ENS DID (did:ens) Integration

This guide covers the did:ens method integration for TrustWeave. The did:ens plugin provides human-readable DID resolution using Ethereum Name Service (ENS).

Overview

The did/plugins/ens module provides an implementation of TrustWeave’s DidMethod interface using the Ethereum Name Service (ENS) resolver. This integration enables you to:

  • Resolve human-readable DID identifiers (e.g., did:ens:example.eth)
  • Map ENS domain names to Ethereum addresses
  • Integrate with ENS resolver contracts
  • Convert ENS names to did:ethr DIDs for resolution

Installation

Add the did:ens module to your dependencies:

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dependencies {
    implementation("org.trustweave.did:ens:1.0.0-SNAPSHOT")
    implementation("org.trustweave:trustweave-did:1.0.0-SNAPSHOT")
    implementation("org.trustweave.did:base:1.0.0-SNAPSHOT")
    implementation("org.trustweave.did:ethr:1.0.0-SNAPSHOT")
    implementation("org.trustweave:trustweave-anchor:1.0.0-SNAPSHOT")
    implementation("org.trustweave:distribution-all:1.0.0-SNAPSHOT")

    // Web3j for Ethereum blockchain
    implementation("org.web3j:core:4.10.0")

    // Optional: Polygon client for EVM-compatible chains
    implementation("org.trustweave.chains:polygon:1.0.0-SNAPSHOT")
}

Configuration

Basic Configuration 

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import org.trustweave.ensdid.*
import org.trustweave.anchor.*
import org.trustweave.polygon.PolygonBlockchainAnchorClient
import org.trustweave.kms.*

// Create configuration
val config = EnsDidConfig.builder()
    .ensRegistryAddress("0x00000000000C2E074eC69A0dFb2997BA6C7d2e1e") // Mainnet ENS registry
    .rpcUrl("https://eth-mainnet.g.alchemy.com/v2/YOUR_KEY")
    .chainId("eip155:1") // Mainnet
    .privateKey("0x...") // Optional: for transactions
    .build()

// Create blockchain anchor client
val anchorClient = PolygonBlockchainAnchorClient(config.chainId, config.toMap())

// Create KMS
val kms = InMemoryKeyManagementService()

// Create did:ens method
val method = EnsDidMethod(kms, anchorClient, config)

Pre-configured Networks 

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// Ethereum mainnet
val mainnetConfig = EnsDidConfig.mainnet(
    rpcUrl = "https://eth-mainnet.g.alchemy.com/v2/YOUR_KEY",
    privateKey = "0x..." // Optional
)

SPI Auto-Discovery

When the module is on the classpath, did:ens is automatically available:

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import org.trustweave.did.*
import org.trustweave.anchor.*
import java.util.ServiceLoader

// Discover did:ens provider
val providers = ServiceLoader.load(DidMethodProvider::class.java)
val ensProvider = providers.find { it.supportedMethods.contains("ens") }

// Create method with required options
val options = didCreationOptions {
    property("ensRegistryAddress", "0x00000000000C2E074eC69A0dFb2997BA6C7d2e1e")
    property("rpcUrl", "https://eth-mainnet.g.alchemy.com/v2/YOUR_KEY")
    property("chainId", "eip155:1")
    property("anchorClient", anchorClient) // Required: provide anchor client
}

val method = ensProvider?.create("ens", options)

Usage Examples

Resolving a did:ens

Note: did:ens does not support DID creation. You must first register an ENS domain name and link it to an Ethereum address that has a did:ethr DID.

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val config = EnsDidConfig.mainnet("https://eth-mainnet.g.alchemy.com/v2/YOUR_KEY")
val anchorClient = PolygonBlockchainAnchorClient(config.chainId, config.toMap())
val kms = InMemoryKeyManagementService()
val method = EnsDidMethod(kms, anchorClient, config)

import org.trustweave.did.identifiers.Did
import org.trustweave.did.resolver.DidResolutionResult

// Resolve ENS domain to DID document
val did = Did("did:ens:example.eth")
val result = method.resolveDid(did)

when (result) {
    is DidResolutionResult.Success -> {
        println("Resolved: ${result.document.id}")
        println("Verification methods: ${result.document.verificationMethod.size}")
    }
    is DidResolutionResult.Failure.NotFound -> {
        println("DID not found: ${result.did.value}")
    }
    else -> println("Resolution failed")
}

How it Works

  1. Extract ENS domain: From did:ens:example.eth, extract example.eth
  2. Resolve ENS to address: Query ENS registry to resolve example.eth to Ethereum address
  3. Convert to did:ethr: Convert Ethereum address to did:ethr:0x...
  4. Resolve did:ethr: Use did:ethr method to resolve the DID document
  5. Return did:ens document: Return document with did:ens:example.eth as the ID

DID Format

ENS Domain DID 

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did:ens:example.eth
did:ens:alice.eth
did:ens:organization.eth

The DID identifier is the ENS domain name. The method resolves the domain to an Ethereum address and then resolves it as a did:ethr DID.

Limitations

No DID Creation

did:ens does not support creating DIDs. You must:

  1. Register an ENS domain name (via ENS registrar)
  2. Link it to an Ethereum address
  3. Ensure that address has a did:ethr DID
  4. Then resolve it as did:ens

No DID Updates/Deactivation

did:ens does not support updating or deactivating DIDs directly. You must:

  • Update: Update the underlying did:ethr DID
  • Deactivate: Deactivate the underlying did:ethr DID

ENS Resolution Process

  1. Query ENS Registry: Resolve ENS domain to Ethereum address
  2. Convert Format: Convert address to did:ethr format
  3. Resolve did:ethr: Use did:ethr resolver to get DID document
  4. Replace ID: Replace did:ethr ID with did:ens ID in document

Configuration Options

EnsDidConfig 

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val config = EnsDidConfig.builder()
    .ensRegistryAddress("0x00000000000C2E074eC69A0dFb2997BA6C7d2e1e") // Required: ENS registry
    .rpcUrl("https://eth-mainnet.g.alchemy.com/v2/YOUR_KEY")          // Required: RPC endpoint
    .chainId("eip155:1")                                               // Required: Chain ID
    .privateKey("0x...")                                               // Optional: for transactions
    .network("mainnet")                                                // Optional: network name
    .build()

ENS Registry Addresses

Network Registry Address
Ethereum Mainnet 0x00000000000C2E074eC69A0dFb2997BA6C7d2e1e
Sepolia Testnet 0x00000000000C2E074eC69A0dFb2997BA6C7d2e1e

Integration with TrustWeave 

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import org.trustweave.TrustWeave
import org.trustweave.ensdid.*
import org.trustweave.anchor.*
import org.trustweave.polygon.PolygonBlockchainAnchorClient

val config = EnsDidConfig.mainnet("https://eth-mainnet.g.alchemy.com/v2/YOUR_KEY")
val anchorClient = PolygonBlockchainAnchorClient(config.chainId, config.toMap())

val TrustWeave = TrustWeave.create {
    kms = InMemoryKeyManagementService()

    blockchain {
        register(config.chainId, anchorClient)
    }

    didMethods {
        + EnsDidMethod(kms!!, anchorClient, config)
    }
}

// Resolve did:ens
import org.trustweave.did.identifiers.Did

val did = Did("did:ens:example.eth")
val resolved = TrustWeave.resolveDid(did).getOrThrow()

Error Handling

Common errors and solutions:

Error Cause Solution
ensRegistryAddress is required Missing ENS registry Provide ENS registry contract address
rpcUrl is required Missing RPC endpoint Provide Ethereum RPC URL
chainId is required Missing chain ID Specify chain ID (eip155:1, etc.)
did:ens does not support DID creation Trying to create DID Register ENS domain first, then resolve
ENS domain not found Domain not registered Verify ENS domain exists and is registered
DID document not found Address has no did:ethr Ensure address has a did:ethr DID

Testing

For testing without actual ENS resolution:

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import org.trustweave.testkit.anchor.InMemoryBlockchainAnchorClient

val config = EnsDidConfig.mainnet("https://eth-mainnet.g.alchemy.com/v2/YOUR_KEY")
val anchorClient = InMemoryBlockchainAnchorClient(config.chainId)
val method = EnsDidMethod(kms, anchorClient, config)

// Note: ENS resolution requires actual ENS registry interaction
// For full testing, use a testnet or local Ethereum node

Best Practices

  1. Use ENS for readability: did:ens provides human-readable identifiers
  2. Link to did:ethr: Ensure ENS domain is linked to an address with did:ethr DID
  3. Test on testnets: Use Sepolia testnet for development
  4. Cache resolutions: Cache ENS-to-address mappings for performance
  5. Error handling: Handle cases where ENS domain doesn’t exist or isn’t linked

Use Cases

Human-Readable DIDs 

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// Instead of:
did:ethr:0x1234567890123456789012345678901234567890

// Use:
did:ens:example.eth
did:ens:alice.eth
did:ens:company.eth

Organizational DIDs

Use ENS for organizational identities:

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did:ens:TrustWeave.eth      // Company DID
did:ens:engineering.eth   // Department DID
did:ens:alice.eth         // Employee DID

Troubleshooting

ENS Domain Not Resolving

  • Verify domain is registered on ENS
  • Check domain is linked to an Ethereum address
  • Ensure address has a valid did:ethr DID
  • Verify RPC endpoint can access Ethereum mainnet

Address Not Found

  • Ensure Ethereum address has a did:ethr DID document
  • Verify did:ethr resolution works for the address
  • Check blockchain connectivity

Next Steps

References

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