some thoughts on lightning. can be extremely private but it's arguably more expensive than just sending on-chain. trade-off: everyone needs to connect to a large routing node for reliable transactions. should it be "easy" to run a decentralized bank? it's a baby.

with great privacy comes great responsibility.

those who continue to work in a browser over the terminal will continue to fall behind exponentially.

computers are weapons (tools) and if we do not learn how to use them properly, our own computers will be used as weapons against us.

instagram captures men and women because it uses two of the strongest deadly sins. envy (women) and lust (men)

we will someday all start our day by opening a terminal rather than a web browser.

shoot to get hot, shoot to stay hot.

I think I may kill the web browser.

Virtual Private Node v0.3.4 🧅 ALL downloads route through Tor ⚡ Dashboard polls 4x faster 🔑 Seed confirmation: type "I SAVED MY SEED" to proceed 🛡 Rate limiting, IP stripping on LndHub proxy 📦 LndHub install blocked during IBD (prevents CPU timeout)

GitHub

GitHub - ripsline/virtual-private-node: Bitcoin Lightning Node in minutes. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified. Tor-routed. No wrappers. No abstractions. Your keys, your node.

Bitcoin Lightning Node in minutes. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified. Tor-routed. No wrappers. No abstraction...

we reach our greatest satisfactions in the action of creation.

the computer is a tool for creation. with great power comes great responsibility.

what are we here for if not to change things?

make privacy convenient

Virtual Private Node v0.3.1 — Syncthing channel backups, simplified. Your LND channel.backup now syncs automatically to your local device over a direct encrypted connection. No Tor on your laptop. No config files. No terminal commands. Install Syncthing on your computer/phone. Pair it from the dashboard. Done. Your backup syncs whenever both devices are online. How it works: → Syncthing uses mutual TLS with Ed25519 device keys → Only devices you explicitly approve can connect → Unapproved connections rejected before any data exchange → Discovery servers and relays disabled — direct IP only → channel.backup is useless without your 24-word seed The pairing flow is built into the TUI. Press [a] in the Syncthing details screen, paste your local Device ID, and the VPS shares the backup folder automatically. Also in this release: • Self-update screen appears immediately (was stuck behind q) • Dashboard layout no longer overflows on some terminals • LndHub clearnet connections are TLS-encrypted (docs corrected) Virtual Private Node is a one-command installer for a private Lightning node. Bitcoin Core, LND, Tor, and now automatic channel backups — configured and running in minutes on Debian. Your keys. Your node. Your backups.

GitHub

GitHub - ripsline/virtual-private-node: Bitcoin Lightning Node in minutes. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified. Tor-routed. No wrappers. No abstractions. Your keys, your node.

Bitcoin Lightning Node in minutes. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified. Tor-routed. No wrappers. No abstraction...

Virtual Private Node v0.3.0 — Lightning Accounts This release adds LndHub.go as a new add-on. Create separate Lightning wallet accounts for family, friends, or AI agents — all backed by your own LND node. Built from source at a pinned release tag. No prebuilt binaries. Managed entirely from the SSH dashboard. Each account gets a one-time login and password. Share the credentials or scan a QR code. The admin cannot see user balances. Deactivation records the balance so you can refund to a new account. Passwords are shown once and never stored anywhere. The bigger change is how clearnet connections work. Previously, LndHub was exposed over unencrypted HTTP in hybrid P2P mode. Now a TLS reverse proxy sits in front of it — self-signed ECDSA P-256 certificate with your server's IP in the SAN. Same approach LND uses for its REST API. Zeus users accept the cert on first connection. Tor connections bypass the proxy entirely. The proxy only exists when you need it. Tor-only mode: no proxy, no open port, LndHub reachable only through the hidden service. Hybrid mode: proxy auto-installs, firewall opens port 3000 for encrypted access. Upgrade from Tor to hybrid later and the proxy gets added automatically. Security fixes throughout: SQL injection prevention on database queries, double-sudo bug fix, account name input validation, sshd hardening with drop-in config files, version cache moved out of /tmp. Code cleanup: consistent command execution patterns, idiomatic timeouts, migrated GPG calls to the system package abstraction. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. Add LndHub, Lightning Terminal, and Syncthing from the dashboard. No wrappers. No abstractions. Your keys, your node. github.com/ripsline/virtual-private-node

Virtual Private Node v0.2.3 released — security hardening for private Lightning node. What is it: A one-command installer for Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified binaries. Tor-routed connections. No wrappers. Your keys, your node. What's new in v0.2.3: Security: • Fixed a shell injection vulnerability in the macaroon reader • Tor config now rolls back automatically if an add-on install fails • Network names are validated on config load — no silent misconfiguration • Install check won't accidentally reinstall over a running system Architecture: • New paths package — every filesystem path defined in one place • New structured logger — /var/log/rlvpn.log with [verify], [install], [tui] sections • Safe binary file reader (SudoReadFile) — no more shell pipelines for privileged reads • Dashboard polling guard prevents duplicate subprocess calls Install on Debian 13+:

GitHub

GitHub - ripsline/virtual-private-node: Bitcoin Lightning Node in minutes. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified. Tor-routed. No wrappers. No abstractions. Your keys, your node.

Bitcoin Lightning Node in minutes. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified. Tor-routed. No wrappers. No abstraction...

Virtual Private Node v0.2.2 is out. This is a one-command installer for a private Lightning node on Debian. Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor — configured and running in minutes. No wrappers. No abstractions. v0.2.2 is the biggest release yet: Security: • TUI runs as an unprivileged user — sudo per-action, not root • GPG signing key moved to keys.openpgp.org with pinned fingerprint — no more circular trust with GitHub • Bad signature detection — any BADSIG from a trusted key is a hard stop • File permissions tightened across the board Lightning-focused: • Bitcoin Core wallet disabled • Sparrow wallet support removed • Fixed 25 GB prune Hybrid P2P: • Choose tor-only or clearnet+tor during LND install • Upgrade from tor-only to hybrid anytime from the dashboard • Zeus wallet pairing shows both clearnet and Tor connections • Separate QR codes for clearnet and Tor Under the hood: • 60+ unit tests covering config, verification, torrc generation, and TUI state • Typed JSON parsing for bitcoin-cli and lncli • Install and wallet state tracked in config.json • Version check cached 24 hours Try it:

GitHub

GitHub - ripsline/virtual-private-node: Bitcoin Lightning Node in minutes. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified. Tor-routed. No wrappers. No abstractions. Your keys, your node.

Bitcoin Lightning Node in minutes. One command installs Bitcoin Core, LND, and Tor on Debian. GPG-verified. Tor-routed. No wrappers. No abstraction...

nobody is going to give their bot a credit card but they will give it a macaroon with an allowance.

I am betting on people wanting to learn skills that give them freedom.

freedom is self-taught.