Connections

Your node speaks to other nodes directly, over several transports, with the same messaging layer on top. There is no relay service in the middle.

The transports

Transport	Scope	When it is used
mDNS	Local network	Same Wi-Fi / LAN. Automatic discovery, no setup
Tor	Internet	Privacy and reliable fallback via a persistent .onion address
Veilid	Internet	Encrypted private routes that traverse NAT without port-forwarding
IPFS	Internet	Content-addressed last resort via DHT routing

Kunuleco tries transports in order, so a blocked path does not cut you off. The messaging layer on top (called CapTP) is the same regardless of which transport carries it: the application neither knows nor cares how packets traveled.

This is also why a Kunuleco mesh works with no internet at all: nodes on the same LAN find each other over mDNS and carry on. That is not a degraded mode; it is a first-class way to run.

Short codes

A short code like tiger-castle-7 is a memorable lookup key. Behind it sits your real connection info (identity plus mDNS / Veilid / Tor endpoints) and a one-time token. You hand someone a code; they join it. For fully offline, in-person connection, meet hands over the same information as a kunul1… seed and QR instead.

When someone is offline

One-to-one messages (tell) are saved to a persistent history, and if your friend is unreachable the message waits in your outbox (outbox, outbox flush). Delivery resumes when a path to them exists again.

Seeing your own connectivity

Command	Use it to…
transport	See which transports are active
ping <user>	Confirm a peer is reachable, and over which protocols
/network (client)	Watch the live network view

Deeper diagnostics exist under help debug for when something misbehaves.