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Informational 19 Bitcoin

descriptor: Add CanSelfExpand()

Public commit record

What the developer wrote

Authored by Ava Chow

58/100 · Thin
descriptor: Add CanSelfExpand()

CanSelfExpand() reports whether a descriptor can be expanded without
needing any caches or private keys to be provided by the caller of
Expand().
✓ Descriptive subject✓ Provides detailed explanatory context
The short version

What changed, and why it matters

This commit adds a new helper method called CanSelfExpand() to Bitcoin Core's descriptor system. It lets the code ask whether a wallet descriptor can produce its Bitcoin address(es) on its own, without needing a saved cache or private keys. The change is mostly a new capability with matching tests; it does not by itself fix a known bug or change user-facing behavior, but it lays groundwork that could later be used to avoid loading private keys just to display addresses.

Recommended action

No immediate action required. Treat as a routine refactor/enabler commit. Review follow-up commits that actually call CanSelfExpand() in wallet loading or GUI paths to determine whether any security-relevant behavior changes.

Security signals we found

01

New API surface added to descriptor subsystem (CanSelfExpand)

02

No change to existing expansion, signing, or key-derivation logic

03

No bounds, memory, or cryptographic operations modified

04

Test-only addition of a hardened musig() descriptor case

05

Comment clarifies that aggregate MuSig pubkeys cannot be cached, so participants must self-expand

Risk score

Why this scored 19/100

Our methodology →
Potential impact 2/30
Exploitability 1/25
Stealth signal 1/15
Affected reach 3/15
Confidence 8/10
Evidence quality 4/5
Human-validated context

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