nym/documentation/docs/pages/developers/concepts/message-queue.md

Message Queue

Sphinx Packet Streams

Clients, once connected to the Mixnet, are always sending traffic into the Mixnet; as well as the packets that you as a developer are sending from your application logic, they send cover traffic at a constant rate defined by a Poisson process. This is part of the network's mitigation of timing attacks.

There are two constant streams of sphinx packets leaving the client at the rate defined by the Poisson process.

• one that is solely cover traffic
• one that sends a mixture of cover and 'real' traffic

---
config:
  theme: neo-dark
  layout: elk

title: Cover Traffic Stream
---
sequenceDiagram
    box Local Machine
        participant App Logic
        participant Nym Client
    end
    participant Entry Gateway

    loop Cover Traffic Stream
        Nym Client->>Nym Client: Delay
        Nym Client->>Entry Gateway: Cover traffic
    end

---
config:
  theme: neo-dark
  layout: elk

title: Mixed Stream
---
sequenceDiagram
    box Local Machine
        participant App Logic
        participant Nym Client
    end
    participant Entry Gateway

    loop Cover + Real Traffic Stream
        Nym Client->>Nym Client: Check internal queue + delay
        Nym Client->>Entry Gateway: Cover traffic
        alt Packets with App Payload
            App Logic-->>Nym Client: Send(bytes): add to internal queue
            Nym Client->>Nym Client: Check internal queue: bytes to send
            Nym Client->>Nym Client: Encrypt & packetise bytes
            Nym Client->>Entry Gateway: Real Packets
            Nym Client->>Nym Client: Check internal queue: bytes to send
            Nym Client->>Nym Client: Encrypt & packetise bytes
            Nym Client->>Entry Gateway: Real Packets
            Nym Client->>Nym Client: Check internal queue: queue empty
        end
        Nym Client->>Nym Client: Delay
        Nym Client->>Entry Gateway: Cover traffic
    end

Since Sphinx packets are indistinguishable to an external observer, the only difference between 'real' and cover traffic is whether the payload is empty or not. This can be only known to the eventual receiver of the packet.

What does send() do then?

When passing a message to a client (however you do it, either piping messages from an app to a standalone client or via one of the send functions exposed by the SDKs), you are putting that message into the queue to be source encrypted and sent in the future, in order to ensure that traffic leaving the client does so in a manner that to an external observer is uniform / does not create any 'burst' or change in traffic timings that could aid traffic analysis.

Note on Client Shutdown

Accidentally dropping a client before your message has been sent is something that is possible and should be avoided (see the troubleshooting guide for more on this) but is easy to avoid simply by remembering to:

• keep your client process alive, even if you are not expecting a reply to your message
• (in the case of the SDKs) properly disconnecting your client in order to make sure that the message queue is flushed of Sphinx packets with actual payloads.