Published on: 2019-01-26T23:11:17+00:00
Rusty Russell, a Bitcoin Lightning Network developer, has proposed a unification of feature bits in his email to the Lightning-dev mailing list. His proposal includes renaming 'local features' to 'peer features' and 'global features' to 'routing features'. The aim is to have both types of features share a number space without overlapping. As part of this plan, both the peer features and routing features will be included in the `features` section of node announcements.The motivation behind this proposal is to enable the use of node_announcement as a means to connect to a peer that supports a specific feature, as well as to determine if a node can be used for routing. By renaming and categorizing the features in this way, it will be easier for users to reason about the capabilities of a node.During the discussion, Fabrice Drouin raises concerns about the concept of `routing features` compared to `node features`. He finds it more intuitive to think in terms of `node features`, which are advertised in node announcements, and `peer/connection features`, which are a subset of `node features` applied to a specific connection. Fabrice suggests that all current features should be considered as node features, with the addition of the optional wumbo feature.Another point of contention raised by Fabrice is the rationale behind not allowing even bits in peer features. He argues that there may be cases where specific features are required for a specific connection, and disallowing even bits may limit flexibility. In response, Rusty explains that (future) DNS seed filtering might support filtering only by pairs of bits, meaning that peers supporting certain features could be filtered based on whether their feature bits are even or odd.In summary, Rusty Russell proposes a concrete plan for unifying feature bits in the Lightning Network. This plan involves renaming 'local features' to 'peer features' and 'global features' to 'routing features', ensuring that both types of features share a number space without overlap. The features will be included in node announcements, allowing for connection to peers with specific features and determining if a node can be used for routing. The discussion also touches on the distinction between 'node features' and 'peer/connection features', as well as the rationale behind disallowing even bits in peer features.
Updated on: 2023-07-31T21:24:26.470652+00:00