FAQ

What is the kill switch?

The nodl Dojo and (optionally) the nodl One come with a "Kill Switch". The kill switch is a small switch inside the case that is triggered when someone opens the case. Think of it as a low tech protection against an attempt to dump the memory by physically accessing it (the goal is to slow down a clueless attacker).

The kill switch board also contains the LED that provides the top logo backlight.

What is the Lightning Network and how can I use it?

The Lightning Network is a “layer two” payment protocol built on top of Bitcoin. Its goals are to enable faster and more scalable transactions. Transactions on the Lightning Network are said to be off-chain as they are not individually visible on the bitcoin chain. Instead, these transactions are made peer-to-peer between bi-directional payment channels that are user generated.

Your nodl is both a bitcoin full node – it runs bitcoind - and a lightning network node – it runs LND. As such, you can process transaction on chain (using the bitcoin layer) or off-chain, using the (lightning layer).

To interact with the lightning network you can:

• use whichever Lightning Wallet you wish with your nodl, as long as that Lightning Wallet lets you connect to your node. You will then use that specific wallet and its functionalities to create and maintain channels.
• use Ride the Lightning directly from your nodl user interface to interact with LND. Ride the Lightning (RTL) is a graphical user interface for lightning. RTL will enable you to create, manage and maintain all your payment channels.

Can I Make Money Running a Lightning Node?

Earning fees on the lightning network requires you to route payments. This means that you want people on the network to go through your node to make those payments. It is therefore very important that your node be well connected to other well-connected nodes so that the odds that payments get routed through you are as high as possible.

The best way to get started with lightning is to pick a wallet that let’s you connect to your nodl or launch Ride the Lightning (RTL) from your nodl’s user interface and then dig into one of these apps to fund your wallet, find peers, open channels and learn how to manage them. It is through the management of those channels that you will be able to setup your fee policy for people who transact through you and maybe earn a few sats along the way.

Now a final word of advice. Lightning routing is still very new and requires a good understanding of both bitcoin and the lightning protocol. While you can earn a few sats for routing payments, you should not expect that to be a profitable let alone lucrative activity. However, there is much to learn and we encourage you strongly to interact with Lightning as is definitely has huge potential to be used as infrastructure for the future.