Deprecated Messages

❗️

Deprecated Messages

The following network messages have been deprecated and should no longer be used.

Alert

❗️

Deprecated since 0.15.0

Added in protocol version 311.
Removed by Bitcoin in protocol version 70013, but retained by Dash until 0.15.0.

The alert message warns nodes of problems that may affect them or the rest of the network. Each alert message is signed using a key controlled by respected community members, mostly Dash Core developers.

To ensure all nodes can validate and forward alert messages, encapsulation is used. Developers create an alert using the data structure appropriate for the versions of the software they want to notify; then they serialize that data and sign it. The serialized data and its signature make up the outer alert message---allowing nodes which don't understand the data structure to validate the signature and relay the alert to nodes which do understand it. The nodes which actually need the message can decode the serialized data to access the inner alert message.

The outer alert message has four fields:

Bytes	Name	Data Type	Description
Variable	alert bytes	compactSize uint	The number of bytes in following alert field.
Variable	alert	uchar	The serialized alert. See below for a description of the current alert format.
Variable	signature bytes	compactSize uint	The number of bytes in the following signature field.
Variable	signature	uchar	A DER-encoded ECDSA (secp256k1) signature of the alert signed with the developer's alert key.

Although designed to be easily upgraded, the format of the inner serialized alert has not changed since the alert message was first introduced in protocol version 311.

Bytes	Name	Data Type	Description
4	version	int32_t	Alert format version. Version 1 from protocol version 311 through at least protocol version 70002.
8	relayUntil	int64_t	The time beyond which nodes should stop relaying this alert. Unix epoch time format.
8	expiration	int64_t	The time beyond which this alert is no longer in effect and should be ignored. Unix epoch time format.
4	ID	int32_t	A unique ID number for this alert.
4	cancel	int32_t	All alerts with an ID number less than or equal to this number should be canceled: deleted and not accepted in the future.
Varies	setCancel count	compactSize uint	The number of IDs in the following setCancel field. May be zero.
Varies	setCancel	int32_t	Alert IDs which should be canceled. Each alert ID is a separate int32_t number.
4	minVer	int32_t	This alert only applies to protocol versions greater than or equal to this version. Nodes running other protocol versions should still relay it.
4	maxVer	int32_t	This alert only applies to protocol versions less than or equal to this version. Nodes running other protocol versions should still relay it.
Varies	user_agent count	compactSize uint	The number of user agent strings in the following setUser_agent field. May be zero.
Varies	setUser_agent	compactSize uint + string	If this field is empty, it has no effect on the alert. If there is at least one entry is this field, this alert only applies to programs with a user agent that exactly matches one of the strings in this field. Each entry in this field is a compactSize uint followed by a string---the uint indicates how many bytes are in the following string. This field was originally called setSubVer; since BIP14, it applies to user agent strings as defined in the version message.
4	priority	int32_t	Relative priority compared to other alerts.
Varies	comment bytes	compactSize uint	The number of bytes in the following comment field. May be zero.
Varies	comment	string	A comment on the alert that is not displayed.
Varies	statusBar bytes	compactSize uint	The number of bytes in the following statusBar field. May be zero.
Varies	statusBar	string	The alert message that is displayed to the user.
Varies	reserved bytes	compactSize uint	The number of bytes in the following reserved field. May be zero.
Varies	reserved	string	Reserved for future use. Originally called RPC Error.

The annotated hexdump below shows an alert message. (The message header has been omitted.)

Text

73 ................................. Bytes in encapsulated alert: 115
01000000 ........................... Version: 1
3766404f00000000 ................... RelayUntil: 1329620535
b305434f00000000 ................... Expiration: 1330917376

f2030000 ........................... ID: 1010
f1030000 ........................... Cancel: 1009
00 ................................. setCancel count: 0

10270000 ........................... MinVer: 10000
48ee0000 ........................... MaxVer: 61000
00 ................................. setUser_agent bytes: 0
64000000 ........................... Priority: 100

00 ................................. Bytes In Comment String: 0
46 ................................. Bytes in StatusBar String: 70
53656520626974636f696e2e6f72672f
666562323020696620796f7520686176
652074726f75626c6520636f6e6e6563
74696e67206166746572203230204665
627275617279 ....................... Status Bar String: "See [...]"
00 ................................. Bytes In Reserved String: 0

47 ................................. Bytes in signature: 71
30450221008389df45f0703f39ec8c1c
c42c13810ffcae14995bb648340219e3
53b63b53eb022009ec65e1c1aaeec1fd
334c6b684bde2b3f573060d5b70c3a46
723326e4e8a4f1 ..................... Signature

Alert key compromise: Dash Core's source code defines a particular set of alert parameters that can be used to notify users that the alert signing key has been compromised and that they should upgrade to get a new alert public key. Once a signed alert containing those parameters has been received, no other alerts can cancel or override it.

ix

❗️

Deprecated since 0.15.0

The ix message (transaction lock request) has the same structure as the tx message. The masternode network responds with txlvote messages if the transaction inputs can be locked.

txlvote

❗️

Deprecated since 0.15.0

The txlvote message (transaction lock vote) is sent by masternodes to indicate approval of a transaction lock request ix message.

Bytes	Name	Data type	Required	Description
32	txHash	uint256	Required	TXID of the transaction to lock
36	outPoint	outpoint	Required	The unspent outpoint to lock in this transaction
36	outpointMasternode	outpoint	Required	The outpoint of the masternode which is signing the vote
32	quorumModifierHash	uint256	Required	Added in protocol version 70213. Only present when Spork 15 is active.
32	masternodeProTxHash	uint256	Required	Added in protocol version 70213. Only present when Spork 15 is active. The proTxHash of the DIP3 masternode which is signing the vote
96	vchMasternodeSignature	char[]	Required	Masternode BLS signature

The following annotated hexdump shows a txlvote message. (The message header has been omitted.)

Text

84a27bb879f316482598fe65b0b51544
e85490d85fc36af1c293e186da373c02 ..... TXID

Outpoint to lock
| 4c1e6318bab4f9284d3bc0e49ec7fe76
| 1e9c914b8ea0bcac4563005daa451221 ... Outpoint TXID
| 00000000 ........................... Outpoint index number: 0

Masternode Outpoint
| 5d02f07c7318411e41fdd4be9f1e5ece
| 16d680cfe318306087edc8fb205e507b ... Outpoint TXID
| 01000000 ........................... Outpoint index number: 1

b62cb5007704d2db8595d5b31cfb7cb0
8d7e530c16a7597e1db4430a00000000 ..... Quorum Modifier hash

569abbea4ab45f36dd059c44f1dc0804
f3f13071379c2f418d3637fb548c4159 ..... Masternode ProRegTx hash

60 ................................... Signature length: 96

0b0b97ec14fbc1f12566c3a90ed113e4
e9c5ee6cdcf2fe2171e4b5f387286146
a0632a250d64ea507ce5e1d1f1983aae
0b70e568ad2856a0cc13008001c6d0f3
5bdeb380f6aba0c54663a3b5e2d86d44
305c2e5d855c72588ffb0e8e2a36482c ..... Masternode BLS Signature