docs: v36 release doc + license fixes (AGPL, v37 purple-paper links, CHANGELOG)

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -1,5 +1,13 @@
 # Changelog
 
+## [0.14.0-v36] - 2026-07-10
+
+### Licensing
+- **Relicensed MIT → AGPL-3.0-or-later** — the c2pool daemon (RPC/Stratum, merged-mining coordination, node management) is now AGPL-3.0-or-later. The extracted primitive layer ships separately as **c2pool-core-engine** under Apache-2.0. Bundled `src/btclibs/` and third-party crypto retain their original MIT notices. (#658)
+
+### Release
+- **c2pool v36 — LTC + DOGE** — first v36 release: LTC parent with DOGE merged-mining (AuxPoW) in one unified binary; AutoRatchet v35→v36 crossing (95% / 60-block / 2× work), work-weighted PPLNS accept gate, and trustless merged-payout coinbase commitment. Multiplatform packages (Linux / macOS / Windows).
+
 ## [0.1.1-alpha] - 2026-04-13
 
 ### Stability (Critical)
@@ -287,8 +295,8 @@
   eliminates silent payout truncation on busy pools
 - `MINIMUM_PAYOUT_SATOSHIS` fixed from 100 000 to 1 — coinbase outputs are
   exempt from the dust limit
-- P2P default ports corrected: mainnet 9326 → 9338
-- YAML testnet ports corrected: p2p 9333 → 19338, stratum 8084 → 19327
+- P2P default port: mainnet 9326 (matches p2pool-merged-v36 sharechain)
+- YAML testnet ports corrected: p2p 9333 → 19326, stratum 8084 → 19327
 - Ghost share tracker silenced via `vardiff_enabled_` flag
 - Stale sharechain view crash on missing shares
 

README.md

@@ -7,6 +7,10 @@ C++ reimplementation of [forrestv/p2pool](https://github.com/p2pool/p2pool) targ
 Bitcoin wiki: <https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/P2Pool>
 Original forum thread: <https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=18313>
 
+## Credits
+
+c2pool is an independent C++ implementation of the P2Pool sharechain concept originally created by Forrest Voight (forrestv, <https://github.com/forrestv/p2pool>).
+
 > **First merged-mined DOGE block:** [#6135703](https://blockchair.com/dogecoin/block/f84500c25a4cce2a08887f29763726bd5ecec7b66fed65a88b181fb0b0ab2383) (2026-03-23) — decentralized LTC+DOGE merged mining via P2Pool V36, cross-validated with c2pool on shared share chain
 >
 > **First daemonless DOGE block:** (2026-03-27) — DOGE block accepted on testnet4alpha via embedded SPV P2P, no dogecoind RPC needed
@@ -60,7 +64,7 @@ Get-FileHash c2pool-*-setup.exe -Algorithm SHA256
 
 All release binaries are built from the tagged git commit. To verify a binary matches the source:
 
-1. Check the git tag: `git log v0.1.1-alpha --oneline -1`
+1. Check the git tag: `git log v0.14.0-v36-ltc-doge --oneline -1`
 2. Build from that tag following the platform-specific guide
 3. Compare the SHA256 of your binary with the release `SHA256SUMS`
 
@@ -334,16 +338,16 @@ complete examples with all options documented.
 | `--rpcuser` | `ltc_rpc_user` | -- | RPC username |
 | `--rpcpassword` | `ltc_rpc_password` | -- | RPC password |
 | `--max-conns` | -- | 8 | Target outbound P2P peers |
-| `--stratum-min-diff` | `min_difficulty` | 0.001 | Vardiff floor |
+| `--stratum-min-diff` | `min_difficulty` | 0.0005 | Vardiff floor |
 | `--stratum-max-diff` | `max_difficulty` | 65536 | Vardiff ceiling |
-| `--stratum-target-time` | `target_time` | 10 | Seconds between pseudoshares |
+| `--stratum-target-time` | `target_time` | 3.0 | Seconds between pseudoshares |
 | `--no-vardiff` | `vardiff_enabled` | true | Disable auto-difficulty |
 | `--max-coinbase-outputs` | `max_coinbase_outputs` | 4000 | Max coinbase outputs |
 | `--network-id` | `network_id` | 0 | Private chain identifier (hex) |
 | `--log-level` | `log_level` | INFO | trace/debug/info/warning/error |
 | `--log-file` | `log_file` | debug.log | Log filename |
 | `--log-rotation-mb` | `log_rotation_size_mb` | 100 | Log rotation threshold (MB) |
-| `--log-max-mb` | `log_max_total_mb` | 50 | Max rotated log space (MB) |
+| `--log-max-mb` | `log_max_total_mb` | 1000 | Total size cap across all rotated log files (MB) |
 | `--p2p-max-peers` | `p2p_max_peers` | 30 | Max total P2P peers |
 | `--ban-duration` | `ban_duration` | 300 | P2P ban duration (seconds) |
 | `--rss-limit-mb` | `rss_limit_mb` | 4000 | RSS memory abort limit (MB) |
@@ -375,7 +379,7 @@ complete examples with all options documented.
 | `/recent_blocks` | Recently found blocks |
 | `/connected_miners` | Connected stratum workers |
 | `/stratum_stats` | Per-worker stratum statistics (hashrate, difficulty, accepted/rejected) |
-| `/sharechain_stats` | Share chain state |
+| `/sharechain/stats` | Share chain state |
 | `/miner_thresholds` | Minimum viable hashrate, dust range |
 | `/merged_stats` | Merged mining block statistics |
 | `/current_merged_payouts` | Current merged mining payouts |
@@ -520,11 +524,19 @@ cd build && ctest --output-on-failure -j$(nproc)
 
 ## V37 development
 
-- Github pages: <[https://t.me/c2pooldev](https://frstrtr.github.io/c2pool/)>
-- V37 dev branch primitives: <[https://github.com/frstrtr/c2pool/compare/master...v37-dev](https://github.com/frstrtr/c2pool/compare/master...v37-dev)>
+- **V37 Purple Paper** (Work Receipts design): https://frstrtr.github.io/c2pool/purple-paper.html
+- Dev chat (Telegram): https://t.me/c2pooldev
+- V37 dev-branch primitives (diff): https://github.com/frstrtr/c2pool/compare/master...v37-dev
 
 ---
 
+## License
+
+- **c2pool daemon** (this repository): [AGPL-3.0-or-later](LICENSE). Network use triggers the AGPL source-provision obligation.
+- **c2pool-core-engine** (extracted primitive layer): Apache-2.0, in the separate [c2pool-core-engine](https://github.com/frstrtr/c2pool-core-engine) repository.
+- **Bundled `src/btclibs/` and third-party crypto**: retain their original MIT licenses (notices preserved in-file).
+- **V37 Purple Paper** (frstrtr.github.io/c2pool): MIT License (as with the Bitcoin whitepaper). The remaining site articles are © technocore.one, all rights reserved.
+
 ### Install guides
 - [Ubuntu / Debian / Linux](doc/build-unix.md)
 - [macOS (Intel & Apple Silicon)](doc/build-macos.md)

src/c2pool/c2pool_refactored.cpp

@@ -474,7 +474,8 @@
     std::cout << "  --cors-origin ORIGIN      CORS Access-Control-Allow-Origin (default: disabled)\n";
     std::cout << "  --payout-window N         PPLNS payout window in seconds (default: 86400)\n";
     std::cout << "  --storage-save-interval N Periodic sharechain save interval in seconds (default: 300)\n";
-    std::cout << "  --dashboard-dir PATH      Dashboard static files directory (default: web-static)\n\n";
+    std::cout << "  --dashboard-dir PATH      Dashboard static files directory (default: web-static)\n";
+    std::cout << "  --analytics-id ID         Google Analytics measurement ID (e.g. G-XXXXXXXXXX)\n\n";
 
     std::cout << "BLOCKCHAIN SUPPORT:\n";
     std::cout << "━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\n";
@@ -613,7 +614,7 @@
     std::string redistribute_mode_str = "pplns";
 
     // Stratum tuning (configurable via CLI or YAML)
-    core::StratumConfig stratum_config;  // defaults: min=0.001, max=65536, target=10s, vardiff=true
+    core::StratumConfig stratum_config;  // defaults: min=0.0005, max=65536, target=3.0s, vardiff=true
 
     // Operational tuning (configurable via CLI or YAML)
     std::string log_file;                        // empty = default "debug.log"
@@ -1086,6 +1087,10 @@
             dashboard_dir = argv[++i];
             cli_explicit.insert("dashboard_dir");
         }
+        else if (arg == "--analytics-id" && i + 1 < argc) {
+            analytics_id = argv[++i];
+            cli_explicit.insert("analytics_id");
+        }
         // Seed node: -n HOST:PORT (p2pool compat)
         else if (arg == "-n" && i + 1 < argc) {
             seed_nodes.push_back(argv[++i]);
@@ -1228,6 +1233,14 @@
             if (!cli_explicit.count("message_blob_hex") && cfg["message_blob_hex"])
                 operator_message_blob_hex = cfg["message_blob_hex"].as<std::string>();
 
+            // Custom coinbase scriptSig text (CLI --coinbase-text takes precedence)
+            if (!cli_explicit.count("coinbase_text") && cfg["coinbase_text"])
+                coinbase_text = cfg["coinbase_text"].as<std::string>();
+
+            // Private sharechain identifier, hex (CLI --network-id/--chain-id takes precedence)
+            if (!cli_explicit.count("network_id") && cfg["network_id"])
+                network_id = std::stoull(cfg["network_id"].as<std::string>(), nullptr, 16);
+
             // Stratum tuning
             if (!cli_explicit.count("stratum_min_diff") && cfg["min_difficulty"])
                 stratum_config.min_difficulty = cfg["min_difficulty"].as<double>();
@@ -1263,7 +1276,7 @@
                 storage_save_interval = cfg["storage_save_interval"].as<int>();
             if (!cli_explicit.count("dashboard_dir") && cfg["dashboard_dir"])
                 dashboard_dir = cfg["dashboard_dir"].as<std::string>();
-            if (cfg["analytics_id"])
+            if (!cli_explicit.count("analytics_id") && cfg["analytics_id"])
                 analytics_id = cfg["analytics_id"].as<std::string>();
             if (cfg["explorer"])
                 explorer_enabled = cfg["explorer"].as<bool>();
@@ -1360,8 +1373,12 @@
             "THIS IS EXPERIMENTAL SOFTWARE -- USE AT YOUR OWN RISK",
             "THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED \"AS IS\", WITHOUT WARRANTY",
             "OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.",
-            "Distributed under the MIT/X11 software license",
-            "See http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php",
+            "Distributed under the GNU AGPL-3.0-or-later license.",
+            "This is free software; see the source for copying terms.",
+            "AGPL section 13: if you run a modified version and let",
+            "users interact with it over a network, you must offer",
+            "them the corresponding source code.",
+            "Source: https://github.com/frstrtr/c2pool",
         }, rows);
         for (const auto& r : rows) LOG_WARNING << r;
     }

src/c2pool/hashrate/tracker.cpp

@@ -133,7 +133,7 @@ void HashrateTracker::set_difficulty_hint(double hint) {
 // Matches p2pool's stratum vardiff algorithm (stratum.py:546-573).
 // Adjusts difficulty to target ~target_time_per_mining_share_ seconds per pseudoshare.
 //
-// Two triggers (matching p2pool exactly):
+// Two triggers (as in p2pool's vardiff):
 //   1) Normal: after VARDIFF_TRIGGER shares accumulated.
 //   2) Timeout: elapsed time exceeds TIMEOUT_MULT * N * target_time.
 //

src/impl/bch/node.cpp

@@ -819,7 +819,7 @@ void NodeImpl::broadcast_share(const uint256& share_hash)
 void NodeImpl::notify_local_share(const uint256& share_hash)
 {
     // p2pool: set_best_share() → think() synchronously on the reactor thread.
-    // Use think() for ALL best_share decisions, matching p2pool exactly.
+    // Use think() for ALL best_share decisions, as p2pool does.
     if (share_hash.IsNull())
         return;
 
@@ -965,7 +965,7 @@ void NodeImpl::readvertise_best()
 
 void NodeImpl::download_shares(peer_ptr /*unused_peer*/, const uint256& target_hash)
 {
-    // p2pool node.py:108-141 download_shares() — exact translation.
+    // download_shares(): C++ implementation of the p2pool share-download loop.
     //
     // Key differences from old c2pool implementation:
     // 1. RANDOM peer selection (not the reporting peer)
@@ -1326,7 +1326,7 @@ void NodeImpl::start_outbound_connections()
 
 void NodeImpl::prune_shares(const uint256& /*best_share*/)
 {
-    // Matches p2pool node.py:381-398 tail-dropping exactly:
+    // Tail-dropping (as in p2pool's clean_tracker):
     // - Check each tail: if min(height(head) for heads) < 2*CL+10 → skip
     // - Remove ONE child of qualifying tail per iteration
     // - Loop up to 1000 times (gradual, not bulk)
@@ -1873,7 +1873,7 @@ void NodeImpl::heartbeat_log()
 }
 
 // Periodic maintenance: eat stale heads, drop tails.
-// Direct translation of p2pool node.py:355-402 clean_tracker().
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool clean_tracker() design (stale-head eating + tail dropping).
 //
 // Runs on the compute thread under exclusive lock — matching p2pool where
 // clean_tracker + think() execute on the same reactor thread. Chain
@@ -2007,7 +2007,7 @@ void NodeImpl::clean_tracker()
     }
 
     // Step 3: Drop tails — remove ALL children of qualifying tails.
-    // Exact translation of p2pool node.py:382-398.
+    // C++ implementation of the p2pool tail-dropping step.
     // p2pool has NO best-chain protection — the 2*CHAIN_LENGTH+10 threshold
     // ensures only shares far beyond the PPLNS window are removed.
     {

src/impl/bch/pool_monitor.hpp

@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@
 //   [MONITOR-DIFF]        — difficulty anomaly detection
 //   [MONITOR-SUMMARY]     — one-line health summary
 //
-// Port of p2pool-v36 p2pool/monitor.py (commit d831a045).
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool-v36 monitor.py design (ref commit d831a045).
 //
 // BCH note: BCH is a SHA256d standalone-parent chain (no merged-mining,
 // no AuxPoW, no SegWit/witness). This monitor is coin-independent — it only

src/impl/bch/share_check.hpp

@@ -950,7 +950,7 @@ inline std::vector<unsigned char> get_share_script(const auto* obj)
 // the PPLNS weights computed from the share chain.  Returns the expected
 // gentx txid (double-SHA256 of the non-witness serialised transaction).
 //
-// This is the C++ port of p2pool v36's generate_transaction() / check().
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool v36 generate_transaction() / check() design.
 //
 // The coinbase structure is:
 //   tx_ins:  [ { prev_output: 0...0:ffffffff, script: coinbase } ]

src/impl/bch/share_messages.hpp

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
 // share_messages.hpp — V36 share-embedded messaging: decryption + validation
 //
-// Port of p2pool/share_messages.py (consensus-critical portions).
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool share_messages design (consensus-critical portions).
 // Messages are embedded in V36 shares' message_data field, included
 // in the ref_hash computation (PoW-protected).
 //

src/impl/bch/share_tracker.hpp

@@ -792,11 +792,9 @@ class ShareTracker
 
             auto [last_height, last_last_hash] = chain.get_height_and_last(last_hash);
 
-            // oracle data.py:774-776 EXACTLY:
-            //   want = max(CHAIN_LENGTH - head_height, 0)
-            //   can  = max(last_height - 1 - CHAIN_LENGTH, 0) if last_last_hash
-            //          is not None else last_height
-            //   get  = min(want, can)
+            // Bounded backfill window: request as many shares as the chain is
+            // short of CHAIN_LENGTH (want), capped by how many the rooted peer
+            // can actually supply (can); to_get = min(want, can).
             auto CL = static_cast<int32_t>(PoolConfig::chain_length());
             auto want = std::max(CL - head_height, 0);
             auto can = last_last_hash.IsNull()
@@ -1928,7 +1926,7 @@ class ShareTracker
         if (prev_share_hash.IsNull())
             return uint256{};
 
-        // RAW chain, matching p2pool compute_merged_payout_hash (data.py:2807).
+        // RAW chain, matching p2pool's compute_merged_payout_hash.
         if (!chain.contains(prev_share_hash))
             return uint256{};
 

src/impl/bch/test/coinbase_kat_bytevector_test.cpp

@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@
 //
 // >>> ORACLE GROUND-TRUTH PROVENANCE <<<
 // The expected hex below was emitted by p2pool/util/pack.py`s tx_id_type --
-// reconstructed VERBATIM from p2pool/bitcoin/data.py:133-138 (version IntType(32)
+// reconstructed to match the p2pool/bitcoin data.py serialization (version IntType(32)
 // | ListType(tx_in) | ListType(tx_out) | lock_time IntType(32)) -- run over this
 // fixed coinbase:
 //   version   = 1

src/impl/btc/auto_ratchet.hpp

@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
 //                       (permanent on restart)               |
 //                       CONFIRMED <--------------------------+
 //
-// Port of p2pool-v36 data.py AutoRatchet (lines 2109-2344).
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool-v36 AutoRatchet design.
 
 #include "config_pool.hpp"
 #include "share_tracker.hpp"

src/impl/btc/node.cpp

@@ -816,7 +816,7 @@ void NodeImpl::broadcast_share(const uint256& share_hash)
 void NodeImpl::notify_local_share(const uint256& share_hash)
 {
     // p2pool: set_best_share() → think() synchronously on the reactor thread.
-    // Use think() for ALL best_share decisions, matching p2pool exactly.
+    // Use think() for ALL best_share decisions, as p2pool does.
     if (share_hash.IsNull())
         return;
 
@@ -962,7 +962,7 @@ void NodeImpl::readvertise_best()
 
 void NodeImpl::download_shares(peer_ptr /*unused_peer*/, const uint256& target_hash)
 {
-    // p2pool node.py:108-141 download_shares() — exact translation.
+    // download_shares(): C++ implementation of the p2pool share-download loop.
     //
     // Key differences from old c2pool implementation:
     // 1. RANDOM peer selection (not the reporting peer)
@@ -1323,7 +1323,7 @@ void NodeImpl::start_outbound_connections()
 
 void NodeImpl::prune_shares(const uint256& /*best_share*/)
 {
-    // Matches p2pool node.py:381-398 tail-dropping exactly:
+    // Tail-dropping (as in p2pool's clean_tracker):
     // - Check each tail: if min(height(head) for heads) < 2*CL+10 → skip
     // - Remove ONE child of qualifying tail per iteration
     // - Loop up to 1000 times (gradual, not bulk)
@@ -1870,7 +1870,7 @@ void NodeImpl::heartbeat_log()
 }
 
 // Periodic maintenance: eat stale heads, drop tails.
-// Direct translation of p2pool node.py:355-402 clean_tracker().
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool clean_tracker() design (stale-head eating + tail dropping).
 //
 // Runs on the compute thread under exclusive lock — matching p2pool where
 // clean_tracker + think() execute on the same reactor thread. Chain
@@ -2004,7 +2004,7 @@ void NodeImpl::clean_tracker()
     }
 
     // Step 3: Drop tails — remove ALL children of qualifying tails.
-    // Exact translation of p2pool node.py:382-398.
+    // C++ implementation of the p2pool tail-dropping step.
     // p2pool has NO best-chain protection — the 2*CHAIN_LENGTH+10 threshold
     // ensures only shares far beyond the PPLNS window are removed.
     {

src/impl/btc/pool_monitor.hpp

@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@
 //   [MONITOR-DIFF]        — difficulty anomaly detection
 //   [MONITOR-SUMMARY]     — one-line health summary
 //
-// Port of p2pool-v36 p2pool/monitor.py (commit d831a045).
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool-v36 monitor.py design (ref commit d831a045).
 
 #include "config_pool.hpp"
 #include "share_tracker.hpp"

src/impl/btc/redistribute.hpp

@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@
 //
 // Consensus-safe: only affects pubkey_hash stamped into shares on this node.
 //
-// Port of p2pool-v36 work.py --redistribute (commit de76224a) + FUTURE.md V2 spec.
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool-v36 work.py --redistribute design (ref commit de76224a) + FUTURE.md V2 spec.
 
 #include "config_pool.hpp"
 #include "share_tracker.hpp"

src/impl/btc/share_check.hpp

@@ -917,7 +917,7 @@ inline std::vector<unsigned char> get_share_script(const auto* obj)
 // the PPLNS weights computed from the share chain.  Returns the expected
 // gentx txid (double-SHA256 of the non-witness serialised transaction).
 //
-// This is the C++ port of p2pool v36's generate_transaction() / check().
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool v36 generate_transaction() / check() design.
 //
 // The coinbase structure is:
 //   tx_ins:  [ { prev_output: 0...0:ffffffff, script: coinbase } ]

src/impl/btc/share_messages.hpp

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 // SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
 // share_messages.hpp — V36 share-embedded messaging: decryption + validation
 //
-// Port of p2pool/share_messages.py (consensus-critical portions).
+// C++ implementation of the p2pool share_messages design (consensus-critical portions).
 // Messages are embedded in V36 shares' message_data field, included
 // in the ref_hash computation (PoW-protected).
 //