20 minutes.

ParameterTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
allow_outbound_0confbooleantrueWhen setting an outbound channel, it can be used straight away without waiting for any on-chain confirmations.
force_announced_channel_preferencebooleantrueSet to force an incoming channel to match our announced channel preference in ChannelOptions announced_channel.
outbound_channels_confirmationsinteger144Confirmations we will wait for before considering an inbound channel locked in.
our_locktime_limitboolean2016Set to the amount of blocks we're willing to wait to claim money back to us.
min_funding_satsboolean0Minimum allowed satoshis when an inbound channel is funded.
max_funding_satsboolean16777215Maximum allowed satoshis when an inbound channel is funded.
max_htlc_minimum_msatboolean18446744073709551615The remote node sets a limit on the minimum size of HTLCs we can send to them. This allows us to limit the maximum minimum-size they can require.
min_max_htlc_value_in_flight_msatboolean0The remote node sets a limit on the maximum value of pending HTLCs to them at any given time to limit their funds exposure to HTLCs. This allows us to set a minimum such value.
max_channel_reserve_satsboolean18446744073709551615The remote node will require us to keep a certain amount in direct payment to ourselves at all time, ensuring that we are able to be punished if we broadcast an old state. This allows us to limit the amount which we will have to keep to ourselves (and cannot use for HTLCs).
min_max_accepted_htlcsboolean0The remote node sets a limit on the maximum number of pending HTLCs to them at any given time. This allows us to set a minimum such value.

ParameterTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
namestring-The name of the node that will be used in lightning explorers
listening portinteger9735The port that this node listens for incoming connections on.
colorstring2b6680A hexadecimal color string which will be used in network graphs on lightning explorers
payment_retriesinteger5Number of times a payment will be retried if it fails.
backup_pathstring-The backup path for channel backups, preferably on an external drive.

ParameterTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
typestring-Exact for a specific amount or Max for whole balance.
valueobject-Required if type is Exact. The amount in BTC you want to open the channel with.

The values in this object are only used if the channel is being opened by the user. If the channel is being opened by the counterparty, the values in this object are ignored. If not specified when using the open_channel or update_channel methods, the values in this object will default to the values set in the coins configuration file.

ParameterTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
inbound_channels_confirmationsstring6Should be set in coins file, and applies to all channels. Confirmations we will wait for before considering an inbound channel locked in.
max_inbound_in_flight_htlc_percentinteger10Should be set in coins file, and applies to all channels. Sets the percentage of the channel value we will cap the total value of outstanding inbound HTLCs to.
our_htlc_minimum_msatinteger1The smallest value HTLC we will accept to process. The channel gets closed any time our counterparty misbehaves by sending us an HTLC with a value smaller than this.
announced_channelbooleanfalseSet to announce the channel publicly and notify all nodes that they can route via this channel. GUIs and wallet apps should be set to false.
commit_upfront_shutdown_pubkeybooleantrueWhen true (and the counterparty agrees), the user must use the same key for cooperative closing. This prevents a user from changing the destination address in a cooperative close, which slightly increases security (however, this option is not required if the counterparty does not support it and a channel can be accepted regardless). Note that the key for forced closing is always fixed when opening a channel and is different from shutdown_pubkey.
counterparty_locktimeinteger144The number of blocks we require our counterparty to wait to claim their money on chainif they broadcast a revoked transaction. We have to be online at least once during this time to punish our counterparty for broadcasting a revoked transaction. We have to account also for the time to broadcast and confirm our transaction, possibly with time in between to RBF (Replace-By-Fee) the spending transaction.
negotiate_scid_privacyintegerfalseIf true, we attempt to negotiate the scid_privacy (referred to as scid_alias in the BOLTs) option for outbound private channels. This provides better privacy by not including our real on-chain channel UTXO in each invoice and requiring that our counterparty only relay HTLCs to us using the channel's SCID alias.
their_channel_reserve_satsboolean10000The minimum balance that the other node has to maintain on their side, at all times. This ensures that if our counterparty broadcasts a revoked state, we can punish them by claiming at least this value on chain.

For GUIs and wallet apps, it is recommended to set announced_channel to false (the default value), as the node is not expected to be reliably online.

ParameterTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
proportional_fee_in_millionths_satsinteger0Amount (in milli-satoshi) charged for payments forwarded outbound over the channel, in excess of proportional_fee_in_millionths_sats.
base_fee_msatinteger1000Amount (in milli-satoshi) charged for payments forwarded outbound over the channel, in excess of proportional_fee_in_millionths_sats.
cltv_expiry_deltainteger72Blocks until CheckLockTimeVerify (CLTV) expiry.
max_dust_htlc_exposure_msatinteger5000000Limit our total exposure to in-flight HTLCs which are burned to fees as they are too small to claim on-chain.
force_close_avoidance_max_fee_satsinteger1000The additional fee we're willing to pay to avoid waiting for the counterparty's locktime to reclaim funds.

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
channel_idstringUnique string identifying a channel by its ID.
counterparty_node_idstringA hexadecimal string identifying a counterparty node.
funding_txstringA transaction ID which added funds.
from_funding_valueintegerThe minimum value of channel funding in satoshis.
to_funding_valueintegerThe maximum value of channel funding in satoshis.
channel_typestringInbound or Outbound.
closing_txintegerA transaction ID which closed the channel.
closure_reasonintegerThe reason a channel was closed.
claiming_txintegerThe ID of the transaction that returned the remaining outbound funds when the channel was closed to our on-chain address.
from_claimed_balanceintegerThe minimum balance of channel funds claimed in satoshis.
to_claimed_balanceintegerThe maximum balance of channel funds claimed in satoshis.
channel_visibilityintegerPublic or Private.

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
channel_idstringUnique string identifying a channel by its ID.
counterparty_node_idstringA hexadecimal string identifying a counterparty node.
funding_txstringA transaction ID which added funds.
from_funding_value_satsintegerThe minimum value of channel funding in satoshis.
to_funding_value_satsintegerThe maximum value of channel funding in satoshis.
is_outboundbooleanIf true, limits the response to outbound channels only.
from_balance_msatintegerThe minimum channel balance in millisatoshis.
to_balance_msatintegerThe maximum channel balance in millisatoshis.
from_outbound_capacity_msatintegerThe minimum outbound capacity of the channel balance in millisatoshis.
to_outbound_capacity_msatintegerThe maximum outbound capacity of the channel balance in millisatoshis.
from_inbound_capacity_msatintegerThe minimum inbound capacity of the channel balance in millisatoshis.
to_inbound_capacity_msatintegerThe maximum inbound capacity of the channel balance in millisatoshis.
confirmedbooleanIf true, only channels with channel opening transactions that passed the number of confirmations required for the channel to be usable will be returned.
is_usablebooleanIf true, only channels that are confirmed and the counterparty is online, meaning that these channels can be used for payments will be returned.
is_publicbooleanIf true, only channels that our node announces to the lightning network, these channels are visible on lightning explorers will be returned.

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
typestringThe payment type. Accepted values are invoice or keysend.
invoicestringOnly used if type is invoice. An identifying string which represents the invoice.
destinationstringOnly used if type is keysend. A node_pubkey (which is also the node address in lightning context). Not to be confused with an onchain address.
amount_in_msatstringOnly used if type is keysend. Amount to be paid, in millisatoshis (A thousandth of a satoshi; the same as 0.00000000001 bitcoin).
expirystringOnly used if type is keysend. Seconds until the payment expires.

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
payment_typeobjectA standard LightningPaymentType object.
descriptionstringA note to indicate the purpose of the invoice.
statusstringAccepted values: pending, succeeded, failed.
from_amount_msatintegerMinimum amount sent in millisatoshis
to_amount_msatintegerMaximum amount sent in millisatoshis
from_fee_paid_msatintegerMinimum transaction fee paid in millisatoshis
to_fee_paid_msatintegerMaximum transaction fee paid in millisatoshis
from_timestampstringMinimum timestamp in unix epoch format of payment results to return.
to_timestampstringMaximum timestamp in unix epoch format of payment results to return.

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
typestringAccepted values are Outbound Payment or Inbound Payment.
destinationstringOnly used if type is Outbound Payment. A pubkey which will receive the payment.

ParameterTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
force_announced_channel_preferencebooleanfalseThe user may override this preference in the channel opening request method call.
their_to_self_delayinteger1008The time that we require our counterparty to wait to claim their money, if they broadcast a revoked transaction. This can be increased to provide more punishment for broadcasting old states, but will result in higher fees (since emergency transactions will be larger).
our_to_self_delayinteger1008The time that our counterparty requires us to wait to claim our money, if we broadcast a revoked transaction.
our_htlc_minimum_msatinteger0The smallest value HTLC we will accept to forward from the counterparty.
max_accepted_htlcsinteger483The maximum number of HTLCs we will accept from the counterparty.
min_max_htlc_value_in_flight_msatboolean0The remote node sets a limit on the maximum value of pending HTLCs to them at any given time to limit their funds exposure to HTLCs. This allows us to set a minimum such value.
max_channel_reserve_satsboolean18446744073709551615The remote node will require us to keep a certain amount in direct payment to ourselves at all time, ensuring that we are able to be punished if we broadcast an old state. This allows us to limit the amount which we will have to keep to ourselves (and cannot use for HTLCs).
min_max_accepted_htlcsboolean0The remote node sets a limit on the maximum number of pending HTLCs to them at any given time. This allows us to set a minimum such value.

ParameterTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
node_pubkeystring-Lightning node pubkey
backup_passwordstring-Backup password used to encrypt channel backups
listening_portinteger9735Listening port for the Lightning network

ParameterTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
typestring-Exact for a specific amount or Max for whole balance.
valueobject-Required if type is Exact. The amount in BTC you want to open the channel with.

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
forwarding_fee_proportional_millionthsintegerAmount (in milli-satoshi) charged for payments forwarded outbound over the channel, in excess of proportional_fee_in_millionths_sats.
forwarding_fee_base_msatintegerAmount (in milli-satoshi) charged for payments forwarded outbound over the channel, in excess of proportional_fee_in_millionths_sats.
cltv_expiry_deltaintegerBlocks until CheckLockTimeVerify (CLTV) expiry.
max_dust_htlc_exposure_msatintegerLimit our total exposure to in-flight HTLCs which are burned to fees as they are too small to claim on-chain.
force_close_avoidance_max_fee_satsintegerThe additional fee we're willing to pay to avoid waiting for the counterparty's locktime to reclaim funds.

ParameterTypeRequiredDescription
channel_idstringUnique string identifying a channel by its ID.
counterparty_node_idstringA hexadecimal string identifying a counterparty node.
funding_txstringA transaction ID which added funds.
from_funding_valueintegerThe minimum value of channel funding in satoshis.
to_funding_valueintegerThe maximum value of channel funding in satoshis.
channel_typestringInbound or Outbound.
closing_txintegerA transaction ID which closed the channel.
closure_reasonintegerThe reason a channel was closed.
claiming_txintegerThe ID of the transaction that returned the remaining outbound funds when the channel was closed to our on-chain address.
from_claimed_balanceintegerThe minimum balance of channel funds claimed in satoshis.
to_claimed_balanceintegerThe maximum balance of channel funds claimed in satoshis.
channel_visibilityintegerPublic or Private.