RootlessNet

A rootless, ownerless substrate for human expression.

Speech without roots. Power without owners.

Features • Quick Start • Documentation • Contributing • License

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What is RootlessNet?

RootlessNet is a decentralized protocol for censorship-resistant communication. It's not a platform, company, or product—it's infrastructure that makes human expression structurally resilient to control, capture, and silent erasure.

Key Principles

• 🔑 Self-Sovereign Identity — You own your keys, you own your identity
• 📦 Data Portability — Take your content and audience anywhere
• 🌐 No Central Authority — No one can globally censor or control
• 🔒 Privacy by Default — End-to-end encryption for private communications
• 🏛️ Local Moderation — Communities choose their own rules
• 🔄 Client Diversity — Multiple clients, one protocol

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Features

Identity

• Self-generated cryptographic identities
• Persistent pseudonyms or ephemeral presence
• Key rotation and recovery options
• Zero-knowledge proofs for attribute verification

Content

• Signed, content-addressed posts
• Multi-format support (text, media, documents)
• Threaded conversations
• Optional encryption levels

Zones (Communities)

• Create topic-focused spaces
• Flexible governance models
• Local moderation policies
• Federation between zones

Messaging

• End-to-end encrypted direct messages
• Group messaging with forward secrecy
• Optional message expiration
• Anonymous sending option

Network

• P2P mesh networking
• Multiple transport options
• Tor/I2P support for anonymity
• Offline-first design

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Quick Start

Installation

# Using bun (recommended)
bun add @rootlessnet/sdk

# Install CLI globally
bun add -g @rootlessnet/cli

Create Your Identity

rootless identity create

Post Your First Content

rootless post "Hello, RootlessNet!"

Start a Node

rootless node start

SDK Usage

import { RootlessNet } from '@rootlessnet/sdk';

const client = new RootlessNet();

// Create identity
const identity = await client.createIdentity();

// Post content
const post = await client.post('Hello, decentralized world!');

// Send encrypted message
await client.sendMessage(recipientDid, 'Private message here');

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Documentation

Document	Description
CONTEXT.md	Complete protocol specification and philosophy
docs/ARCHITECTURE.md	Technical architecture details
docs/SECURITY.md	Security model and threat analysis
docs/PROTOCOL.md	Wire protocol overview
docs/PROTOCOL_SPEC.md	Comprehensive protocol specification
docs/CRYPTO_SPEC.md	Cryptographic implementation requirements
docs/DEVELOPER_GUIDE.md	Developer getting started guide
docs/FAQ.md	Frequently asked questions
docs/CONTRIBUTING.md	How to contribute
docs/GOVERNANCE.md	Project governance

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Architecture Overview

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    Client Applications                       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                    Protocol Layer                            │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│   Identity   │   Content   │   Zones   │   Messaging        │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                    Cryptographic Layer                       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│   P2P Network   │   Relays   │   Storage   │   DHT         │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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Security

RootlessNet is designed with security as a core principle:

• Signatures: Ed25519 for all content signing
• Encryption: XChaCha20-Poly1305 for symmetric encryption
• Key Exchange: X25519 for asymmetric operations
• Hashing: BLAKE3 for content addressing
• Forward Secrecy: Double Ratchet for messages

See SECURITY.md for the complete threat model.

Reporting Vulnerabilities

Please report security issues to: aaryan.bansal.dev@gmail.com

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Roadmap

Current (v2.0)

• ✅ Core protocol specification
• ✅ Identity system
• ✅ Content creation and sync
• ✅ Zone support
• ✅ E2E messaging

Next (v2.1)

• 🔄 Post-quantum cryptography migration
• 🔄 Hardware wallet integration
• 🔄 Enhanced reputation system

Future

• 📋 Cross-protocol bridges
• 📋 Mobile apps
• 📋 Incentive layer

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Contributing

We welcome contributions! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/RootlessNet/protocol

# Install dependencies
bun install

# Run tests
bun test

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License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

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Speech is structural. Freedom is designed.

Made with ❤️ by the RootlessNet community