How to mine cryptocurrency yourself

The main articles are:

• Mining cryptocurrencies
• Mining cryptocurrencies in Russia

How to select equipment

Mining requires special equipment - video cards (GPU farms) or "asiki" (ASIC). Their main differences are in their capacity (hash) and mined cryptocurrency.

GPU farms

Video cards are the very computer components that are responsible for rendering graphics and smooth character movement in modern games. For 2022, video cards are most often used to mine "ether" - the Ethereum cryptocurrency. Since it has been difficult to earn something on one or two video cards for several years, they are combined into GPU farms. They usually consist of six to eight powerful video cards enclosed in a case with a power supply and cooling inside.

ASIC

Unlike video cards, "asiki" were created specifically for mining cryptocurrencies. They are more productive, for which they are chosen mainly for bitcoin mining (BTC). "Asiki" does not have to be combined into farms - it is enough to provide power and access to one or two devices online.

GPU or ASIC: Which is more profitable?

Asiki allows mining the most popular cryptocurrency in the world, but the cost of maintaining them in 2022 is quite high, since the equipment consumes a lot of electricity. It's different with GPU farms: they have more modest needs, but bitcoin will not be mined on them. The optimal option for mining on the GPU is still the same ether.

In fact, it is not necessary to choose any one type of mining equipment. To provide for possible risks, it is better to diversify: to purchase both. At the same time, ASIC miners are more powerful and may bring more profit longer, and GPU farms can be sold in the secondary market after some time - this offer will interest gamers or IT specialists.

Where and how to place equipment

Suppose you have selected and purchased mining equipment. Now your task is to create comfortable working conditions for him. You need to understand that devices for mining cryptocurrencies in any case will make noise, consume tangible amounts of electricity and generate a lot of heat. Where you plan to place them, a certain temperature must be maintained and ventilation must work. Ideally, this is a room in a non-residential building where the noise made will not cause discomfort to other people.

The easiest way to find out the requirements of the equipment for power supply, temperature and humidity parameters is to study its passport.

Now it remains to take care of the Internet connection. Mining does not require super speed - a fairly stable Internet.

Independent placement and maintenance of mining equipment is possible, and if we are talking about one or two devices, an experienced user can cope himself. However, when it comes to large volumes, it should be borne in mind that such a system is high-consumption equipment, and elementary errors in care or inappropriate conditions can carry serious risks, up to equipment failure and even fire. In addition, the consumption of too much electricity can be regarded as damage to the energy network and cause fines.

You can avoid all these problems by choosing another placement option - by contacting a special hosting company. Most often, mining operators take over all operational processes for the operation of equipment and provide owners with remote access to their devices. That is, the miner incurs additional costs for accommodation, but it takes off its maintenance work - it simply monitors its devices from a smartphone or computer.

How to select a pool for mining

Pools appeared as an alternative to solo mining, which by 2022 became ineffective a few years ago. A typical pool is a site with specialized software, where miners combine computing power to mine a certain type of cryptocurrency. The task that all participants in this process solve is to calculate a new block: as soon as it is solved, the reward will receive everything in proportion to its contribution or in equal shares (depending on the pool). Each pool has an owner who earns on commissions for coins mined by other participants - up to an average of 2%. Hundreds and even thousands of participants can mine on one pool.

Your task is to choose not just suitable conditions, but a pool for mining according to a specific algorithm, within which coins are mined. There are many ratings of popular pools on the network, among which you can find the one that fits you in power - the higher it is, the larger the reward. However, mining revenue is also influenced by many other secondary factors. Relatively accurate yield figures per hash rate unit help calculate special online calculators. Consider equipment pool requirements, method, and frequency of reward payments. Often restrictions are imposed depending on the selected currency: in many pools uniting the owners of "asiks," at least 0.001 BTC must be soldered for withdrawal. How quickly it will be possible to get the minimum amount for withdrawal - depends on the performance of equipment for mining cryptocurrencies, the pool and the complexity of the algorithm - in the BTC network, it is recalculated every two weeks.

To create an account on the mining pool, a mobile phone number and an email address are enough.

How to create a crypto wallet

The mined cryptocurrency must be displayed on a wallet, which can be "hot" or "cold."

The "hot" wallet, aka hot wallet, presents an online cryptocurrency storage service. A typical example is a crypto exchange, on which you can easily and quickly sell or buy cryptocurrency. This is the best option for those who plan to exchange cryptocurrency often. Alternatively, you can use special wallet sites - after registering in a few clicks, you will receive a unique crypto wallet address and can use it for transactions. Wallets in the form of applications developed for smartphones and PCs are also very popular.

A "cold" wallet, aka cold wallet, is a hardware, not a software solution. Such a wallet is made in the form of a separate physical device that can be held in hand. "Cold" wallets are safer than exchanges, specialized sites and applications, as they are almost impossible to hack from the outside. The owner of the wallet can track its contents through the application, without a physical connection, and directly access the contents by pin code. Thus, in order to withdraw funds from the cold wallet, you need to have it at hand. The main disadvantage of a "cold" wallet is its cost.

Choose a "hot wallet" if you plan to store small amounts on it. For safe storage of large amounts, we recommend using hardware wallets.

We hope these recommendations will help you successfully start mining cryptocurrency and not get confused at the start. If you plan to turn cryptocurrency mining into a long-term and reliable investment tool, we recommend considering the possibility of placing equipment - "asiks" and GPU farms - in specialized data centers with optimal climatic conditions, stable communication channels and a reliable energy supply system.

Prepared by Intelion Data Systems