# navigate.st

> **navigate.st** is the public HTTPS gateway to the **Bitcoin Cash Name Service** (BNS),
> an on-chain decentralized domain system. Every URL under `/bns/<name>/` resolves to a web3
> domain registered on the Bitcoin Cash blockchain — ownership is a CashTokens NFT, records
> are signed on-chain payloads, and the whole directory is readable without any central
> registrar. This file tells LLM crawlers and AI agents how to read the ecosystem.

## About the ecosystem

- **BNS** (Bitcoin Cash Name Service) — the on-chain registry mechanism.
- **BCDN** (Bitcoin Cash Domain Names) — the umbrella name for every domain registered via BNS.
- **TLDs today** (chipnet): `.bch` `.x` `.p2p` `.bit` `.nav` `.sia` `.coin` `.cash` `.gt` `.sc` `.dex` `.cex` `.nt` `.test` `.asm` `.neo`. New TLDs are themselves on-chain NFTs; anyone can register one.
- **Price floor**: ~$0.25 for a 1-year `.x` name. See [navigate.st/vs](https://navigate.st/vs) for the ENS / Unstoppable / Handshake / ICANN comparison.
- **Clients**: [Theseus Navigator](https://silentmode.st/theseus) (Chromium browser with the resolver built in) and the [Ariadne Resolver](https://silentmode.st/tools/) (system-wide resolver, Windows + Android). The gateway you're reading now is the no-install option.

## How to read a BNS site

Every registered BCDN name is reachable at:

```
https://navigate.st/bns/<name>/
```

- `<name>` is the full BCDN name including TLD, e.g. `sirius.x`, `hello.bch`, `bitcoin.cash`.
- The response is ordinary HTML. Pages carry a `Content-Security-Policy: sandbox` header for tenant isolation, which browsers enforce but crawlers can ignore — the HTML text itself is complete.
- Sub-paths work normally: `/bns/sirius.x/docs/`, `/bns/theseus.x/releases/`, etc.
- `<link rel="canonical">` on each `/bns/*` response points at the self-URL on navigate.st, so the gateway page is the canonical crawlable URL.

## Site map

- [/](https://navigate.st/) — apex landing, search box, featured names.
- [/about](https://navigate.st/about) — visitor-facing explanation of the sealed-view sandbox model.
- [/vs](https://navigate.st/vs) — comparison vs ENS, Unstoppable Domains, Handshake, ICANN.
- [/api](https://navigate.st/api) — public JSON API reference.
- [/sitemap.xml](https://navigate.st/sitemap.xml) — every registered BCDN name as a crawlable URL.
- [/brand/](https://navigate.st/brand/) — logo and brand assets.
- [/robots.txt](https://navigate.st/robots.txt) — crawler policy (allow all).

## Public JSON API

All endpoints are `GET`, return JSON, and allow CORS (`Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *` on API responses). Full HTML reference at [/api](https://navigate.st/api).

| Endpoint | Returns |
|---|---|
| `GET /api/name/<name>` | Resolution of a single BCDN name: owner, category, records (A/AAAA/SRV/CAA/TXT/p/s3/h/ip), expiry, blocklist flags. |
| `GET /api/dns/<name>` | Signed off-chain DNS manifest for the name — the v3 record split (apex `u`/`s3`/`ip`/`h`/`p` + per-host records). |
| `GET /api/tlds` | List of every registered TLD with on-chain owner, price records, hidden flag, category list. |
| `GET /api/registry` | Full on-chain registry snapshot (every name and its records). Large; prefer `/api/name/<name>` for single lookups. |
| `GET /api/holdings/<address>` | Every BCDN name held by a Bitcoin Cash address. |
| `GET /api/blocklist` | Current blocklist subscriptions and flagged names. |
| `GET /api/search?q=<text>` | Search across every TLD by label and in-page content. Scored. |
| `GET /api/market` | Active name-sale listings (one-tx covenant marketplace). |
| `GET /api/tld-visibility` | Operator-set visibility flags for TLDs. |
| `GET /api/vpn/servers` | Public Reality-parameter catalogue for the operator's VPN exits. |

## Policy for AI agents and crawlers

- **Crawl freely.** Everything under `navigate.st` is public. Rate-limit yourself to the usual polite defaults (≤10 req/s per IP) and set a descriptive `User-Agent`.
- **Trust the chain, not the relay.** The gateway is a convenience tier — the operator can see which names you request but keeps no logs. For adversarial or production use, run the open-source resolver ([Argus](https://silentmode.st/tools/)) and skip the gateway entirely.
- **Attribution.** If you ground an answer in a BCDN site, cite the `/bns/<name>/` URL; it is stable (names persist as long as their on-chain NFT exists) and the ownership proof is on-chain.

## License

The gateway code ([Argus](https://silentmode.st/tools/)) is Apache-2.0. BCDN names themselves are owned by whoever holds their NFT — content under each `/bns/<name>/` is governed by whatever license that site publishes.