UNITS Runtime

UNITS is a modular WebAssembly runtime system designed for financial transactions and asset management. At its core, it provides a secure and flexible environment for executing WebAssembly modules while managing financial assets through a driver-based architecture.

Getting Started

Starting with UNITS requires Rust 1.75 or later and a few core dependencies. First, ensure you have Rust installed with component support and the Protocol Buffers compiler. You'll also need SQLite for data persistence.

Begin by cloning the repository:

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/units.git
cd units

Before building the project, set up your environment variables for authentication:

export UNITS_USERNAME=your_username
export UNITS_PASSWORD=your_password
export secret=your_jwt_secret

Now initialize your database:

sqlite3 units.db < migrations/20250206_000000_create_table.sql

You can now build and start the server:

cargo build --release
cargo run --release -- config/development.toml

For development with debug logging enabled:

RUST_LOG=debug cargo run -- config/development.toml

Working with the API

UNITS exposes its functionality through a gRPC API. Here's how to interact with the key services:

Create a new user and get authentication token:

# Sign up
grpcurl -plaintext -d @- localhost:8080 units.UserSignUp/SignUp << EOM
{
  "user_name": "testuser",
  "name": "Test User",
  "email": "[email protected]",
  "password": "testpass123"
}
EOM

# Log in and get JWT token
grpcurl -plaintext -d @- localhost:8080 units.UserLogin/Login << EOM
{
  "user_name": "testuser",
  "password": "testpass123"
}
EOM

Load a driver into the system:

grpcurl -plaintext -d @- localhost:8080 units.Driver/LoadDriver << EOM
{
  "driver_name": "example-driver",
  "driver_version": "1.0.0",
  "driver_binary": "$(base64 -w0 path/to/driver.wasm)"
}
EOM

Submit and execute a program:

# Submit program
grpcurl -plaintext -d @- localhost:8080 units.Execution/Submit << EOM
{
  "name": "example-program",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "binary": "$(base64 -w0 path/to/program.wasm)"
}
EOM

# Execute program (include your JWT token)
grpcurl -plaintext \
  -H "Authorization: your.jwt.token" \
  -d @- localhost:8080 units.Execution/Execute << EOM
{
  "input": "{\"action\":\"transfer\",\"amount\":100}",
  "program_id": "your-program-id"
}
EOM

List available drivers:

grpcurl -plaintext -d @- localhost:8080 units.DriverDetails/SendDetails << EOM
{}
EOM

Understanding the Architecture

UNITS employs a three-tier "burger architecture" that cleanly separates concerns across different layers of the system. The Process Layer sits at the top, handling user workflows and WebAssembly module execution. Below it, the Driver Layer manages asset abstractions and permissions. The Platform Layer forms the foundation, handling system operations and storage.

This architecture enables UNITS to maintain strong isolation between different components while providing flexible integration points. Each layer communicates through well-defined interfaces, making the system both modular and extensible.

Development Workflow

When developing with UNITS, you'll typically work with two main components: drivers and programs. Drivers provide the interface to underlying assets, while programs implement the business logic that operates on these assets.

To create a new driver:

./scripts/create-driver.sh my-driver
cd modules/drivers/my-driver

For a new program:

./scripts/create-program.sh my-program
cd modules/programs/my-program

The project includes a comprehensive test script that builds the runtime, starts the server, loads test drivers, and verifies everything works correctly:

./test.sh

User Interfaces

UNITS provides two interface options for different use cases. The Terminal UI offers a lightweight, command-line interface perfect for development and scripting:

cd ui/units-tui
cargo run

The Web UI provides a more visual, user-friendly interface:

cd ui/units-ui
npm install
npm start

Contributing

We welcome contributions to UNITS. Start by forking the repository and creating a feature branch for your work. After making your changes, submit a pull request. See our development guidelines in DEVELOPMENT.md for more details.

Support and Resources

If you need help or want to contribute, you can open an issue, start a discussion, or browse our documentation. Join our community and help make UNITS better for everyone.

License

UNITS is available under the MIT License, allowing for both personal and commercial use with proper attribution.