Crypto Mining

I took a brief sidestep to set up bitcoin mining on my MS-A1/RTX 3090 by creating an account on nicehash.com and downloading the t-rex bitcoin mining software. This process has been a fascinating journey into the world of cryptocurrency mining, which, despite its challenges, has been quite enlightening.

I created a nicehash account and downloaded the t-rex project onto the MS-A1 in the /op/mining directory that I created specifically for this purpose. The installation process was relatively straightforward. After setting up the software, I ran a simple command line to test the mining software and input my mining address from NiceHash:

./t-rex -a kawpow -o stratum+tcp://kawpow.auto.nicehash.com:9200 -u YOUR_BTC_ADDRESS.rig1 -p x

To my relief, it worked perfectly. I decided to enhance the mining experience by enlisting the help of Claude.ai to assist me in creating a mining service. This service is now operational on my system and is set to restart automatically upon system boot. Prior to running the mining service, I had to execute a few NVIDIA commands to adjust the RTX 3090 power levels and ensure persistence settings were correctly configured. If anyone is interested in the precise details of these commands, feel free to leave a comment, and I’d be happy to share.

So far, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the performance of the RTX 3090. It operates quietly, maintaining a temperature of around 55 degrees Celsius. The two cooling fans do engage, but they are so quiet that you’d really need to lean in close to hear them. The NiceHash dashboard provides regular updates on my earnings, adding an element of excitement to the overall experience. Interestingly, Claude.ai advised me against pursuing this venture due to the low payout rates and high energy costs associated with mining in Illinois.

Despite that cautionary advice, my motivation for embarking on this mining journey is not purely financial; it stems from a simple curiosity about how cryptocurrency mining operates. In my research, I’ve discovered that to achieve any substantial income from mining, particularly with Bitcoin, it appears one would need hardware that operates in the 1,500-watt range or higher. This would likely provide a more significant mining output and a better return on investment. Nonetheless, my exploration into crypto mining has been rewarding in its own right, providing insights and a deeper understanding of the technology involved.

Fair note here. I used the WordPress AI to help rewrite this post. I used heygen to generate the post image. Claude.ai did the heavy lifting on setting up the crypto mining. I’m so lazy…