A node runner who configures the NSEC through the admin UI (rather than the NSEC env var) was never announced. The kind 38421 publish task was only created at boot, gated on an NSEC already being present: saving the key stored it and updated the live settings singleton, but nothing re-launched the task, so the provider stayed invisible on relays until the process was restarted. Start the task unconditionally and restructure announce_provider into the idle-and-re-read loop that publish_usage_analytics already uses: it waits while there is no NSEC, re-derives the identity whenever the key changes, and re-reads endpoints, mints and relays every iteration. The long re-announce sleep is now ticked so a replaced identity is announced promptly instead of up to 24h later. Relay backoff state is hoisted so it survives an idle poll, a full cycle and an identity change. This also covers the cases that previously killed the task until a restart: an invalid NSEC, or a node with no reachable endpoint (HTTP_URL left at its http://localhost:8000 default and no onion address) now idle and recover as soon as the configuration is fixed.
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Discovery
Routstr uses Nostr as a decentralized directory for service discovery. Your node announces its presence, models, and pricing on Nostr relays, allowing clients to find you without a central server.
How It Works
- Provider Advertisement (Kind 38421): Your node periodically publishes an event with its URL, models, and pricing
- Client Discovery: Clients query relays for these events to find suitable providers
When announcements are published
Your node publishes an advertisement as soon as it has both a Nsec and at least one
reachable endpoint (a public HTTP_URL, or an .onion address). Saving the Nsec in the
dashboard is enough — the announcement follows within a minute, and no restart is
required. After the first publish it re-announces every 24 hours, and immediately
whenever the Nsec, endpoints, mints or relays change.
A node that has no Nsec yet simply waits, and starts announcing the moment one is
configured. Note that HTTP_URL defaults to http://localhost:8000, which is not a
reachable endpoint: a node with the default value and no onion address has nothing to
advertise and will not publish until one is set.
Configuration
Configure discovery in Dashboard → Settings → Nostr.
Required Settings
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Npub | Your node's public identity (clients use this to verify your node) |
| Nsec | Your node's private key (used to sign advertisements) |
| Relays | Where to publish your announcements |
Default Relays
If not configured, Routstr publishes to:
wss://relay.damus.iowss://relay.nostr.bandwss://nos.lol
Advertisement Format
Your node publishes events like:
{
"kind": 38421,
"content": {
"name": "My Routstr Node",
"description": "Fast GPT-4 access via Lightning",
"endpoints": {
"http": "https://api.mynode.com",
"onion": "http://xyz...onion"
},
"models": ["gpt-4", "claude-3-opus"],
"pricing": { ... }
},
"tags": [
["d", "routstr-provider"],
["g", "US"]
]
}
Tor Integration
If you're running with Tor (see Tor Support), your .onion address is automatically included in announcements. This allows clients to connect anonymously.
Verify Your Announcements
Check if your node is broadcasting:
- Copy your
Npub - Search on Nostr.band or Primal
- Look for Kind 38421 events
Generating Keys
If you don't have a Nostr identity:
- Use any Nostr client (e.g., Primal, Damus)
- Create an account
- Export your keys (npub and nsec)
- Enter them in the dashboard
Or generate keys programmatically:
from nostr_sdk import Keys
keys = Keys.generate()
print(f"npub: {keys.public_key().to_bech32()}")
print(f"nsec: {keys.secret_key().to_bech32()}")