Overview
Tezlink is the runtime of Tezos X that provides compatibility with the existing Tezos layer 1 ecosystem. In the future, it will be able to interact with all runtimes of Tezos X (in particular Etherlink) with atomic interactions. Tezlink delivers a fast experience with sub-second (< 500ms) confirmation times, thanks to the sequencer, along with very low fees compared to Tezos layer 1.
Tezlink behaves much like Tezos layer 1, including wallet interaction, cryptocurrency and token transactions, and smart contract deployment and interaction. There are a few interactions that are not available on Tezlink though, like delegation, because its layer 2 nature requires no bakers. See Compatibility with layer 1 for a detailed description of currently available features.
Tezlink Shadownet is the first public test network for Tezlink, it is a place to test that the tools which have been developed for Tezos layer 1 can be used on Tezlink.
Tezlink is in beta and should not be used for production applications.
In the Tezlink Shadownet architecture, Tezlink runs in its own rollup. Eventually, Etherlink and Tezlink will be included in the unique, canonical Tezos X rollup that allows fast, trustless interactions between all runtimes. Along this process, Tezlink might undergo more changes, in particular with regards to layer 1 compatibility.
These changes will be driven by the requirements for Tezos X, but our goal at the same time is to preserve compatibility with Tezos layer 1 as much as possible and in collaboration with the Tezos ecosystem.
Contact us
If you have any questions, you can reach out to us on the Tezos Discord: https://discord.gg/tezos.