About LN+
Lightning Network Plus (LN+) is a free web app that helps Bitcoin Lightning Network node operators cooperate: find and communicate with each other, create liquidity for their nodes, and to secure their setups.
LN+'s 4 main services are explained below:
Liquidity Swaps
What is the problem?
When somebody creates a Bitcoin Lightning Network node, they can start opening channels to other nodes to create outgoing liquidity which allows them to spend SATs. However, they would not be able to receive bitcoins on lightning, until they have spent some bitcoins from their new channels. In order to receive bitcoins on LN, they will need another node to open a channel to them. Such an incoming channel will have incoming capacity, which allows for receiving funds.
Also, if you intend to route SATs with your node to earn routing fees, you need to have ample incoming and outgoing capacity.
What is the solution?
On LN+ users can team up and create liquidity swaps (aka Rings of Fire). The app walks you through each step to make it an easy process. You will get incoming liquidity, and will be able to grow your channel count and capacity twice as fast, without any extra costs.
To explain it in more detail, LN+ helps node operators to collaboratively open channels to each other. 3 to 5 users will connect to each other in a circle. This way each participant of such a liquidity swap will have incoming and outgoing capacity to each participant by doing just a single channel open, and nobody will have duplicated channels between each other.
We also have the option for you to find partners who are ready to open a so called dual funded channel, so the two of you can open a single 2x larger channel that is by default balanced.
By having more channels and capacity you will increase routing fees earned and ensure your node is highly reliable for both sending and receiving payments.
Liquidity swaps in general help people of the world to get onboarded to lightning easier, and to decentralize the Lightning Network so that it's more robust and reliable and not dependent on a few giant nodes connecting everyone.
Watch Swaps
What is the problem?
Without a watchtower if your node was offline for a long period of time, a channel partner may attempt to force close the channel you have with them with a channel state that is not the latest one and more beneficial to them (funds are on their side). If your node is offline for longer than the channel closure time lock, which can be anywhere between 1 day to 2 weeks depending on your settings, your node would not be able to contest such a malicious channel closure transaction, and thus you may receive less funds on chain than you are supposed to compared to a fair channel closure.
What is the solution?
On LN+ users can team up to create watchtower swaps (watch swaps). The app walks you through each step to make it an easy process. Your node will get protected from malicious actors even when your node is offline, without any cost on your part. And, in return you will be protecting another node of similar size.
When you have a watchtower client implemented the watchtower service will be able to contest the malicious channel closing transaction on your behalf even if you're offline. Beyond that, following the rules of the Lightning Network the attacker will be punished by sending all the funds in the channel to you even if the attacker had funds in the channel. This makes a successful defence against an attacker profitable to you.
It's important to note that a watchtower service can't misuse the information or take your funds. They can only issue a punish transaction if there is a breach and the funds will go to you and they can't take them.
In general terms, having watchtowers running on many nodes protect all nodes through game theory because potential attackers will not know which nodes have and how many watchtowers, therefore increasing the risk and thus cost of such attacks on nodes that are offline. Such offline nodes can act like potential honeypots to attract attackers and then taking the attacker's funds through the punish transaction.
Running a watchtower service does take some resources since your node will be receiving an encrypted version of the latest channel states from the node you're watching over, and your node will also monitor the blockchain for any malicious transactions.
Since it takes resources to run a watchtower service, make sure you don't share your or your watch swap partner's service address publicly, so other nodes can't connect to the service without asking first.
It's important you learn about watchtowers in general and how to setup a watchtower service and a watchtower client before participating in watch swaps on LN+. Read about the LND watchtower or The Eye of Satoshi service for CLN. If you're running an Umbrel the Advanced Settings in your Lightning app contain your watchtower settings.
Node Explorer
What is the problem?
There are tens of thousands of Bitcoin Lighthning Network nodes out there ran by various entities and it's hard to keep track of them, or find the right one to connect to, and to learn about them.
What is the solution?
LN+'s bitcoin lightning network node explorer allows you to browse and search for publicly visible nodes on the network. If users claim their node profile you will be able to see information that the node operator shares, like their twitter or website URL, public posts, their swaps, etc.
As a node operator on LN+ you can also promote your node profile so you can be discovered by other node operators and receive incoming channels.
Direct Messages
What is the problem?
Bitcoin Lightning Network node operators are often hard to contact, because they are anonymous or psudonymous and have no official contact details. On LN+ node profiles may contain their twitter link, but you may not be able to DM them regardless.
What is the solution?
LN+ provides a messaging function between node operators. To send a message to a node operator just click the Message button on their node profile. The messages can be read online on LN+ and if the email notification is enabled on the receiver's node profile, they will also be notified by the new message received.