The Basics of using a Connext Client¶
Like web3.js or ethers, the Connext client is a collection of libraries that allow you to interact with a local or remote Connext node.
This quickstart will guide you through instantiating the Connext client with a randomly generated private key in a web environment to get basic Connext functionality (deposits, swaps, transfers, withdrawals) working as quickly as possible.
Instantiating with a private key should not be used in production environments - once you get through this guide, we recommend looking through the React Native Integration guide for better patterns.
We will connect to a testnet (Rinkeby) node hosted at https://rinkeby.indra.connext.network/api/messaging using the Connext client. If you don’t have any Rinkeby ETH, we recommend you get some from a faucet before continuing with this guide.
Setting up a Channel¶
First install the client library in your project root directory using NPM or Yarn:
npm install --save @connext/client
# OR
yarn add @connext/client
Then import it and setup a channel by calling connext.connect()
import * as connext from "@connext/client";
const channel = await connext.connect("rinkeby")
This will create a channel for you using a private key randomly generated from inside the client.
If you’re using React, it can be helpful to set up your channel and save the instance to state in componentDidMount (or even better, in a React hook).
Depositing¶
After instantiating and starting Connext, you can deposit into a channel with channel.deposit with any Eth or ERC20 token. The default .deposit method will attempt to deposit value from the channel’s signer address, found using await channel.signerAddress(). Because of this, if you’re trying to deposit a token, ensure that the user has sufficient Eth in their signer address to pay gas for the deposit transaction.
// Making a deposit in ETH
import { AddressZero } from "ethers/constants";
import { parseEther } from "ethers/utils";
const payload: AssetAmount = {
amount: parseEther("0.1").toString(), // in wei/wad (ethers.js methods are very convenient for getting wei amounts)
assetId: AddressZero // Use the AddressZero constant from ethers.js to represent ETH, or enter the token address
};
channel.deposit(payload);
You can also deposit directly into the channel by bypassing the signer address with some additional work. For more info, see Controlling Deposit Flow
Swaps¶
Our hosted testnet node collateralizes test ETH and test Dai and allows you to swap between them in-channel. Say hello to instant and free exchanges. Exchange rates are pulled from the Dai medianizer.
Make an in-channel swap:
// Exchanging Wei for Dai
import { AddressZero } from "ethers/constants";
import { parseEther } from "ethers/utils";
const payload: SwapParams = {
amount: parseEther("0.1").toString() // in wei (ethers.js methods are very convenient for getting wei amounts)
toAssetId: "0x89d24a6b4ccb1b6faa2625fe562bdd9a23260359" // Dai
fromAssetId: AddressZero // ETH
}
await channel.swap(payload)
Making a Transfer¶
You can now instantly make a transfer to any other client connected to the testnet node. Making a transfer is simple! Just call channel.transfer(). Recipient is identified by the counterparty’s public identifier, which you can find with channel.publicIdentifier.
// Transferring ETH
import { AddressZero } from "ethers/constants";
import { parseEther } from "ethers/utils";
const payload: TransferParams = {
recipient: "indraZTSVFe...", // counterparty's public identifier
meta: { value: "Metadata for transfer" }, // any arbitrary JSON data, or omit
amount: parseEther("0.1").toString(), // in wei (ethers.js methods are very convenient for getting wei amounts)
assetId: AddressZero // ETH
};
await channel.transfer(payload);
Withdrawing¶
Users can withdraw funds to any recipient address with channel.withdraw(). The specified assetId and amount must be part of the channel’s balance.
// Withdrawing ETH
import { AddressZero } from "ethers/constants";
import { parseEther } from "ethers/utils";
const payload: WithdrawParams = {
recipient: // defaults to signer address but can be changed to withdraw to any recipient
amount: parseEther("0.1").toString() // in wei (ethers.js methods are very convenient for getting wei amounts)
assetId: AddressZero
}
await channel.withdraw(payload)
React Native¶
If you are interested in using Connext in react native, check out a sample implementation here based on the react native typescript template.
What’s next?¶
If you’re integrating Connext into a native wallet, check out the React Native Integration Guide.
If you’re building an application that uses Connext, check out DApp Integrations (docs coming soon!).