The new version of the Sensei node for the Bitcoin Lightning (LN) network has several improvements in its new version 0.0.2, which allow it to work independently of the Electrum server and consume fewer resources of the device where it is used.
Engineer John Cantrell, from the Sensei team, announced the news that the most recent update of the node he develops brings. The first one is that from now on this node will be able to interact directly with the back end of the Bitcoin network.
The back end refers to everything that works behind the scenes in an application or website. It would be like the engine of a car; which, although it is not exposed to the eye of all, is what makes the car move.
The fact that the Sensei node can interact directly with the Bitcoin network makes it independent of the use of the Electrum server, which was previously essential for it. Electrum is a wallet that allows the sending and receiving of BTC, both on the Bitcoin main chain and via LN.
Light nodes with version 0.0.2 of Sensei that do not have their own network graph no longer need to process all the information they receive from other nodes, since the method of interaction between them has been simplified. This, coupled with the possibility of interacting directly with the main Bitcoin network, greatly reduces the amount of resources that a node of this type consumes.
Henceforth, it will be possible to administer a node among several users with conditioned access. That is, the main administrator can determine the freedoms that each one will have and if it is a unique or permanent access.
Other enhancements made by Sensei’s team to their node for the Lightning network include communication between the node and the Bitcoin mainchain, programming interface administrator authentication, and update to the development kits (LND) of Lightning.
Sensei’s node is not the only upgrade on the Bitcoin Lightning Network.
During the first days of February of this year, John Cantrell announced the launch of Sensei, a node for the Bitcoin Lightning network. Two months later its first update has arrived. However, other teams and companies are also working on improvements for the use and operation of this micropayment network.
Last week, Blockstream announced the name change of its Lightning Network implementation from c-lightning to Core Lightning.
CriptNoticias reported that they also took the opportunity to promote some of the improvements they are developing. One of them is the BOLT12 protocol, which will allow the sending of payment offers. Another improvement is Peerswapwhich will allow its users to balance their payment channels through atomic swaps with the main chain of Bitcoin and Liquid.