What is a mining pool: everything about it and the most popular

A mining pool is a server that distributes tasks for calculating between the participants in the workflow. When one of the participants succeeds in achieving the goal, a corresponding block is formed, and after that all users are rewarded. The pool has a fairly large chance of finding a block of transactions, after which a reward is awarded. It is much more difficult for a lone miner to do this.

The peculiarity of using pools is that even if a specific participant succeeds in achieving his goal, he will have to share the profit with all users of the pool. At the same time, it remains one of the most successful strategies. It is especially worth highlighting the large cloud mining services, which include such as HashFlare and IQ  Mining. They often use the combined amount of their capacities in closed "pools", which allows them to achieve maximum independence from others and receive a fairly high income. You should pay attention to the fact that the capacity of one pool is not more than 51% of the total network capacity. A few years ago, one of the pools called Ghash.io reached this value, and after that, participants received a message asking them to leave the service, as it began to threaten the security of the network.

There are a large number of mining pools. Currently, their number exceeds 1.5 thousand and the growth continues. Most of the miners are trying to use bitcoin pools, which is associated with the complexity of mining this cryptocurrency. Even with a very strong base, it will not be possible to make a profit alone, and this leads to the emergence of new pools. They are also created for mining other cryptocurrencies, but, as a rule, these currencies have less value. Their popularity is not so high, although mining is easier, but the profit in such cases is much less. Miners of "young" cryptocurrencies are joining such pools with the hope that the rate for them will rise in the future. It looks like a kind of contribution to the future. 

Choose a mining pool?

To choose the right option, you need to compare what you can find. When comparing, you should pay attention to the following points:

• capacity - the lower the pool capacity, the less likely it is to get a decent profit; small pools weakly compete with developed powerful systems, which take the bulk of the income shared between their participants;
• the capacity of your own equipment, on which the contribution to the total capacity of the pool directly depends; if the miner has a weak video card, then electricity costs may exceed the income from the mined cryptocurrency;
• method of distribution of income: the most common option is to divide the total income in relation to the contribution of each of the participants in percentage terms; you can also find such pools where the profit is divided equally, but they are not so common;
• methods of transferring money may also differ, pools allow you to withdraw earned money directly to a card or transfer income to an electronic wallet;
• system commission is an important point if mining becomes a permanent income, since you have to pay a certain amount with each withdrawal of money.

How are reward distribution pools different?

In order to calculate the earnings of each individual participant and accrue income for participation in mining, several different techniques are used. The most common among the existing options are PPS, PROP and PPLNS. Lets consider them in more detail:

• PPS: this distribution system involves payments for each share that the miner transfers to the general pool, this ensures the receipt of stable payments, but at the same time, the system turns out to be risky for the operator of the pool itself;
• PROP: payments are made solely in proportion to the number of parts invested in the pool;
• PPLNS: This abbreviation means that the payments are made for the last shares and, accordingly, the pool pays for the last number of shares added.

The correct distribution of funds directly determines the further earnings in this area. You need to weigh your capabilities in order to understand the most profitable option for yourself. When using ASIC, it is required to set VARDIFF, in which there is a variable complexity, this is necessary to achieve a more complex goal without wasting time. Experienced users can adjust the difficulty on their own based on their hashrate. In some cases, operators may request the required difficulty for such a users miner.

NiceHash is a popular choice for newbies

NiceHash belongs to multipools and has become widespread among novice miners. As a rule, beginners are not yet accustomed to frequently monitoring the situation on the market, and this pool becomes an ideal solution for such cases. An algorithm operates here, which automatically switches users to the extraction of the most profitable parts. The main difference between the pool, which provides its main advantage, is its own unique software. To use it, the participant does not need great skills and knowledge, but at the same time NiceHash works well with almost all common algorithms.

Payments in this system are carried out exclusively in bitcoin, the most stable and popular cryptocurrency. At its core, NiceHash acts as an intermediary: clients buy capacities from it for mining cryptocurrency in pools, employees provide their computers with capacities for customers to mine on their pools. After the completed work, they receive remuneration from the clients of the service, distributed by the system itself. Almost all procedures related to the distribution, transmission and lease of capacities are undertaken by the intermediary. This practically eliminates the possibility of deception and errors in charges, which are so often afraid of beginners.

NiceHash can handle multiple cryptocurrencies. This is the peculiarity of the multi-pool: the system automatically switches the users power to work from one cryptocurrency to another, if the second turns out to be more profitable at the moment. To calculate the profitability, the current exchange rate, mining difficulties and other factors are taken into account. If the system decides that at the moment one of the cryptocurrencies is becoming more profitable for mining than the one on which the users computer is currently working, then it independently reconnects to work on a more profitable currency.

The algorithms of the service can be regulated manually: if the user does not want the system to reconnect automatically and wants to work with only one type of cryptocurrency, then in the settings he can select specific coins with which he wants to work.

When the program is launched, all miners are loaded into it for existing algorithms, after which they are unpacked. Next, the user enters his bitcoin wallet, which must be registered in advance on one of the exchanges, the name of the workers is entered, which is convenient if there are several farms or computers, since it becomes possible to track statistics on them separately. The program is customized according to user preferences. It is obligatory to launch BenchMark in order to track the speed of the device on all available algorithms.

Note! This program recognizes both processors and video cards, so the user can disable in the settings those devices that should not be involved in the work.

The balance of work is displayed directly in NiceHash, statistics are also displayed on the site in the section "miners / sellers" - "my miner (bitcoin wallet address)". The payment system changes periodically, all relevant information is displayed on the service website. If a computer with relatively low capacities is connected, where only 1 processor or video card works, then you will have to wait more than a week before the first payment. When using powerful configurations, where 4 powerful video cards are involved, the first charges may arrive on the first day.

The most powerful pools

Mining is actively developing, which leads to the emergence of a large number of pools with different conditions. As you know, the capacity of the pool directly affects earnings, therefore, when choosing a suitable service, this factor must be taken into account first of all. Most of them are designed to work with bitcoin, one of the most difficult to mine cryptocurrencies. Below are the most powerful pools currently in existence.

Miningrigrentals

Miningrigrentals is an English-language service that has been worked out in the smallest detail for the convenience and efficiency of miners. Here miners can rent the "rigs" used to mine bitcoin. The service has existed for about 5 years, which is not much for this area, but it has already managed to win the appreciation of users almost all over the world. The advantages of the work include a relatively small commission, as well as an accessible display of statistics.

Minergate

Minergate is used to mine several cryptocurrencies, in addition to bitcoin, Dash and Etherium can be mined here. The popularity of the service is due to the convenience of its work. After installing the program on the computer, automatic cryptocurrency mining begins. There are several ways to withdraw earned money, including a personal wallet and an exchange. The service takes a commission of 1.5% of the withdrawn funds.

Zpool

Zpool is an American company that created a mining service. You can withdraw earned money only in bitcoin. It will be convenient for novice miners to take advantage of automatic exchange operations. The service has developed a unique script. Zpool allows you to work on the service without registration.

BitClub Network

BitClub Network - the service has been on the market for about five years, it was created by enthusiasts who wanted to expand the opportunities for users to work on mining cryptocurrency. In addition to bitcoin, miners mine XMR, ZEC, ETC, ETH here. The service positions itself as an investment project. There are two plans here, the first for 1,000 days, and the second for 2,000 days. During this period, new shares are mined in a similar volume. The process is endless. Despite the fact that registration for the service is free, the membership fee is $ 99. Average profitability ranges from 80 to 120% of the invested funds. The advantages include the stable functionality of the pool, so there are practically no interruptions in its activities.

F2Pool

F2Pool is a Chinese service that has been on the market for about six years. It is one of the few large pools today that use the PPS payout system. Now the total global share of the hashrate of the service network is 20%. The pool recommends putting the earned funds on withdrawal immediately, since after 90 days all account balances are transferred to the development of the pool.

AntPool

AntPool is another Chinese service, which is slightly inferior in power to its predecessor, its share is 18% of the hash rate. There is an interface in Russian, earnings are withdrawn without commission, funds are transferred to different systems.

BTC China

BTC China is a Chinese service without support for an interface in Russian, English is present, but in a limited mode. Despite a significant market share of about 11%, BTC China is more popular in China than worldwide.

Bw pool

BW Pool is another Chinese service used for bitcoin mining. The total network capacity in it is 9%. Receiving funds from it is available without commission, and income is accrued through the PPLNS system.

Bitfury

Bitfury is the largest European pool. The service is owned by a company that sells computer technology. The companys offices are located in Georgia and Iceland. Bitcoin mining network capacity is 15%. Third parties cannot enter here.

Pools for Ethereum mining

Ethereum is the second most popular cryptocurrency after Bitcoin. This is the second generation currency, which was once predicted to be the leader in this area. Accordingly, it is of great interest to miners, since it has the potential for further rate growth.

Ethpool.org

Ethpool.org is the very first pool that appeared for mining the Ethereum cryptocurrency. Due to the rapid growth in the popularity of Ethereum, the pool soon became closed and works exclusively with those users who managed to connect in a timely manner. The pool capacity is 20%.

ETH Nanopool

ETH Nanopool is one of the most powerful pools, accounting for 40%. Withdrawal fees reach 2%. The service is constantly growing and developing by connecting new users.

Whalesburg.com

Whalesburg.com is a universal pool that allows you to work with several cryptocurrencies at the same time. These include ETH, ETC, UBQ, ELLA and others, which are produced on the ETHash algorithm. The site was launched in 2018. Here, an automatic switching of production takes place, if the course changes, this is done in order to obtain the greatest profit for the miners. The system commission ranges from 0.9-3%. Payment for the contribution made here is made immediately after receiving the results. Money is withdrawn only in Ethereum, regardless of what the miner was mining. A special advantage here is the referral program, which allows you to receive additional income from attracted users. The peculiarity of this pool is the availability of proprietary software. The income is accrued using the PPLNS system. Users receive important notifications using the telegram bot. The developers have introduced many tools to make it easier for miners. These tools include a specially designed Proxy to keep the connection. The current hash rate is about 140 GH / s. This option is suitable for those who just want to connect and participate minimally in further work.

Ethereumpool

Ethereumpool - service capacity is 2%. He has been working in this field for over 2 years. Withdrawal fee is 2% and is fixed regardless of the amount.

Pools for mining Monero

Monero belongs to developing cryptocurrencies, some experienced miners even prefer to mine it on their own, since its complexity is not yet high. Nevertheless, even it has its own pools.

MineXMR

MineXMR is one of the main ones for mining Monero, the share of hashrate in it is about 18%. This is the first server for mining Monero, it has been in operation for over five years. Payments are made using the PPLNS system. Regardless of the amount paid, the commission is 1%.

SupportXMR

SupportXMR works only with this cryptocurrency and nothing more. It has one of the smallest commissions at 0.6% for any withdrawal amount. There are high uptime rates of up to 100%.

MinerGate

MinerGate is a popular cloud mining service, not only Monero is mined in this pool, but also about a dozen different cryptocurrencies. The pools fixed withdrawal fee is 1%.

Mining on our own software

Beginners who do not have large technical capacities often just want to try the process itself, without immediately resorting to large investments in technology. There are several options for using a regular computer with a processor and video card. As a rule, we are talking about the mining of less popular cryptocurrencies, which are mined in an easier way, for this method Monero, Dogecoin and Dash coins are available. All this is of interest only to novice miners, since the profit from all this is quite small.

Features of creating a pool

The process of creating a pool for mining cryptocurrency is a difficult and painstaking work, especially in the face of modern competition. It also requires the development and improvement of existing developments in order to compete with new projects.

First of all, we work with the software for the stable functioning of the service. Creation of a script requires well-developed code, in which all errors must be eliminated. Any inaccuracy can lead to the loss of user funds, unstable work and other troubles, due to which miners will go to competitors. Developing completely new software takes a lot of time and money, but some pools try to use existing developments. Based on certain templates, they create their own add-ons, which later acquire new features, which leads to the emergence of a new product. Large services, as a rule, use exclusively their own developments, since the use of open source templates, albeit modified for the specifics of a particular pool, does not meet high security requirements. Situations are not excluded when algorithms are hidden in the templates, leading to the theft of the participants hashrate share.

An equally difficult stage is the creation of a server. The main characteristic here is reliability. Therefore, already at the start, serious material costs are required. Taking into account the upcoming growth, the server must have a margin of high power characteristics. This also applies to the creation of effective data exchange channels. Additionally, it is required to create technical support for users, even if there are not so many of them at the very beginning in order to recoup the investment.

In modern conditions, the correct promotion of your own pool is not inferior in importance to its reliability and working conditions. It is necessary to work on attracting new people, enticing customers from competitors and creating conditions for mutually beneficial cooperation. Given that the capacity of the pool is of great importance to users, new services need to offer them unique conditions. The large competition of pools is beneficial for miners, as they receive more and more favorable conditions.

Why do users prefer pools over self-mining?

Almost any cryptocurrency that is mined according to the proof-of-work principle has a certain mining difficulty value. The number of devices used in mining and their power directly affect the complexity. If these values are minimal, then the complexity of mining becomes low. Thus, with an increase in the number of participants, which is due to the increase in the popularity of cryptocurrency, the difficulty of mining also increases. It becomes more difficult for one user to find a new block at a given time interval. There is such a situation that the payment for finding one block remains the same, while the amount of effort spent on this increases. Sooner or later, a situation arises in which it becomes impossible to find a block on your own, which excludes the possibility of receiving a reward for this.

If we consider the theory, then many modern cryptocurrencies require several years of time to find one block, if the miner does it himself. In practice, these periods can be even longer, especially for such common currencies as Bitcoin and Etherium.

The pool allows miners to join forces to achieve their goals. Thanks to the integration into one network of several hundred or thousands of participants, the time to search for a block is significantly reduced. The pool opens up an opportunity for almost any miner to earn money, even if the computing power of his personal computer is not great and he could not find the block he needed. He still contributes to the overall process, which allows him to receive an appropriate share.

The success of the pool depends on the total capacity of all its participants; in such situations, the probability of connecting the block becomes the highest. Powerful large pools are more likely to find the block they need, and the miners connected to them are more likely to receive their reward for their contribution.

Pool setup

After choosing the appropriate pool option for cryptocurrency mining, you need to go to its configuration. In most cases, this is a simple process, even beginners can handle it. Each case may have its own characteristics, but many pools are configured according to the same principle.

First of all, you need to register an account on the service. This is the main account for work, which will include all data. All the differences in registration on different pools, as well as the specifics of their configuration, are not critical.

On the page of almost every pool there is a "register" button or a button with a similar name. After clicking it, the user is required to fill out a small form where the miners name, email, password, as well as consent to the rules for working in the pool are indicated. Further, a letter with a link to activate your account is sent to the mail specified during registration, this is the last point in the procedure.

After creating an account, the miner gets access to the pool settings. He can add workers to it, edit data, designate the address of his wallet for crediting cryptocurrency, if this payment method is supported. To improve the security of your work account, pools provide the ability to configure two-factor authentication.

Online calculators are often placed on platforms for calculating mining. They show the probable profit if the user mines the cryptocurrency on this pool with his own computer configurations. The user needs to indicate the hash rate of his equipment so that the calculator calculates the amount of remuneration, and to make a decision, the user only needs to calculate his electricity costs.

The next step is to connect the mining equipment to the pool. Many beginners use autonomous ASIC miners that have the Stratum protocol, this greatly facilitates the connection process, the technology already has a corresponding interface. The miner needs to specify the address of the service to which the equipment is connected, his name in the system, and also the registered password.

Next, the ID and name of the worker are entered. Here the password requirements are not so high, since the security issue is not so significant. If another user tries to hack it and connect to the server through it, then all the power of his computer will work for the benefit of the registered user, which is not beneficial to the cracker himself.

When using an ASIC miner that connects to a PC, you need to download and install software for mining a specific cryptocurrency. It will be different for each individual species.

Important! Mining software will be required if a video card or computer processor is used to mine cryptocurrency.

In the overwhelming majority of cases, the official site contains all the necessary materials for downloading so that users can conduct normal work on the pool. All software packages are platform compatible. For example, by going to the official site of the SlushPool pool, you can download BFGminer and cgminer, they work as ASIC miners that are used to mine bitcoins. After downloading and installing one of the above programs, you can start configuring it. First of all, the server address, name and password are entered into the program. Here you need to create a bat-file in a notepad with the appropriate content "/ cgminer --userpass userID.workerID: specified password --url stratum + tcp: //stratum.slushpool.com: 3333" .

The next step in the setup is to set the address for paying the remuneration for the work. Do not forget that a pool for cryptocurrency mining is not a wallet, therefore, an address for payments cannot be created here, all this must be done on other providers. The user can create his own personal wallet on a suitable service or connect a wallet for cryptocurrencies from any exchange. The address for entering the wallet is in the "payments" tab.

At this point, the setup ends. Some new pools may offer additional points, but the introduction of the above data is often enough to get started with cryptocurrency mining.

Why do people choose pools over cloud mining?

Cloud mining had to compete with standard work on a pool with its own equipment. If we consider the essence, then this method is very similar to mining in a pool, but it does not use the users personal technique. The service that offers users cloud mining services provides its equipment for mining cryptocurrency for rent. In other words, the client temporarily leases the hash rate of a remote farm, since the capacities of companies are always much higher than the capacities of single miners. A feature of the service is the placement of farms in countries where electricity is much cheaper than in the clients country. Some services, in addition to renting fees, charge a commission on earnings, which allows them to cover the costs of maintaining and purchasing equipment.

Cloud mining works on the same pools, but does not require the user to have his own equipment. This is beneficial only in cases where the miner does not have the opportunity to purchase high-quality powerful equipment. In the long term, when there are serious intentions and opportunities for buying your own equipment, independent work on the pool turns out to be a more profitable solution, since here you need to make a contribution once, you do not have to pay an additional commission, and after the end of the work the equipment remains with the user.

Cloud services are suitable for those who live in places with very expensive electricity, or do not want to take risks with contributions to further development. The specifics of setting up the technique, calculating the estimated profit and other features remain relevant for this option, since the principle of the pool does not change from this.

The mining calculator will help you calculate the most profitable option when comparing all the conditions for both standard and cloud connection to the pool. When working with cloud services, the choice of a suitable pool and working conditions remain the same. Some people first connect with a lease, but then move on to more serious actions and purchase equipment.

Calculating mining income on a pool

There are many calculators with varying degrees of precision. The more factors are taken into account, the more accurate the value is obtained. Naturally, the accuracy depends on the probability of finding the block, so all numbers remain approximate, but they help to compare several options and find the most suitable ones. It is best to use those mining income calculators that are on the official sites.

A mining pool is a server that distributes tasks for calculating between the participants in the workflow. When one of the participants succeeds in achieving the goal, a corresponding block is formed, and after that all users are rewarded. The pool has a fairly large chance of finding a block of transactions, after which a reward is awarded. It is much more difficult for a lone miner to do this.

The peculiarity of using pools is that even if a specific participant succeeds in achieving his goal, he will have to share the profit with all users of the pool. At the same time, it remains one of the most successful strategies. It is especially worth highlighting the large cloud mining services, which include such as HashFlare and IQ  Mining. They often use the combined amount of their capacities in closed "pools", which allows them to achieve maximum independence from others and receive a fairly high income. You should pay attention to the fact that the capacity of one pool is not more than 51% of the total network capacity. A few years ago, one of the pools called Ghash.io reached this value, and after that, participants received a message asking them to leave the service, as it began to threaten the security of the network.

There are a large number of mining pools. Currently, their number exceeds 1.5 thousand and the growth continues. Most of the miners are trying to use bitcoin pools, which is associated with the complexity of mining this cryptocurrency. Even with a very strong base, it will not be possible to make a profit alone, and this leads to the emergence of new pools. They are also created for mining other cryptocurrencies, but, as a rule, these currencies have less value. Their popularity is not so high, although mining is easier, but the profit in such cases is much less. Miners of "young" cryptocurrencies are joining such pools with the hope that the rate for them will rise in the future. It looks like a kind of contribution to the future. 

Choose a mining pool?

To choose the right option, you need to compare what you can find. When comparing, you should pay attention to the following points:

capacity - the lower the pool capacity, the less likely it is to get a decent profit; small pools weakly compete with developed powerful systems, which take the bulk of the income shared between their participants;

the capacity of your own equipment, on which the contribution to the total capacity of the pool directly depends; if the miner has a weak video card, then electricity costs may exceed the income from the mined cryptocurrency;

method of distribution of income: the most common option is to divide the total income in relation to the contribution of each of the participants in percentage terms; you can also find such pools where the profit is divided equally, but they are not so common;

methods of transferring money may also differ, pools allow you to withdraw earned money directly to a card or transfer income to an electronic wallet;

system commission is an important point if mining becomes a permanent income, since you have to pay a certain amount with each withdrawal of money.

How are reward distribution pools different?

In order to calculate the earnings of each individual participant and accrue income for participation in mining, several different techniques are used. The most common among the existing options are PPS, PROP and PPLNS. Lets consider them in more detail:

PPS: this distribution system involves payments for each share that the miner transfers to the general pool, this ensures the receipt of stable payments, but at the same time, the system turns out to be risky for the operator of the pool itself;

PROP: payments are made solely in proportion to the number of parts invested in the pool;

PPLNS: This abbreviation means that the payments are made for the last shares and, accordingly, the pool pays for the last number of shares added.

The correct distribution of funds directly determines the further earnings in this area. You need to weigh your capabilities in order to understand the most profitable option for yourself. When using ASIC, it is required to set VARDIFF, in which there is a variable complexity, this is necessary to achieve a more complex goal without wasting time. Experienced users can adjust the difficulty on their own based on their hashrate. In some cases, operators may request the required difficulty for such a users miner.

NiceHash is a popular choice for newbies

NiceHash belongs to multipools and has become widespread among novice miners. As a rule, beginners are not yet accustomed to frequently monitoring the situation on the market, and this pool becomes an ideal solution for such cases. An algorithm operates here, which automatically switches users to the extraction of the most profitable parts. The main difference between the pool, which provides its main advantage, is its own unique software. To use it, the participant does not need great skills and knowledge, but at the same time NiceHash works well with almost all common algorithms.

Payments in this system are carried out exclusively in bitcoin, the most stable and popular cryptocurrency. At its core, NiceHash acts as an intermediary: clients buy capacities from it for mining cryptocurrency in pools, employees provide their computers with capacities for customers to mine on their pools. After the completed work, they receive remuneration from the clients of the service, distributed by the system itself. Almost all procedures related to the distribution, transmission and lease of capacities are undertaken by the intermediary. This practically eliminates the possibility of deception and errors in charges, which are so often afraid of beginners.

NiceHash can handle multiple cryptocurrencies. This is the peculiarity of the multi-pool: the system automatically switches the users power to work from one cryptocurrency to another, if the second turns out to be more profitable at the moment. To calculate the profitability, the current exchange rate, mining difficulties and other factors are taken into account. If the system decides that at the moment one of the cryptocurrencies is becoming more profitable for mining than the one on which the users computer is currently working, then it independently reconnects to work on a more profitable currency.

The algorithms of the service can be regulated manually: if the user does not want the system to reconnect automatically and wants to work with only one type of cryptocurrency, then in the settings he can select specific coins with which he wants to work.

When the program is launched, all miners are loaded into it for existing algorithms, after which they are unpacked. Next, the user enters his bitcoin wallet, which must be registered in advance on one of the exchanges, the name of the workers is entered, which is convenient if there are several farms or computers, since it becomes possible to track statistics on them separately. The program is customized according to user preferences. It is obligatory to launch BenchMark in order to track the speed of the device on all available algorithms.

Note! This program recognizes both processors and video cards, so the user can disable in the settings those devices that should not be involved in the work.

The balance of work is displayed directly in NiceHash, statistics are also displayed on the site in the section "miners / sellers" - "my miner (bitcoin wallet address)". The payment system changes periodically, all relevant information is displayed on the service website. If a computer with relatively low capacities is connected, where only 1 processor or video card works, then you will have to wait more than a week before the first payment. When using powerful configurations, where 4 powerful video cards are involved, the first charges may arrive on the first day.

The most powerful pools

Mining is actively developing, which leads to the emergence of a large number of pools with different conditions. As you know, the capacity of the pool directly affects earnings, therefore, when choosing a suitable service, this factor must be taken into account first of all. Most of them are designed to work with bitcoin, one of the most difficult to mine cryptocurrencies. Below are the most powerful pools currently in existence.

Miningrigrentals

Miningrigrentals is an English-language service that has been worked out in the smallest detail for the convenience and efficiency of miners. Here miners can rent the "rigs" used to mine bitcoin. The service has existed for about 5 years, which is not much for this area, but it has already managed to win the appreciation of users almost all over the world. The advantages of the work include a relatively small commission, as well as an accessible display of statistics.

Minergate

Minergate is used to mine several cryptocurrencies, in addition to bitcoin, Dash and Etherium can be mined here. The popularity of the service is due to the convenience of its work. After installing the program on the computer, automatic cryptocurrency mining begins. There are several ways to withdraw earned money, including a personal wallet and an exchange. The service takes a commission of 1.5% of the withdrawn funds.

Zpool

Zpool is an American company that created a mining service. You can withdraw earned money only in bitcoin. It will be convenient for novice miners to take advantage of automatic exchange operations. The service has developed a unique script. Zpool allows you to work on the service without registration.

BitClub Network

BitClub Network - the service has been on the market for about five years, it was created by enthusiasts who wanted to expand the opportunities for users to work on mining cryptocurrency. In addition to bitcoin, miners mine XMR, ZEC, ETC, ETH here. The service positions itself as an investment project. There are two plans here, the first for 1,000 days, and the second for 2,000 days. During this period, new shares are mined in a similar volume. The process is endless. Despite the fact that registration for the service is free, the membership fee is $ 99. Average profitability ranges from 80 to 120% of the invested funds. The advantages include the stable functionality of the pool, so there are practically no interruptions in its activities.

F2Pool

F2Pool is a Chinese service that has been on the market for about six years. It is one of the few large pools today that use the PPS payout system. Now the total global share of the hashrate of the service network is 20%. The pool recommends putting the earned funds on withdrawal immediately, since after 90 days all account balances are transferred to the development of the pool.

AntPool

AntPool is another Chinese service, which is slightly inferior in power to its predecessor, its share is 18% of the hash rate. There is an interface in Russian, earnings are withdrawn without commission, funds are transferred to different systems.

BTC China

BTC China is a Chinese service without support for an interface in Russian, English is present, but in a limited mode. Despite a significant market share of about 11%, BTC China is more popular in China than worldwide.

Bw pool

BW Pool is another Chinese service used for bitcoin mining. The total network capacity in it is 9%. Receiving funds from it is available without commission, and income is accrued through the PPLNS system.

Bitfury

Bitfury is the largest European pool. The service is owned by a company that sells computer technology. The companys offices are located in Georgia and Iceland. Bitcoin mining network capacity is 15%. Third parties cannot enter here.

Pools for Ethereum mining

Ethereum is the second most popular cryptocurrency after Bitcoin. This is the second generation currency, which was once predicted to be the leader in this area. Accordingly, it is of great interest to miners, since it has the potential for further rate growth.

Ethpool.org

Ethpool.org is the very first pool that appeared for mining the Ethereum cryptocurrency. Due to the rapid growth in the popularity of Ethereum, the pool soon became closed and works exclusively with those users who managed to connect in a timely manner. The pool capacity is 20%.

ETH Nanopool

ETH Nanopool is one of the most powerful pools, accounting for 40%. Withdrawal fees reach 2%. The service is constantly growing and developing by connecting new users.

Whalesburg.com

Whalesburg.com is a universal pool that allows you to work with several cryptocurrencies at the same time. These include ETH, ETC, UBQ, ELLA and others, which are produced on the ETHash algorithm. The site was launched in 2018. Here, an automatic switching of production takes place, if the course changes, this is done in order to obtain the greatest profit for the miners. The system commission ranges from 0.9-3%. Payment for the contribution made here is made immediately after receiving the results. Money is withdrawn only in Ethereum, regardless of what the miner was mining. A special advantage here is the referral program, which allows you to receive additional income from attracted users. The peculiarity of this pool is the availability of proprietary software. The income is accrued using the PPLNS system. Users receive important notifications using the telegram bot. The developers have introduced many tools to make it easier for miners. These tools include a specially designed Proxy to keep the connection. The current hash rate is about 140 GH / s. This option is suitable for those who just want to connect and participate minimally in further work.

Ethereumpool

Ethereumpool - service capacity is 2%. He has been working in this field for over 2 years. Withdrawal fee is 2% and is fixed regardless of the amount.

Pools for mining Monero

Monero belongs to developing cryptocurrencies, some experienced miners even prefer to mine it on their own, since its complexity is not yet high. Nevertheless, even it has its own pools.

MineXMR

MineXMR is one of the main ones for mining Monero, the share of hashrate in it is about 18%. This is the first server for mining Monero, it has been in operation for over five years. Payments are made using the PPLNS system. Regardless of the amount paid, the commission is 1%.

SupportXMR

SupportXMR works only with this cryptocurrency and nothing more. It has one of the smallest commissions at 0.6% for any withdrawal amount. There are high uptime rates of up to 100%.

MinerGate

MinerGate is a popular cloud mining service, not only Monero is mined in this pool, but also about a dozen different cryptocurrencies. The pools fixed withdrawal fee is 1%.

Mining on our own software

Beginners who do not have large technical capacities often just want to try the process itself, without immediately resorting to large investments in technology. There are several options for using a regular computer with a processor and video card. As a rule, we are talking about the mining of less popular cryptocurrencies, which are mined in an easier way, for this method Monero, Dogecoin and Dash coins are available. All this is of interest only to novice miners, since the profit from all this is quite small.

Features of creating a pool

The process of creating a pool for mining cryptocurrency is a difficult and painstaking work, especially in the face of modern competition. It also requires the development and improvement of existing developments in order to compete with new projects.

First of all, we work with the software for the stable functioning of the service. Creation of a script requires well-developed code, in which all errors must be eliminated. Any inaccuracy can lead to the loss of user funds, unstable work and other troubles, due to which miners will go to competitors. Developing completely new software takes a lot of time and money, but some pools try to use existing developments. Based on certain templates, they create their own add-ons, which later acquire new features, which leads to the emergence of a new product. Large services, as a rule, use exclusively their own developments, since the use of open source templates, albeit modified for the specifics of a particular pool, does not meet high security requirements. Situations are not excluded when algorithms are hidden in the templates, leading to the theft of the participants hashrate share.

An equally difficult stage is the creation of a server. The main characteristic here is reliability. Therefore, already at the start, serious material costs are required. Taking into account the upcoming growth, the server must have a margin of high power characteristics. This also applies to the creation of effective data exchange channels. Additionally, it is required to create technical support for users, even if there are not so many of them at the very beginning in order to recoup the investment.

In modern conditions, the correct promotion of your own pool is not inferior in importance to its reliability and working conditions. It is necessary to work on attracting new people, enticing customers from competitors and creating conditions for mutually beneficial cooperation. Given that the capacity of the pool is of great importance to users, new services need to offer them unique conditions. The large competition of pools is beneficial for miners, as they receive more and more favorable conditions.

Why do users prefer pools over self-mining?

Almost any cryptocurrency that is mined according to the proof-of-work principle has a certain mining difficulty value. The number of devices used in mining and their power directly affect the complexity. If these values are minimal, then the complexity of mining becomes low. Thus, with an increase in the number of participants, which is due to the increase in the popularity of cryptocurrency, the difficulty of mining also increases. It becomes more difficult for one user to find a new block at a given time interval. There is such a situation that the payment for finding one block remains the same, while the amount of effort spent on this increases. Sooner or later, a situation arises in which it becomes impossible to find a block on your own, which excludes the possibility of receiving a reward for this.

If we consider the theory, then many modern cryptocurrencies require several years of time to find one block, if the miner does it himself. In practice, these periods can be even longer, especially for such common currencies as Bitcoin and Etherium.

The pool allows miners to join forces to achieve their goals. Thanks to the integration into one network of several hundred or thousands of participants, the time to search for a block is significantly reduced. The pool opens up an opportunity for almost any miner to earn money, even if the computing power of his personal computer is not great and he could not find the block he needed. He still contributes to the overall process, which allows him to receive an appropriate share.

The success of the pool depends on the total capacity of all its participants; in such situations, the probability of connecting the block becomes the highest. Powerful large pools are more likely to find the block they need, and the miners connected to them are more likely to receive their reward for their contribution.

Pool setup

After choosing the appropriate pool option for cryptocurrency mining, you need to go to its configuration. In most cases, this is a simple process, even beginners can handle it. Each case may have its own characteristics, but many pools are configured according to the same principle.

First of all, you need to register an account on the service. This is the main account for work, which will include all data. All the differences in registration on different pools, as well as the specifics of their configuration, are not critical.

On the page of almost every pool there is a "register" button or a button with a similar name. After clicking it, the user is required to fill out a small form where the miners name, email, password, as well as consent to the rules for working in the pool are indicated. Further, a letter with a link to activate your account is sent to the mail specified during registration, this is the last point in the procedure.

After creating an account, the miner gets access to the pool settings. He can add workers to it, edit data, designate the address of his wallet for crediting cryptocurrency, if this payment method is supported. To improve the security of your work account, pools provide the ability to configure two-factor authentication.

Online calculators are often placed on platforms for calculating mining. They show the probable profit if the user mines the cryptocurrency on this pool with his own computer configurations. The user needs to indicate the hash rate of his equipment so that the calculator calculates the amount of remuneration, and to make a decision, the user only needs to calculate his electricity costs.

The next step is to connect the mining equipment to the pool. Many beginners use autonomous ASIC miners that have the Stratum protocol, this greatly facilitates the connection process, the technology already has a corresponding interface. The miner needs to specify the address of the service to which the equipment is connected, his name in the system, and also the registered password.

Next, the ID and name of the worker are entered. Here the password requirements are not so high, since the security issue is not so significant. If another user tries to hack it and connect to the server through it, then all the power of his computer will work for the benefit of the registered user, which is not beneficial to the cracker himself.

When using an ASIC miner that connects to a PC, you need to download and install software for mining a specific cryptocurrency. It will be different for each individual species.

Important! Mining software will be required if a video card or computer processor is used to mine cryptocurrency.

In the overwhelming majority of cases, the official site contains all the necessary materials for downloading so that users can conduct normal work on the pool. All software packages are platform compatible. For example, by going to the official site of the SlushPool pool, you can download BFGminer and cgminer, they work as ASIC miners that are used to mine bitcoins. After downloading and installing one of the above programs, you can start configuring it. First of all, the server address, name and password are entered into the program. Here you need to create a bat-file in a notepad with the appropriate content "/ cgminer --userpass userID.workerID: specified password --url stratum + tcp: //stratum.slushpool.com: 3333" .

The next step in the setup is to set the address for paying the remuneration for the work. Do not forget that a pool for cryptocurrency mining is not a wallet, therefore, an address for payments cannot be created here, all this must be done on other providers. The user can create his own personal wallet on a suitable service or connect a wallet for cryptocurrencies from any exchange. The address for entering the wallet is in the "payments" tab.

At this point, the setup ends. Some new pools may offer additional points, but the introduction of the above data is often enough to get started with cryptocurrency mining.

Why do people choose pools over cloud mining?

Cloud mining had to compete with standard work on a pool with its own equipment. If we consider the essence, then this method is very similar to mining in a pool, but it does not use the users personal technique. The service that offers users cloud mining services provides its equipment for mining cryptocurrency for rent. In other words, the client temporarily leases the hash rate of a remote farm, since the capacities of companies are always much higher than the capacities of single miners. A feature of the service is the placement of farms in countries where electricity is much cheaper than in the clients country. Some services, in addition to renting fees, charge a commission on earnings, which allows them to cover the costs of maintaining and purchasing equipment.

Cloud mining works on the same pools, but does not require the user to have his own equipment. This is beneficial only in cases where the miner does not have the opportunity to purchase high-quality powerful equipment. In the long term, when there are serious intentions and opportunities for buying your own equipment, independent work on the pool turns out to be a more profitable solution, since here you need to make a contribution once, you do not have to pay an additional commission, and after the end of the work the equipment remains with the user.

Cloud services are suitable for those who live in places with very expensive electricity, or do not want to take risks with contributions to further development. The specifics of setting up the technique, calculating the estimated profit and other features remain relevant for this option, since the principle of the pool does not change from this.

The mining calculator will help you calculate the most profitable option when comparing all the conditions for both standard and cloud connection to the pool. When working with cloud services, the choice of a suitable pool and working conditions remain the same. Some people first connect with a lease, but then move on to more serious actions and purchase equipment.

Calculating mining income on a pool

There are many calculators with varying degrees of precision. The more factors are taken into account, the more accurate the value is obtained. Naturally, the accuracy depends on the probability of finding the block, so all numbers remain approximate, but they help to compare several options and find the most suitable ones. It is best to use those mining income calculators that are on the official sites.

To calculate the amount you need:

Open the calculator on the website.

Choose the cryptocurrency you plan to work with.

Indicate the hash rate used for a particular algorithm, or the available mining equipment (it all depends on the features of the calculator).

Enter data on energy consumption.

Indicate the time period required for an approximate calculation.

Specify a mining difficulty value to improve the accuracy of the final data calculations.

Possible difficulties when working with pools

There are several common problems that are faced by both powerful advanced mining pools and less common ones. Fighting them becomes one of the indicators of the benefits of a particular service. Common problems include:

lack of connection stability, frequent network breaks and reconnections, which reduces the efficiency of even the most powerful equipment;

lowering the hash rate at the time when new drivers are installed or other configurations are changed;

difficulties with the correct setting of the miner, which often manifest itself in filling in a file with the bat extension;

overheating of the server equipment, which leads to a long shutdown of the pool and the lack of access to it;

lowering the maximum hash rate, which often happens when a new version of the miner is released.

Conclusion

Mining pools have become a great way to passively earn money in recent years. Taking into account the growth of users engaged in the extraction of cryptocurrency, it is the pools that have become the only real way to get income from this business. They increase the chances of finding new blocks successfully and of competing with other powerful miners. Even despite the constantly growing complexity of mining, miners with relatively small personal computer capacities can get profit, since money is accrued according to the contribution made.

It is very important for the user to choose a pool that is suitable for him, which would provide a constant and decent income. Despite the similarity of the rules and features of connecting to different pools, before starting work, you need to study all the conditions for cooperation.

 

To calculate the amount you need:

1. Open the calculator on the website.
2. Choose the cryptocurrency you plan to work with.
3. Indicate the hash rate used for a particular algorithm, or the available mining equipment (it all depends on the features of the calculator).
4. Enter data on energy consumption.
5. Indicate the time period required for an approximate calculation.
6. Specify a mining difficulty value to improve the accuracy of the final data calculations.

Possible difficulties when working with pools

There are several common problems that are faced by both powerful advanced mining pools and less common ones. Fighting them becomes one of the indicators of the benefits of a particular service. Common problems include:

• lack of connection stability, frequent network breaks and reconnections, which reduces the efficiency of even the most powerful equipment;
• lowering the hash rate at the time when new drivers are installed or other configurations are changed;
• difficulties with the correct setting of the miner, which often manifest itself in filling in a file with the bat extension;
• overheating of the server equipment, which leads to a long shutdown of the pool and the lack of access to it;
• lowering the maximum hash rate, which often happens when a new version of the miner is released.

Conclusion

Mining pools have become a great way to passively earn money in recent years. Taking into account the growth of users engaged in the extraction of cryptocurrency, it is the pools that have become the only real way to get income from this business. They increase the chances of finding new blocks successfully and of competing with other powerful miners. Even despite the constantly growing complexity of mining, miners with relatively small personal computer capacities can get profit, since money is accrued according to the contribution made.

It is very important for the user to choose a pool that is suitable for him, which would provide a constant and decent income. Despite the similarity of the rules and features of connecting to different pools, before starting work, you need to study all the conditions for cooperation.

 

 

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