Discover the Features of Crypto APIs Blockchain Tools

Blockchain Tools is just one of the products from Crypto APIs suite, which includes Blockchain Data, Wallet as a Service, Blockchain Events, Blockchain Automations, Market Data, Node as a Service and Key Management System.

Blockchain Tools can be used by any crypto-related business or developer interacting with the blockchain. But what are they exactly and what can you use them for?

What Are Crypto APIs Blockchain Tools?

Blockchain Tools is a set of prepared cryptographic APIs designed to save developers precious time and effort.  In other words, it’s a collection of useful API endpoints that provide an easy way to connect with blockchains and perform certain operations. The REST API endpoints reduce development time and save costs for servers. These Blockchain tools include endpoints for checking the validity of an address, deriving HD (xPub, yPub, zPub) addresses,  broadcasting signed transactions and more.

When it comes to developing and running dApps and crypto related applications, making things as simple as possible can let your developers do what they do best and focus on the end product.  

Simply said, Blockchain Tools is a quick crypto helper to make developer life easier. 

What Can You Do with Blockchain Tools?

Blockchain Tools include both multi-chain endpoints and blockchain-specific endpoints. These include actions such as checking the validity of an address, getting fee recommendations, deriving HD (xPub, yPub, zPub) addresses, decoding raw transaction hex and much more.

Let’s take a look at each endpoint and what they provide.

Derive HD Wallet (xPub, yPub, zPub) Change or Receiving Addresses 

One of the most popular endpoints in Blockchain Tools is Derive HD Wallet (xPub, yPub, zPub) Change Or Receiving Addresses. From this endpoint customers can derive up to 10 new addresses (both change and receive addresses) for a certain HD Wallet just by providing an extended public key. This can be used for all bitcoin standards: xPub (1-prefixed addresses), yPub (3-prefixed addresses), and zPub (bc1-prefixed addresses). 

If you want to know more about HD Wallets and what xPub, yPub, and zPubs are exactly, feel free to read our article: Everything You Need to Know About HD Wallets.

The API endpoint is very useful for Hierarchical Deterministic Wallets (HD Wallets). These are privacy-centered wallets that feature a type of key pair management that allows generating multiple new addresses from an extended public key (xPub). Most hardware wallets like Ledger, Ngrave, Arculus and others are HD wallets and are said to provide the highest level of security for storing private keys due to being “cold” wallets.

When using this endpoint, the system will by default create a receiving/deposit address, unless the isChange attribute is set to 'true'.  

In that case, the system will generate a 'change' address. Change addresses can only be generated for UTXO based blockchains such as Bitcoin for example. For all the other account-based blockchains like Ethereum, the endpoint will create a deposit/receiving address. 

It is often used in combination with other endpoints from Crypto APIs Blockchain Data for managing HD wallets.

Get EIP 1559 Fee Recommendations 

Using the Get EIP 1559 Fee Recommendations endpoint, customers can obtain fee recommendations specifically for the London Upgrade EIP 1559 fee model.

EIP stands for Ethereum Improvement Proposal, and EIP 1559 was introduced as part of the London Fork in August 2021.

EIP-1559 has changed how fees are calculated and processed on the Ethereum network. The upgrade replaced the old auction-style fee model with a more efficient system that uses an algorithm to automatically set the gas price.

READ MORE: Transaction Fees on the Blockchain Explained

You can use the Get EIP 1559 endpoint to return details of: 

- the unit of the base fee per gas and the maximum priority fee per gas calculated in wei 

- the expected base fee per gas of the upcoming block, calculated from the previous block data 

- the maximum fee per gas, calculated from unconfirmed transactions for fast, slow and standard 

- the fast maximum priority fee per gas, calculated from unconfirmed transactions for fast, slow, and standard

Being able to predict how much a transaction is going to cost you BEFORE executing it is essential for predicting business expenditure and keeping an eye on your budget. It is important to note that a transaction must be executed right after the estimation as the price of fees changes constantly.

Broadcast Locally Signed Transaction 

After signing a transaction locally, you need a way to broadcast it to the blockchain. The Broadcast Locally Signed Transaction endpoint provides a fast and reliable connection eliminating the need to have your own node. 

Not only can you easily broadcast transactions that have already been signed locally but you can also subscribe to get a callback update about the transaction lifecycle— with either a success or failure status. 

The callback will be shown as either: 

BROADCAST_TRANSACTION_SUCCESS 

BROADCAST_TRANSACTION_FAIL

Validate Address 

The Validate Address endpoint checks user public addresses whether they are valid or not. This endpoint can come in handy for verifying an address before sending any cryptocurrency to it. Public addresses can come in different formats depending on the blockchain for example, Bitcoin addresses can start with “1” or “3” while Ethereum addresses start with “0x”. But even if an address appears valid, it’s worth checking to avoid any headaches later. 

Estimate Gas Limit 

This endpoint works for Ethereum, Ethereum Classic and BNB Smart Chain. It is helpful to estimate the gas limit needed for a transaction. Estimate Gas Limit gives information for gas expenses when sending “ether” to contracts or making a transaction with additional data in it. 

When used, it is required to provide information for: 

- transaction amount; 

- recipient’s address receiving the transaction;  

- and the address sending the transaction.

The response will include the amount of gas required to execute this specific transaction alone. It is also essential that you perform the transaction right after the estimation, so the actual fee charged will be close to the estimated. 

Estimate Token Gas Limit 

If you want to access information for gas expenses for a specific contract when sending ether or making a transaction with additional data in it,  you can use the Estimate Token Gas Limit. This endpoint returns details for smart-contract enabled blockchains such as Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, and BNB Chain.

The required request body details include: 

- transactions' amount; 

- the specific token identifier. For Ethereum-based transactions, it is the contract; 

- the ERC contract type (ERC20 or ERC721); 

- and the addresses receiving and sending the transaction.

If the request is successful, the response will include the gas needed to execute the transaction.

Additional Features

As well as these main features, Blockchain Tools also provides the following endpoints: 

Decode Raw Transaction Hex: Through this endpoint customers can decode a raw transaction hex. The response will include the decoded transactions' details, including locktime, transaction hash, the virtual size and total size of this transaction,  the output and more. 

Decode X-Address: Decode an encoded XRP address with tag, by providing the specific x-address. The response includes the decoded classic address and the tag.

Encode X-Address: Customers can encode an encoded XRP address with a tag, by providing the specific x-address. The response includes the encoded classic address and the tag.

Convert Bitcoin Cash Address: Through this endpoint, customers can convert addresses for the BCH (Bitcoin Cash) protocol from BCH legacy to cash address and vice versa.

To find out more about Blockchain Tools or any of our blockchain products, contact the team today.