🎯 What is a Lightning Network node? ⚡️ The Lightning Network is a layer 2 system built on top of bitcoin to make it faster, cheaper and more scalable. Lightning nodes are the key players in this parallel network: software that processes instant payments off-chain, without writing everything to the blockchain. 🔧 How an LN node works. - Opens two-way payment channels with other nodes. - Signs and updates off-chain transactions. - Requires a full bitcoin node to interact with the blockchain (e.g. open/close channels). - Must always be online to function properly. 🔄 How does a lightning payment take place? 1. Alice and Bob open a channel with an on-chain transaction. 2. Future transactions take place off-chain, updating the balance in real time. 3. Payments can be routed through multiple nodes (e.g., Alice → Bob → Carol → Dave). 4. At closing, the last signed balance is published on the blockchain. 📡 Types of Lightning Nodes. 1. 🔀 Routing node: routes third-party payments, earns fees. 2.🧍‍♂️Private node: personal use. 3.📱 Mobile node: integrated into simplified wallets (such as Phoenix or Breez). 💻 Main software. - LND (Go): widely used, easy to integrate. - Core Lightning (C): highly modular. - Eclair (Scala): suitable for servers and mobile applications. - Rust-Lightning: for custom solutions. ⚙️ Bitcoin Nodes vs. Lightning Nodes. - Verification: full node on-chain; Lightning node off-chain. - Memory: Full node hundreds of GB; Lightning node a few GB. - Privacy: full node all public; lightning node more privacy. - Scalability: full node limited by blocks; lightning node millions of transactions per second. - Connectivity: full node not always online; lightning node always online. - Fees: full node variable/high; lightning node few sats. ⚠️ Pros and Cons. ✅️ Pro: - Instant and almost free payments - High privacy and scalability ❌️ Cons: - Channels must be balanced (need liquidity on both sides) - Not suitable for very large amounts - Risk of losing funds if backup is not updated 📲 Examples of real-world use cases. - Mobile Wallets: Phoenix, Muun, Breez - Merchants accepting BTC via Lightning - Routing nodes that earn fees by routing payments ➡️ Lightning is the backbone of bitcoin's scalability: fast, cheap, distributed. But as always: Don't trust, verify! ❓️ What are UTXOs? 📶 Stay tuned. #utxo #bitcoin #lighting #network #blockchain #timechain #node