The media is buzzing these days with stories about bitcoin, the most popular of available crypto currencies. First proposed in 2008 and implemented in 2009, recent bubbles and crashes in the exchange-rate for the bitcoin have everyone talking about it. And while the volatility and investment possibilities of bitcoin are intriguing, to me the truly interesting aspect is the role of the bitcoin miner.
There aren't a lot of Bitcoin mining clients for the Mac and if you uncomfortable with the command line/Terminal (or would just like a little more feedback) I recommend a free OS X mining client. MultiMiner is a desktop application for crypto-coin mining and monitoring on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. MultiMiner simplifies switching individual devices (GPUs, ASICs, FPGAs) between. CG miner is a cross-platform bitcoin miner that supports multiple platforms like Windows, Mac OS X, Linux and many more. It is friendly with FPGA and ASIC mining hardware. It has a scalable networking scheduler which can scale to hash rate of any size without any network delays.
As the name implies, bitcoin miners – which are generally either computers or specialized hardware – are responsible for mining new bitcoins. However, that is not their primary function. Those individuals running bitcoin mining software are, in effect, running the bitcoin transaction processing network in a peer-to-peer fashion. You can think of this as another distributed computing system like SETI@home and Folding@home. By using your computer hardware's spare cycles you can contribute to a growing, global, distributed crypto currency. If that's your thing.
And you can actually come out ahead financially. Now, arguably, this won't last much longer. There is specializedhardware on the horizon that may make it much less profitable to mine bitcoins. But, for the time being, if you already have a Radeon 5x series or higher GPU then there's a decent chance you could do this and make a couple of dollars a day (US, not bitcoin). Check out this hardware chart and this calculator for more information.
As it happens the most recent Mac Pros ship with Radeon 5x series GPU's and can use 6x series Radeons with OS X Lion. However, most of the bitcoin mining software is aimed at Windows and Linux. There really aren't a lot of options available for mining bitcoins on OS X without a little extra effort.
In this series of articles I'll talk about three options for bitcoin mining on OS X:
- BitMinter – a Java app that uses OpenCL for mining
- GUIMiner – a GUI wrapper for a Python OpenCL miner
- cgminer & bfgminer – native command-line utilities that use OpenCL to mine
BitMinter
BitMinter is a great service for trying out bitcoin mining with minimal effort. BitMinter functions as a bitcoin pool and as mining software. Their mining software is a Java app. While Java can be a good choice for providing a single app for multiple platforms, recent changes in the Java runtime environment on OS X mean that the BitMinter app may not run without some work.
If you are running the latest version of Mac OS X and attempt to launch the BitMinter Java app, the odds are you'll be faced with this dialog:
If that is the case, simply click on this knowledgebase link from Apple and follow the instructions. Afterward you should be able to launch the .jnlp files by double-clicking them. If you are still having trouble, launch them from the command line with the javaws utility:
javaws beta.jnlp
Once the BitMinter app fires up, you'll see collapsable panes for each CPU and GPU. It is absolutely not worth mining bitcoins on your CPU at this point (though you could look into Litecoins to put your CPU to work). To start mining, click the Engine Start button for each of your GPU's.
And you are now off and mining. You should see a Mh/s readout in the status bar. Green girl mac os. This is the number of hashes per second your hardware is performing. And, while the BitMinter miner is one of the easiest to try on OS X, it is worth noting a few downsides:
- Your performance will be much better with native command-line miners such as cgminer or bfgminer
- You are forced to use BitMinter as your mining pool when using the BitMinter miner
So far I've glossed over the idea of mining 'pools'. While this is outside the scope of this article, know that you will need to pick a pool to participate in. Mining pools are collections of individuals mining common blocks of bitcoin transactions. This means you get paid small fractions every couple of hours instead of waiting months or even years for larger, rounder payouts. They have different payout methods and percentages, but BitMinter is a very good one with low fees (1% currently). You can read more about the available bitcoin pools here.
If you've tried out mining with BitMinter and it seems interesting to you, watch for future articles on using GUIMiner, cgminer and bfgminer on OS X. These utilities remove the Java requirement and offer performance improvements while also letting you participate in the pool of your choice.
Before you start producing coins, determine the best Bitcoin mining software. And for this, read our article.
What is Bitcoin MiningSoftware?
Thephysical creation of crypto coins occurs using specialized equipment. But forthe hardware to work, the user needs to download and install software forBitcoin miner. It doesn't matter if you get tokens alone or cooperate withmining pools, it is possible to connect through free Bitcoin mining software.The only case you do not need it if you are working using cloud mining.
Bitcoin mining programs vary for all computer operating systems and allow the owner to receive rewards for completed blocks in the network of blockchain. Best Bitcoin mining software not only connects devices by generating coins to PC but also reflect the following indicators:
- Entrance and exit of equipment from the network
- Speed of work
- Hash rate
- Fan rotation speed
- Installation temperature
Digital wallets
Before anyone decides to buy mining hardware and launch it using the mining program, he must purchase and configure a cryptocurrency wallet. Any Bitcoin mining software for Windows or Linux or mining with OS will require a digital wallet address. It is necessary to send you rewards in the form of crypto.
Well-known Bitcoin MiningSoftware for Windows
Bitcoin Miner
Best miningsoftware, such as the latest version (1.27.0) Bitcoin Miner offers users toolssuch as:
- Power saving mode
- Built-in mining pool software
- Profit reports monitoring the effectiveness of the token production process
BTCMiner
It hasfeatures such as open-source and dynamic frequency scaling. The programautomatically selects the metric with the highest frequency of valid hashes. Noneed to buy or upgrade a license. The user can connect additional equipment orhardware wallets via USB, and they are automatically recognized.
CGMiner
The computerprogram for Windows belongs to the class of CPU mining software. Among the mainfunctions you will find:
- Fan speed control
- Detection of new blocks and entering them into their database
- Remote control
- Work with different graphics processors
BFGminer
It works for ASIC equipment. The software is not suitable for CPU mining or GPU miners, as they use GPUs in their work.
Thefunctions are:
- Mining with free Mesa / LLVM OpenCL
- Ordering of ADL devices by PCI bus identifier
- Built-in overclocking and fan control
EasyMiner
The program is an interface for the comfortable use of CGMiner and BFGMiner. EasyMiner is suitable for GPU and ASIC mining software. The installation owner can work alone or join the miners' group. Among the main options are an automatic setup of the installation and a performance schedule.
Bitcoin Mining Softwarefor Linux
CGMiner
It worksnot only on Windows but also on Linux for mining. The developers have made theproduct compatible with ASIC, GPU and CPU equipment. In addition tocross-platform, users will receive features such as:
- Caching of sent data to prevent loss of data in the event of a power outage;
- Compatibility with many installations (BitForce, Icarus, Modminer);
- CGMiner is compatible with a graphical GUI shell;
- The software already has a list of available mining pools you can use.
BFGMiner
The easy tool to mine the Bitcoin is BFGMiner. This software has more advanced features for professional ASIC, FPGA, GUI miners. The program is designed for desktop mining. It can be to choose for mining for different operating systems such as Windows and Linux.
The programsupports:
- Connection to several installations at the same time;
- Dynamic watches help you get the most out of all equipment with any power;
- Data caching;
- Autostart and restart settings if necessary;
- Automatic disconnection from inefficient pools.
Best software for Mac OS X
There areseveral most accessible programs among Bitcoin mining software for Mac. Talkabout new and useful only.
RPC Miner
The programis suitable for Mac OS 10.6 and newer. The API allows you to integrate the appinto a specific operating system.
More information
All theabove software for obtaining BTC can be configured not only on Mac OS X butalso on both Windows and Linux.
MultiMiner
Forbeginners, MultiMiner is the ideal software. Most GPUs cannot be controlledremotely. Also, you need to have experience with graphical software interfaces.
MultiMiner download to your computer and is compatible with any operating system. The shell allows the user to switch between settings for mining Bitcoin, Litecoin and other tokens. The system will automatically recognize nearby equipment. Among the features:
- Automatic discovery of network devices;
- Monitoring of remote equipment.
Cross-Platform software
BitMinter
One of thebest crypto software can be based on any platform. The developers alsoconnected their pool to the program (it appeared one of the first, hasexcellent power and a solid reputation).
The reviewwould not be complete if we did not say not only about cross-platform but alsocompatibility with different types of ASIC installations: Through oneself mac os.
- Butterfly Labs;
- Block Erupter USB;
- Antminer.
Anotherfeature – the software product does not require installation on a computerthanks to the Java Network Launch Protocol.
Some other options
Awesome Miner
If anyonewants to produce crypto on an industrial scale, he needs software forcentralized management of hardware. These programs include Awesome Miner. Ifyou build a system for the extraction of different tokens or use differenttypes of installations (ASIC and FPGA), then Awesome will help to monitor allprocesses separately and calculate the total profitability.
The productsupports all common mining mechanisms (over 25). Most Popular:
- CGMiner;
- BFGMiner;
- SGMiner.
Among thealgorithms are SHA-256, Scrypt, etc. The program is designed for Windows, butfans of other operating systems can use the web interface.
Mainfunctions:
- Manage the connection to different mining pools of various installations;
- Monitoring the temperature and performance of all devices at the same time;
- Creating custom triggers and actions;
- An open-source API for individual tasks.
Viruses in mining software
Any programfor connecting to mining equipment is a potential threat. Fraudsters canconnect to your installation and steal your tokens. Each application must bechecked for viruses, like any other software.
Besides,malware has appeared that does not have a file system. Your computer willconsume electricity, work more slowly so that someone else will receive tokens.
Conclusion
The software of Bitcoin mining is the link between hardware and network. Like any computer program, it adapts to the features of operating systems. Bitcoin mining software for Windows 10 cannot replace Bitcoin mining software for Linux. Besides, there is a risk of downloading a virus program or clicking on a fraudulent link. Therefore, use only official sources with a good reputation.
Mining Simulator Wiki
Best Free Bitcoin Mining Software
I am a crypto enthusiast. Bitcoin miner in 2013. AERGO Ambassador. I believe that blockchain technology is the future. My goal is to clarify the value of cryptocurrencies and blockchain in a free economy and security. I want to contribute to the implementation of these technologies in people's lives through an explanation of the principles of its work.