Coinswap Taker App

A desktop application for performing private Bitcoin swaps using the Coinswap Protocol.

What is a Taker?

In the Coinswap protocol, a Taker is a Bitcoin user who initiates atomic swaps to enhance their transaction privacy. The Taker app acts as a Bitcoin wallet with coinswap capabilities, allowing you to:

• Swap your Bitcoin UTXOs with multiple makers simultaneously
• Break transaction graph analysis through multi-hop routing
• Maintain complete custody of your funds throughout the swap
• Earn privacy without trusting any third party

Unlike traditional Bitcoin transactions that create an on-chain trail, coinswaps mix your coins through multiple makers, making it significantly harder to trace the origin and destination of funds.

Prerequisites

Required

The Taker app requires the following components to operate:

1. Bitcoin Core (Mutinynet) - A fully synced Mutinynet node with proper RPC and ZMQ configuration

   • See the Bitcoin Core setup guide for detailed instructions

2. Tor - Required for anonymous maker discovery and privacy

   • See the Tor setup guide for configuration instructions

3. Node.js (v18 or higher) - Only required for building from source

4. Rust toolchain - Only required for building from source

   • Install from rustup.rs

Alternative: Docker Setup

If you prefer a pre-configured environment, you can use Docker Compose to spin up Tor, Bitcoin Core (Mutinynet), and maker services automatically.

See the Docker setup guide for instructions.

Build from Source

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/citadel-tech/taker-app.git
cd taker-app

# Install dependencies and setup native modules
# Note: First-time setup compiles Rust code and may take 2-3 minutes
npm install

# Start development mode
npm run dev

Architecture

Built with Electron, Vanilla JavaScript, and Tailwind CSS. The app communicates with the Coinswap protocol through coinswap-ffi, which provides native Rust performance for cryptographic operations and protocol handling.

Native Module Setup

The app uses coinswap-napi, a Node.js native addon that wraps the Rust coinswap implementation. This is automatically built and linked during installation:

1. npm install triggers the prepare script
2. setup-coinswap.js clones coinswap-ffi
3. The native module is compiled and symlinked to node_modules/coinswap-napi

If you encounter issues with the native module, manually run:

npm run setup:coinswap

Usage

See the Usage Guide for detailed instructions on:

• Wallet management and setup
• Browsing the maker marketplace
• Executing coinswaps
• Sending and receiving Bitcoin
• Recovery procedures

Building for Production

Prerequisites

Before creating a production build, ensure you have installed all dependencies:

npm install

This will automatically:

• Install Node.js dependencies
• Clone and build the coinswap native module (first build may take 2-3 minutes)
• Build production CSS

Create Distribution Build

npm run dist

This creates production-ready packages in the dist/ directory:

• TakerApp-1.0.0.AppImage - Portable executable for all Linux distributions
• taker-app_1.0.0_amd64.snap - Optional snap package

Using the AppImage

# Make executable (one-time)
chmod +x dist/TakerApp-1.0.0.AppImage

# Run directly
./dist/TakerApp-1.0.0.AppImage

Optional desktop integration:

# Integrate with application menu
./dist/TakerApp-1.0.0.AppImage --appimage-integrate

# Remove integration
./dist/TakerApp-1.0.0.AppImage --appimage-unintegrate

Extract and inspect:

./dist/TakerApp-1.0.0.AppImage --appimage-extract
cd squashfs-root
./TakerApp

Build Optimization

• Native Module: Production builds use release-optimized Rust binaries (--release flag) for better performance and reduced memory usage
• ASAR: Currently disabled to ensure native module compatibility
• CSS: Tailwind processes only the classes used in your app for minimal bundle size

Development

Development Mode

For development with hot-reload:

npm run dev

This runs:

• Tailwind CSS in watch mode
• Electron in development mode with live reloading

Development Scripts

Command	Description
npm install	Install dependencies and setup native modules
npm run dev	Start app in development mode with hot-reload
npm run setup:coinswap	Clone/update and build the coinswap native module
npm run build:css	Build Tailwind CSS for production
npm run dist	Create production build (AppImage + Snap)
npm start	Start Electron without hot-reload

Troubleshooting

AppImage won't run

# Check if FUSE is available
which fusermount

# If missing, install FUSE2
sudo apt install fuse libfuse2

# Or extract and run directly
./TakerApp-1.0.0.AppImage --appimage-extract
./squashfs-root/TakerApp

Error: Cannot find module 'coinswap-napi'

npm install

Native module fails to load

# Rebuild the native module
cd coinswap-ffi/coinswap-js
npm run build
cd ../..
npm run setup:coinswap

Build takes a long time

The first build compiles Rust code which can take 2-3 minutes. This is normal. Subsequent builds will be faster as most dependencies are cached.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! To contribute:

• Report Bugs - Open an issue with reproduction steps
• Suggest Features - Propose improvements via issues
• Submit Code - Fork, create a feature branch, and submit a PR

Development Guidelines

• Test changes on both Signet and Regtest before submitting
• Ensure npm run dist succeeds before submitting PRs
• For protocol-level changes, contribute to the core Coinswap library

Questions? Join our Discord server.

Security

Report security issues on our Discord or email [email protected].

⚠️ Important: This software is experimental. Do not use on mainnet with real funds.

License

Dual-licensed under MIT or Apache 2.0 at your option.

Community

• Discord - Join our server
• GitHub Issues - Report bugs and request features
• Core Library - Coinswap protocol implementation

---

⚠️ Warning: Experimental software under active development. Mainnet use is NOT recommended.