# [[Blockstream]] Greenlight - Homepage: [blockstream.com/lightning/greenlight/](https://blockstream.com/lightning/greenlight/) - GitHub repo: [Blockstream/greenlight](https://github.com/Blockstream/greenlight) - Docs: blockstream.github.io/greenlight/getting-started/](https://blockstream.github.io/greenlight/getting-started/) ## [Greenlight Is Now Open for Business](https://blog.blockstream.com/greenlight-is-now-open-for-business/) [[Christian Decker]], [[2023-10-12]] ## [Greenlight by Blockstream: Lightning Made Easy](https://blog.blockstream.com/en-greenlight-by-blockstream-lightning-made-easy/) [[Christian Decker]], [[2021-07-21]] Today we’re excited to unveil Greenlight, our latest Lightning Network service. The new service provides simple, secure access to the Lightning Network, allowing anyone to spin up their Lightning node in the cloud while retaining complete control over their funds. Getting started with Bitcoin can be challenging, particularly when learning how to keep funds safe and private. Onboarding Lightning adds another layer of complexity because of the need to operate channels and liquidity as well as manage backups and watchtowers. New users often opt for custodial services where these technical challenges are managed for them but at the cost of trusting the service operator with their funds. There is, however, a middle ground that we think is far better: use an operator to run the node with all of the associated challenges while keeping control over the funds with the user. This is precisely what Greenlight enables. Based on the highly modular and extensible open-source c-lightning implementation, we can run the node on our infrastructure while the user retains the keys on their own user device. Anything that touches your private keys requires signing by your device. ### Overview Greenlight allows anyone to boot up their personal Lightning node on our cloud infrastructure in seconds and take full control over their funds. The private keys, required to sign both on-chain and off-chain transactions, never leave the user’s device. Users interact with the node via a simple programmable interface and we take care of the rest. We schedule the node on our infrastructure when needed, managing everything from the Bitcoin back-end to encrypted backups and watchtowers. You take care of your funds, we’ll manage the rest. When scheduled to run on the infrastructure, the node will attempt to connect to the user’s device which holds the keys and ask for sign-off on any operation that involves the user’s funds. When the user isn’t using their node, it shuts down automatically until it’s needed again. Starting the node is almost instantaneous, ensuring that the user experience is seamless. - **Security**: Greenlight is non-custodial. While the nodes run on our infrastructure, our operations team never has access to your funds since keys are managed on the user’s device. Operations proposed by the node are verified on the user device before signing off on them. - **Low cost**: c-lightning’s low resource footprint and the fact that nodes run on-demand means running a node using Greenlight is very inexpensive compared to other providers. During the initial testing phases of the service, users won’t be charged at all. - **One user, one node**: Unlike bundling the node with the front-end app, Greenlight allows sharing a single node among any number of front-ends. This saves a lot of on-chain fees for the user, and reduces fragmentation of user funds. No more moving funds from your home node to your phone because you ran out of capacity. - **Simple recovery**: Losing your phone at sea won’t mean losing your bitcoin. Since we manage the database and the backups, recovering the funds is as simple as initiating a new front-end with your seed phrase. - **On-board to off-board**: Our main goal is to provide new users with a great first experience and a suitable starting point into the Bitcoin space. Conversely, we want users to eventually become knowledgeable enough to begin taking more control over their infrastructure. For that reason, we will offer users the option of exporting their node and loading it onto a platform of their choice. ### Rollout Greenlight is available through [[Sphinx]] and [[Lastbit]] (currently on testnet), with an incremental rollout planned for the greater public after the initial beta phase. We encourage interested users to try out Greenlight via Sphinx or Lastbit. ### Analysis This post does not specify how and whether the user's phone needs to be online