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Eclair features
What Eclair gives a node operator — and the design choices behind it.
Eclair’s core features are: full BOLT-compliant channel management, a JSON-RPC API with the
eclair-cli command-line tool, a plugin system, built-in monitoring, flexible HOCON configuration,
and an architecture tuned for large, always-on routing nodes. It is a headless daemon backed by Bitcoin Core.
BOLT compliance
Eclair implements the open Lightning specifications (BOLTs), so it opens channels and routes payments interoperably with other spec-compliant nodes across the network.
Built for large nodes
The design prioritises reliability and throughput for nodes that manage many channels and high payment volume, rather than bundling a consumer wallet interface.
JSON-RPC API & eclair-cli
Every node operation is available through an HTTP API and the eclair-cli wrapper, making Eclair straightforward to script, monitor, and integrate into back-end services.
Plugin system
Eclair can be extended with plugins that hook into node events, letting teams add custom behaviour without forking the core.
Monitoring & metrics
Instrumentation support makes it possible to export runtime metrics and traces, which matters for operators running production infrastructure.
HOCON configuration
Node behaviour is set through a human-readable eclair.conf file, giving fine-grained control over networking, fees, channel policy and more.
Bitcoin Core backend
Eclair uses a Bitcoin Core full node for its blockchain view and wallet operations, keeping on-chain handling with well-audited software.
Open source (Apache 2.0)
The full codebase is public and permissively licensed, so it can be audited, self-hosted, and contributed to by anyone.
Feature availability and defaults change between releases. For the authoritative and current list, see the official Eclair repository and its release notes.