What is bitcoinjs-lib?
The bitcoinjs-lib npm package is a library for Bitcoin-related operations in JavaScript. It provides tools for creating, signing, and verifying Bitcoin transactions, as well as generating and managing Bitcoin addresses and keys.
What are bitcoinjs-lib's main functionalities?
Generate a Bitcoin Address
This feature allows you to generate a new Bitcoin address. The code creates a random key pair and derives a Bitcoin address from the public key.
const bitcoin = require('bitcoinjs-lib');
const keyPair = bitcoin.ECPair.makeRandom();
const { address } = bitcoin.payments.p2pkh({ pubkey: keyPair.publicKey });
console.log(address);
Create a Bitcoin Transaction
This feature allows you to create a Bitcoin transaction. The code builds a transaction by adding inputs and outputs, and then signs it with the private key.
const bitcoin = require('bitcoinjs-lib');
const keyPair = bitcoin.ECPair.fromWIF('your-private-key');
const txb = new bitcoin.TransactionBuilder();
txb.addInput('previous-txid', 0); // Add input (previous transaction)
txb.addOutput('recipient-address', 100000); // Add output (recipient address and amount in satoshis)
txb.sign(0, keyPair); // Sign the transaction
const tx = txb.build().toHex();
console.log(tx);
Verify a Bitcoin Transaction
This feature allows you to verify a Bitcoin transaction. The code parses a transaction from its hexadecimal representation and checks if all inputs have valid scripts.
const bitcoin = require('bitcoinjs-lib');
const tx = bitcoin.Transaction.fromHex('transaction-hex');
const txb = bitcoin.TransactionBuilder.fromTransaction(tx);
const isValid = txb.inputs.every(input => input.script && input.script.length > 0);
console.log(isValid);
Other packages similar to bitcoinjs-lib
bitcore-lib
Bitcore-lib is another JavaScript library for Bitcoin-related operations. It offers similar functionalities to bitcoinjs-lib, such as creating and signing transactions, generating addresses, and managing keys. Bitcore-lib is part of the Bitcore project, which includes additional tools and services for Bitcoin development.
bcoin
Bcoin is a full Bitcoin node implementation in JavaScript. It provides a comprehensive set of tools for Bitcoin development, including wallet management, transaction creation, and blockchain interaction. Bcoin is more feature-rich compared to bitcoinjs-lib, as it can run as a full node and participate in the Bitcoin network.
bitcoin-core
Bitcoin-core is a JavaScript library for interacting with Bitcoin Core, the reference implementation of the Bitcoin protocol. It allows developers to communicate with a Bitcoin Core node using RPC calls, enabling functionalities such as transaction creation, address management, and blockchain querying. Unlike bitcoinjs-lib, which is a standalone library, bitcoin-core relies on a running Bitcoin Core node.
bitcoinjs-lib
A library containing Bitcoin client-side functionality in JavaScript,
most notably ECDSA signing and verification.
Status
This is currently pretty raw code. We're planning to clean it up,
convert everything into CommonJS modules and put a flexible build
system in place.
Prototype software, use at your own peril.