Prerequisites

Before you begin integrating Lightning Enable, ensure you have the following ready.

Provider Verification Required

You must complete verification with your chosen payment provider (Strike or OpenNode) before you can accept payments. This is a regulatory requirement and cannot be bypassed.

Required

1. Payment Provider Account

You need an account with at least one payment provider. Strike is the default and recommended for most merchants.

Option A: Strike (Recommended)

Environment	URL	Purpose
Sandbox (Development)	dashboard.dev.strike.me	Testing
Production	dashboard.strike.me	Real payments

Steps:

1. Sign up at strike.me
2. Complete KYC verification
3. Generate an API key from your dashboard
4. Store the API key securely

Option B: OpenNode

Environment	URL	Purpose
Testnet (Development)	dev.opennode.com	Testing with fake Bitcoin
Mainnet (Production)	app.opennode.com	Real payments

Steps:

1. Sign up at OpenNode
2. Complete KYB verification (required for mainnet, plan 2-4 business days)
3. Generate an API key
4. Store the API key securely

Detailed OpenNode Setup Guide

2. Lightning Enable Subscription

Subscribe to Lightning Enable to get your merchant API key.

Available Plans:

Plan	Monthly	Best For
Kentico Commerce	$249	Xperience by Kentico e-commerce
Agentic Commerce	$299	API monetization with pay-per-request

After subscribing, you'll receive:

• Your Lightning Enable API key
• Access to the merchant dashboard
• Webhook configuration options

3. Development Environment

Any platform that can make HTTP REST API calls:

Recommended:

• .NET 9 / ASP.NET Core
• Node.js / TypeScript
• Python
• Any language with HTTP client support

Technical Requirements:

• HTTPS support (required for webhooks)
• Ability to store API keys securely
• JSON parsing capability

Recommended

Webhook Endpoint

For production use, webhooks provide instant payment notifications:

• Public HTTPS URL (not localhost)
• Ability to validate HMAC signatures
• Idempotent processing (webhooks may retry)

For local development, use ngrok to expose your local server.

Database

To track payments and orders:

• SQL Server (recommended for .NET)
• PostgreSQL
• MySQL
• Any relational database

SSL/TLS Certificate

Required for:

• Webhook verification
• API security
• Production deployment

Platform-Specific Requirements

For Kentico Commerce

If you're integrating with Xperience by Kentico:

• Xperience by Kentico 31.0.1 or later
• XperienceCommunity.Commerce package installed
• .NET 9 SDK
• Visual Studio 2022+ or VS Code

For Agentic Commerce

If you're implementing L402 API monetization:

• Production provider key (mainnet/production payments required)
• Public API endpoint to protect
• Understanding of macaroons (bearer tokens)
• Strike recommended for L402 (returns preimage directly, more reliable than BOLT11 parsing)

Environment Checklist

Use this checklist before starting integration:

Development

• Payment provider account created (Strike or OpenNode)
• Test/sandbox API key generated
• Lightning Enable subscription active
• Merchant API key received
• Development environment ready
• ngrok installed (for webhook testing)

Production

• Payment provider production account created
• Provider verification completed (Strike KYC or OpenNode KYB)
• Production API key generated
• Production Lightning Enable API key configured
• Webhook endpoint deployed and accessible
• HTTPS configured
• API keys stored securely (not in code)
• Error logging and monitoring enabled

Next Steps

Once you have all prerequisites:

1. Quick Start Guide - Create your first payment
2. Provider Setup - Detailed provider configuration
3. Choose your product:
   • Kentico Commerce
   • Agentic Commerce