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Jibreel (OP)
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May 23, 2017, 08:31:54 PM
Merited by ABCbits (1)
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Looking into lite wallets. Are they a legit part of the bitcoin/altcoin networks that are just scaled back to not include the full block-chain?

Or are they an interface to a "middle man" a wallet that holds all the bitcoins of everyone using said middleman. And the middleman knows whos currency belongs to whom because you are each assigned a unique public adress?

What I'm getting at is how does a lite wallet get around hosting the block-chain?

Thanks.
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There are several different types of Bitcoin clients. The most secure are full nodes like Bitcoin Core, but full nodes are more resource-heavy, and they must do a lengthy initial syncing process. As a result, lightweight clients with somewhat less security are commonly used.
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May 23, 2017, 08:42:54 PM
Merited by ABCbits (1)
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A lightweight wallet connects to a full node and asks from that node for information related to itself. It essentially gives that node a list of its addresses and asks that the full node only relay transactions which pertain to those addresses. The private keys themselves are still stored within the wallet and are not exposed to the full nodes that it connects to. In exchange for the convenience of not having the entire blockchain, you lose some privacy and security as you have to trust that the full node is providing the correct data.
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Jibreel (OP)
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May 23, 2017, 09:00:10 PM
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Quote from: achow101 on May 23, 2017, 08:42:54 PM
A lightweight wallet connects to a full node and asks from that node for information related to itself. It essentially gives that node a list of its addresses and asks that the full node only relay transactions which pertain to those addresses. The private keys themselves are still stored within the wallet and are not exposed to the full nodes that it connects to. In exchange for the convenience of not having the entire blockchain, you lose some privacy and security as you have to trust that the full node is providing the correct data.

Ok thanks. Follow up question, lets say I have an Electrum lite wallet. Does my lite wallet connect to a full node that is run by/specified by Electrum. Or is it a random node?
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May 23, 2017, 09:02:48 PM
Merited by ABCbits (1)
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There is a set of Electrum nodes out there that specifically run Electrum Server. Your client will connect to one of them (a bunch are run by different volunteers), but you can pick which one in Tools -> Network. It won't be a random node that isn't specifically running Electrum Server though.

SPV, on the other hand, communicates with normal nodes in the network, but does not sync a full chain.
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May 23, 2017, 11:31:36 PM
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Ok thank you both. For anyone else looking this stuff up, SVP stands for simplified payment verification.
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