What is PPLNS mining. Light manual

1. What is crypto mining
2. What are pools and why are they needed
3. How PPLNS pool works
4. How payouts are distributed in PPLNS
5. Which pools work on PPLNS
6. Another ways are there to distribute profits in mining

Crypto mining in 2023 is expected to continue growing in popularity as more people become aware of the potential profits and benefits of mining cryptocurrencies. With the increasing value and mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies, more people are turning to mining as a way to earn a passive income. Additionally, with the advancements in technology, mining equipment and software are becoming more efficient and easier to use, making it more accessible for individuals to start mining. Furthermore, the increasing competition among miners is expected to drive innovation, resulting in more efficient and profitable mining methods. Overall, crypto mining in 2023 is expected to be a thriving industry with many opportunities for those who are willing to invest the time and resources to get started.

What is crypto mining

Crypto mining is the process of using specialized hardware and software to solve complex mathematical equations in order to verify transactions and add them to a blockchain network. When a miner successfully adds a block of verified transactions to the blockchain, they are rewarded with a certain amount of the cryptocurrency. This process helps to secure the network, creates new coins and increases the overall supply of the cryptocurrency. It also ensures that the cryptocurrency remains decentralized.

Crypto mining works by using specialized hardware, such as ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), to solve complex mathematical problems, also known as "proof of work" algorithms. These problems are designed to be difficult to solve but easy to verify, and the solutions are used to create a block of verified transactions. Miners compete with each other to be the first to find the solution, and the miner who is successful in finding the solution first is rewarded with a certain amount of the cryptocurrency and the verified transactions are added to the blockchain.

The process of mining also helps to secure the network by making it difficult for any one miner or group of miners to control the blockchain. This is achieved by requiring miners to have a certain amount of the cryptocurrency, called a "stake," in order to participate in the mining process.

Once a block is mined, it is broadcast to the network and added to the blockchain. The miner who added the block is rewarded with the block reward, and the transactions in the block are considered confirmed.

It's important to note that mining is a competitive process, with the difficulty of mining increasing as more miners join the network. Additionally, the cost of electricity, hardware and other mining expenses will also play a significant role in determining the profitability of mining operations.

What are pools and why are they needed

Mining pools are groups of miners that work together to mine a cryptocurrency. Instead of competing with each other, miners in a pool work together to find blocks and share the block rewards proportionally among the members of the pool.

The main reason for joining a mining pool is to increase the chances of finding a block and earning a reward. The probability of finding a block is directly proportional to the amount of computing power that a miner or a pool of miners controls. When a block is found, the reward is distributed among all the members of the pool according to the amount of computational power that each miner has contributed.

Mining pools also offer other benefits, such as:

• Stable and predictable income: Mining rewards can be unpredictable and volatile, but mining in a pool allows for a more stable and predictable income.
• Better hardware utilization: Joining a mining pool allows miners to make better use of their hardware by working together.
• Lower electricity costs: By sharing the costs of electricity, mining pools can lower the overall costs of mining.
• Lower barriers to entry: Joining a mining pool allows individuals and small groups to participate in mining even if they do not have the resources to mine solo.

It's important to note that joining a mining pool also comes with a fee, usually a percentage of the rewards earned, and miners have to carefully evaluate the fees and the performance of the pool before joining it.

How PPLNS pool works

PPLNS (Pay Per Last N Shares) is a method of rewarding miners in a mining pool based on the number of shares they have submitted to the pool in the last N shares.

In a PPLNS pool, miners connect their mining rigs to the pool's server and begin mining. Each miner's rig calculates a share, which is a proof of work that the miner's rig has done. When a block is found, the pool counts the number of shares each miner has submitted in the last N shares, and the rewards are distributed among the miners according to their shares.

One of the main benefits of PPLNS is that it eliminates the possibility of pool hopping, where a miner jumps from one pool to another in order to maximize their rewards. In PPLNS, a miner is only rewarded for the shares they have submitted in the last N shares, so even if they jump to another pool, they will not receive any rewards for shares submitted before that.

PPLNS also tends to be more profitable for small miners and less profitable for large miners. Because the rewards are distributed according to the number of shares submitted, small miners who may not have the computational power to find blocks solo can still earn rewards by submitting more shares. On the other hand, larger miners with more computational power will find blocks more frequently, but will earn less rewards per block because the rewards are distributed among a larger number of shares.

It's important to note that PPLNS pools have higher fees than other pools, so miners should carefully evaluate the fees and the performance of the pool before joining it.

How payouts are distributed in PPLNS

In a PPLNS (Pay Per Last N Shares) mining pool, payouts are distributed among the miners according to the number of shares they have submitted to the pool in the last N shares.

When a block is found, the pool first calculates the total number of shares submitted in the last N shares. Then, the pool calculates the reward for each miner by dividing the total reward by the number of shares submitted by that miner. The reward is then paid out to the miner in proportion to the number of shares they submitted.

For example, let's say a block is found and the total reward is 20 coins. If miner A has submitted 10 shares and miner B has submitted 20 shares, miner A will receive 10/30 (30 is the total number of shares submitted by both miners) of the reward which is 6.67 coins and miner B will receive 13.33 coins.

It's important to note that PPLNS pools usually have higher fees than other pools, so miners should carefully evaluate the fees and the performance of the pool before joining it.

Also, PPLNS pools often have a shift mechanism that prevents pool hoppers, which means that if a miner leaves a pool, he will not get any payouts for the shares he contributed before he left, this is to ensure that miners are rewarded for their contribution to the pool and not by jumping from one pool to another.

Which pools work on PPLNS

There are several mining pools that use the PPLNS (Pay Per Last N Shares) method to distribute rewards among miners. Some examples include:

• Slushpool: One of the oldest and most well-known pools, Slushpool uses PPLNS for both Bitcoin and Zcash mining.
• Miningpoolhub: A multi-coin pool that supports a variety of different cryptocurrencies and uses PPLNS for most of them.
• Litecoinpool: A pool specifically dedicated to Litecoin mining, uses PPLNS method
• Miningpool.co: A multi-coin pool that supports a variety of different cryptocurrencies and uses PPLNS for most of them.
• BTC.com: A large and well-established pool that supports Bitcoin mining using PPLNS method.
• Coinotron: A multi-coin pool that supports various cryptocurrencies and uses PPLNS method for most of them.
• Poolin: A multi-coin pool that supports various cryptocurrencies and uses PPLNS method for most of them.

It's important to note that PPLNS pools often have higher fees than other pools, so miners should carefully evaluate the fees and the performance of the pool before joining it. Also, miners should check for the availability of the crypto they want to mine in the pool.

Another ways are there to distribute profits in mining

There are several other ways that mining rewards can be distributed among miners, in addition to the PPLNS method. Some of the most common methods include:

• Proportional: Miners are paid out in proportion to the number of shares they have submitted to the pool. This is the simplest and most common method used by most mining pools.
• Pay-Per-Share (PPS): Miners are paid a fixed amount for each share they submit to the pool, regardless of whether the pool finds a block. This method guarantees a consistent payout, but can be less profitable for miners if the pool has a low success rate.
• Score-based: Miners are paid out based on a score that takes into account both the number of shares submitted and the time at which they were submitted. This method is designed to discourage pool hopping and reward consistent contributors.
• Full-Pay-Per-Share (FPPS): In this method the mining rewards are distributed to the miners for each share submitted and also the transaction fees included in the block are also distributed among the miners.

It's important to note that each method has its own advantages and disadvantages, and miners should carefully evaluate the fees and performance of a pool before joining it. They should also consider the mining method that best suits their own mining strategy.