Do-it-yourself mining farm: equipment, how to assemble

75-80% of cryptocurrency miners maniacally create farms with their own hands. People are interested in the process of creating a money machine. Most users treat farm creation as an entertaining constructor. The profitability of mining pays off the efforts and becomes a source of income.

Is it easy to create a cryptocurrency mining farm? Is it easy to set up equipment for coin mining or will you have to “sweat”? The reader will also have a question about how to make hardware generate income in bitcoins or other cryptocurrencies. Everyone is interested in the potential profitability of the farm, the return on investment and the percentage of income for the year. Let's deal with the issues gradually, because you want to create a high-quality and powerful farm.

Required components
Step-by-step instructions for assembling a farm
Software
Costs for components and maintenance
Profitability of major cryptocurrencies
Profitability of cryptocurrency farms
Possible risks
Video instructions for creating a mining farm

Required components

If you are planning to assemble a Bitcoin mining farm yourself, choose your components responsibly. In order for a self-assembled farm to bring a stable profit, you need to purchase mining equipment:

Motherboard . This is the core of your money machine. Its power determines the maximum number of installed modules, video cards and ASIC controllers. The motherboard is an important component that increases the efficiency of the mining farm. High reliability of the motherboard will ensure high performance of the video card farm for mining.
Frame for a mining farm . The body is made independently from fire-resistant materials. Please note that the temperature of video cards in working condition reaches 60-70 degrees. After overclocking, the cards heat up to 70-85 degrees. You cannot order a frame from little-known companies; standard designs are designed to install 4-6 video cards. The farmer needs to install several powerful modules, video cards/ASIC controllers. To create a frame, use steel or aluminum corners - this is the best option.
RAM . RAM is responsible for the performance of the operating system and the launch of a mining farm. Use modules from 4GB.
CPU. When choosing a processor, make sure that it matches the motherboard - write down the motherboard model on a piece of paper and ask the consultant in the store about compatibility or ask the experts. The compatibility of the processor with the operating system is important for the smooth functioning of the cryptocurrency farm.
HDD. Requires a disk memory capacity of 500GB-2TB with high HDD reliability. A miner, software and an electronic currency wallet are loaded onto it.
Power unit. Pay attention to the power of the block. The minimum permissible power should be 2kW. It is important to leave a power reserve - 20-30% of the farm’s maximum consumption. It is better that the power supply matches the parameters of the farm in terms of power consumption.
Components responsible for the Satoshi mining process. These are ASIC controllers, a dozen high-performance video cards or FPGA modules. The optimal solution is Radeon. They are connected via special PCI-E ports on the motherboard. The nuances need to be studied in advance so that there are no questions in the future.

Choose 4-8 video cards with intensive cooling. They connect to the power supply via PCI ports. PC users know the process of assembling a computer, which means creating a cryptocurrency mining farm is not difficult.

You need to choose a powerful and high-quality power supply. If necessary, connect 2 existing units together via a synchronization cable. Connect the power supplies to the server equipment and move on to the cooling system.

Buy powerful coolers for cooling video cards and ventilation equipment. Cooling components are assembled in advance. Without the use of high-power coolers, video cards will burn out 5-10 minutes after turning on the farm to the power grid. In the best case, a farm without proper cooling will freeze and turn off when the temperature limit is set. The risk of overheating increases when using a power supply with PCI ports.

Users who do not want to understand the components buy a turnkey mining rig at 1.5-2 times more expensive than the cost price.

What is needed for a mining farm

What does a mining farm consist of?
In order for a mining farm to generate the desired income, its owner needs to take care not only of the correct assembly of the structure, but also of certain components that will facilitate its maintenance.

Accessories for mining farms

For an effective mining process, the farm must consist of the following components (we will look at the example of a farm for mining from video cards):

Motherboard. A powerful motherboard can increase the life of the farm (ASRock, AFOX, Gigabyte, Asus).

Power unit. Mining consumes a huge amount of electricity. It is recommended to use a power supply with a power of at least 750 W depending on the needs (GreenVision, Chieftec, Aerocool).

Processor (AMD, Intel).

Video cards. The optimal number of cards for one farm is 4-6 units, with a speed of at least 400 h/s (Nvidia, AMD, Sapphire, Gigabyte, Asus).

RAM. For the installation to run efficiently, you will need at least 4 GB of RAM.

Riser cables help connect graphics cards to the motherboard (Atcom, HQ Tech, Cablexpert).

A hard drive, in fact, is only needed to install the mining farm software (60 to 120 GB is enough).

A fan will be needed for additional cooling (NSI, Zotac Polit, Gigabyt).

The Linux operating system is considered the best operating system for mining. However, Windows or iOS are still excellent alternatives.

Accessories - monitor, keyboard, mouse and USB cables. They will be needed to set up a mining farm.

Necessary characteristics for profitable mining

Technical characteristics of the mining farm
The selected mining farm must have certain characteristics in order for its owner to receive income from mining:

Ratio of power and energy consumption of the device

First of all, we pay attention not only to the cost of mining equipment, but also to its return. The fastest payback is the main goal of every miner. Therefore, the ratio of power and energy intensity will directly affect the amount of income received.

Memory capacity and speed

Affect the availability of algorithms for mining. Cards with low memory capacity are unable to mine a wide range of hashing algorithms.

The memory capacity of a mining farm based on video cards must be at least 4 GB.

The efficiency of mining and, accordingly, its profitability depend on the speed.

Difficulty of operation

When it comes to video cards, the best option here is an installation that contains from 4 to 6 GPUs.

On the other hand, the number of installed video cards directly affects the stability of the farm, as well as the level of complexity of setup and operation - accordingly, the fewer there are, the easier it is to set up the farm.

How to choose mining equipment

Note that only cryptocurrencies built on the PoW consensus mechanism participate in the mining process.

However, since different blockchains use different algorithms (SHA-256, Equihash, X11 and others), the hardware requirements vary for each mined coin.

In many cases, devices are designed to solve only one of these algorithms. For example, the equipment used to mine Monero (XMR) will be less efficient when mining Bitcoin (BTC), or even ineffective. But at the same time, the mining of many cryptocurrencies can be carried out on the same device. The choice and expected financial result will depend on the coin.

Step-by-step instructions for assembling a farm

Assembling components into a full-fledged cryptocurrency mining farm is not very difficult. How to assemble a mining rig? We'll talk about this below in step-by-step instructions for creating a farm for mining cryptocurrency with your own hands.

Let's start assembling the money machine. The user must install the equipment into the frame.

Create a wireframe, suitable for the number of video cards you purchased. 50% of trusses have average dimensions of 500x400x300mm. The user has the right to deviate from this recommendation. The finished design will be a server rack, inside which the necessary equipment for mining Bitcoins or Ether is installed.
Assemble and connect the hardware. Proceed as you would when assembling a personal computer. Place the components on the frame, leaving space for coolers and the motherboard. Having installed the frame in place of the future farm, secure the motherboard in the central part of the structure, closer to the floor. The motherboard should be located 5-10 cm above the bottom shelf. Use pieces of foam and lift the board up.
Install the processor and cooler on the motherboard.
Install the power supply. This is what is needed to supply current to the mining rig. Using screws, screw it to the aluminum/steel corner of the frame. Reliable fixation of the power supply will ensure safety, protecting the farmer from sparks; a fire in the apartment is not the best outcome of events.
Install indicators and power button.
Install the hard drive using a stand. Connect the HDD with server cables to the motherboard and power supply.
Through auxiliary batteries and risers connect the video card, then the remaining 3 or 5, depending on the configuration. Cards are connected separately using risers.
Mission Complete! Connect the farm to the power grid and the Internet. The first money in the form of cryptocurrency will be transferred to your account after 1-2 minutes.

Exercise caution before applying voltage and estimate the maximum current the wiring will handle. If it is designed for 16A, you cannot install a farm with a power higher than 16A*220V=3.5kW.

Using higher power consuming trusses will overheat the wiring and pose a fire risk. In the best case, the socket will melt, in the worst case, the miner will burn down the rented apartment. If the electrical network is old, 6A, you need to replace it with a new 16 or 40A. You should install the farm on the balcony at home, because you won’t like the 35 degree heat in the apartment from the heating iron along with the noise pollution.

We have given recommendations, we will return to the assembled farm. Install the Windows 10 operating system and a utility for overclocking video cards (the risk of hardware failure increases). We recommend protecting your hardware from burning by limiting the maximum permissible temperature of the motherboard and video cards. Now download the software for mining cryptocurrency and watch the process of mining coins.

How does a mining farm work?

How a mining farm works
Let's start with the fact that the power level of a mining farm is tens of times higher than that of a home computer. In addition, this power is aimed at one operation (cryptocurrency mining), and is not used to support programs and the system as a whole, unlike, for example, a central processor.

The result of the work depends on the number of devices and power. Note that miners participate in mining not for pleasure, but, first of all, for money.

As the farm starts, the equipment performs complex calculations aimed at finding a specific number that satisfies one predetermined and well-known condition, after which a block is created for which the miner receives a reward.

Thus, the greater the power aimed at decoupling these calculations, the faster the solution will be found, and, therefore, the sooner the reward will be received.

In order for a farm to operate efficiently, its condition must be monitored. Depending on the scale, the correct operation of the equipment can be monitored by either one person or an entire team.

It is necessary to regularly check the system for possible errors and information about the operation of mining pools.

To avoid viruses and other malicious software entering the system, it is not recommended to download firmware for overclocking equipment from third-party resources.

If devices are identified with a hash rate that does not meet the standards, the problems must be confirmed and resolved in a timely manner. If the problem cannot be corrected on site, the equipment should be sent for repair or returned to the manufacturer for maintenance.

Software

Let's look at the software for mining cryptocurrencies to understand how a mining farm works. It is important to install proven multifunctional programs. Please note that the recommended list of software is not a dogma; the user can install other programs he likes. The requirements of farmers are different, there are conservatives who do not want to overclock video cards, and there are aggressive diggers who want to extract maximum profits from hardware.

It is optimal to mine Ethereum cryptocurrency using the following programs:

Ethminer;
CCMiner;
Sgminer-gm-windows.

The programs are attractive due to their intuitive interface and simple functionality. The software is downloaded from the official website of the developer. Since 2014, programs have created over 20 applications for Ethereum mining. Every solution has the right to be used.

If the farmer does not like the presented programs for mining cryptocurrency, mining algorithms can be searched on the Internet. Popular software is Sia and Ethereum, as well as Claymore`s Dual. The programs are easy to use, installation takes place in minutes, and configuration takes 5 minutes. By turning on the miner (software for pumping tokens from BlockChain), the user rents out the computing power of video cards and receives income to a crypto account.

Types of mining farms

CPU farms

These are designs that implement the mining process based on the operation of the central processor.

Today, CPU farms are the least efficient option for mining, but they still have a right to exist.

After all, while mining Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum using central processors is an initially disastrous idea, CPU farms are excellent for mining cryptocurrencies using the Scrypt algorithm (for example, Dogecoin or DigiByte). Such farms are mainly popular among miners mining little-known coins that may be able to reach their potential in the future.

Read the full article:

Mining on a CPU: the best CPU models and how to choose

GPU farms

They are specialized electronic circuits that are commonly used in computers and gaming systems. In this case, they perform a wider range of operations, that is, cryptocurrency mining.

Miners use the processing power of video cards to mine a wide range of coins. And although video cards come with any computer, usually this type of farm uses high-quality GPUs with higher processing power. Most often, video cards are used for Ethereum mining.

Read the full article:

The best video cards for mining. Rating of mining video cards

FPGA farms

Field Programmable GATE Array - devices that support programmable matrices, thanks to which, in fact, the process of mining cryptocurrencies is carried out. This type is interesting to miners not because of its mining speed, but because of its energy efficiency.

So, if a typical video card with a bandwidth of 600 MHz/s consumes up to 400 W of energy, then the FPGA provides a data transfer rate of 826 MHz/s with a power consumption of about 80 W.

But this is their only advantage

, and therefore this type of farm has not received wide recognition among miners.

ASIC farms

These are designs of specialized integrated circuits designed to handle a specific blockchain. And although ASIC miners are more expensive than their alternatives, the performance of these rigs is also much higher than that of competitors. This type will be the optimal solution for mining coins on the Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash or Litecoin blockchains.

Read the full article:

What is an ASIC miner? How ASIC mining works

Costs for components and maintenance

The urgency of creating farms for cryptocurrency mining is driving up the prices of video cards. The cost of components is an important criterion that affects the rate of payback and net profit in general. The user spends 50-75% on video cards, the rest goes to the motherboard, bars and corners. To create a server rack you will need $15-25.

The most difficult stage is going shopping to buy hardware. Inexpensive motherboards like AS Rock FM2A88M Extreme4R2.0 cost $60. Professional miners will not buy it. To create a cryptocurrency farm you will need a powerful board like the AsRock H81 Pro BTC R2.0. Its cost is higher than the previous one - $120. Choosing the second solution will allow you to install over 6 video cards, which is suitable for diggers.

The processor will also cost a pretty penny. It is advisable to purchase only powerful hardware that matches the parameters of the motherboard. A budget option of category A-4 will cost $45-50.

RAM is the brain of the computer. To effectively mine Bitcoin or Ethereum, you will need a component with a memory capacity of 4GB. The cost of 4GB RAM will cost $60-70; it is more profitable to buy 2 sticks for 2 Gigabits. Using budget models will save another 20-30% of money.

Consider purchasing a hard drive. HDDs require high power, quality and reliability. On it, the miner stores currency and cryptocurrency wallets, programs for mining coins and other software. The hard drive memory size should be 1-2TB. The minimum cost for HDD is $50.

Consider the costs of paying for the Internet and electricity. If possible, take advantage of reduced rates. From time to time, hardware breaks down and needs to be replaced or taken in for repairs if the breakdown is not significant. Constant high load requires ventilation of the room; the most profitable option would be a regular draft.

DIY mining farm - useful tips and guide

Do-it-yourself mining farm
Creating a do-it-yourself mining farm may be of interest to those miners who do not want to spend money on purchasing a ready-made structure.

Housing Installation

The first thing we need is a body. It is recommended to use an aluminum frame, as they are more rigid and flame-repellent than wooden ones. It will help hold the equipment. If the farm consists of 4 video cards, you can use an old computer case, box, rack, etc. as a frame.

Installing the motherboard

Place the motherboard on a flat, non-static surface and carefully insert the cable into the connector. Place the motherboard into the case and secure it with screws.

Be careful not to let the motherboard touch a metal surface, as metal surfaces conduct current.

Installing the power supply

Assembling a mining farm from video cards
You need to connect the motherboard to the power supply. It is advisable to bundle all additional cables that may interfere. Sometimes it can be difficult to secure the wires neatly, so be patient.

The next thing is for the GPU. This is to take the power cables and place them near each GPU location along the structure.

Adding a GPU

Before you start connecting the GPU to the motherboard socket, secure them in the case. After that, connect all the cables to the GPU. The benefits of GPU mining will outweigh CPU mining. So, a GPU mining rig will cost more than a CPU, but it will have higher hashing power. It will also support mining a wide range of cryptocurrencies with different hashing algorithms, which also brings additional benefits.

A mining rig assembled by yourself may be cheaper from a financial point of view, but it is unlikely to justify itself in terms of time and labor costs compared to a ready-made structure. Therefore, before choosing a solution, you need to carefully calculate everything.

Profitability of major cryptocurrencies

Before creating a farm, miners are interested in the potential profitability of cryptocurrencies. There is no point in mining high-value currencies like Bitcoin. This is the opinion of professional diggers. The number of people holding Bitcoin is growing rapidly, so income per video card is decreasing. To obtain additional computing power, you need to purchase 2-4GB video cards, and not engage in mining using amateur systems.

Cryptocurrency mining requires a starting capital of 1-5 thousand US dollars. Creating a farm with dozens of server racks, sufficient to mine cue ball, will require up to $100,000. Large companies can afford this; it is unprofitable for small entrepreneurs to mine Bitcoin. Electricity costs are significant; they delay the return on investment for the farm.

Here is a list of altcoins that are profitable to mine even on your home computer:

Nem;
Ripple;
Ethereum;
Dash;
LiteCoin.

The most profitable asset is Ethereum. The payback period for Ethereum mining farms is 3-6 months. The price of the Ethereum coin in November 2020 was $328.

What can you do to save on mining?

You can assemble and equip the farm yourself - you don’t need to deal with computer equipment, since a short instruction is enough for understanding. Video cards and power supplies are not the first thing experienced farmers look for. First, you prepare the housing for mining with your own hands.

Next you have to assemble the farm yourself. Hardware is purchased, which the miner assembles with his own hands, attaches to the case and begins passive earnings on cryptocurrency. The main thing is not to skimp on the cooling system, as this is the basis for stable and long-term operation of the rig.

Profitability of cryptocurrency farms

Most miners who decide to start mining Bitcoins or other cryptocurrencies do not want to be left with nothing. This is fine. Calculate the profitability of a cryptocurrency farm yourself, taking into account a number of key factors:

Speed of problem solving MH/S;
Equipment price;
The current rate of Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency that you are going to mine;
Farm power and tariff for 1KW/hour.

Taking these criteria into account, you will find out in how many months the funds invested in the equipment will pay off. Practice shows that the increased complexity of solving problems (hashes) and the high cost of hardware make creating a mining farm an unprofitable enterprise.

If video cards are used incorrectly, overclocking them to 120%, the hardware will burn out after 1-3 months, partially recouping the initial investment. The time required to repay funds is constantly increasing, from 3 months to 12 at the end of 2020.

Mining farm price

How much does a mining rig cost?
For competitive mining, miners must invest in powerful hardware such as a GPU or ASIC. But how much does a mining rig cost? The design will cost the buyer from a thousand dollars to several tens of thousands, depending on the scale of activity.

Equipment prices are very unstable and change every day. There is a high probability that a miner will be lucky enough to purchase a used structure in good condition, which will be an order of magnitude cheaper than buying a new one.

Below we will look at the prices for mining farms (4-6 cards), which can easily be installed at home:

Table comparing prices for GPUs in Ukraine and Russia in US dollars

Note that miners prefer rigs produced by Nvidia. Compared to AMD, green graphics cards produce coins more efficiently and with much less power consumption.

Possible risks

The components operate without risk during the warranty period. There are a number of risks. Before you start mining cryptocurrency, check out the expertise of people who understand mining.

Morgan Stanley bank experts made a statement about problems in the cryptocurrency market. The main one is the absence of taxation in the BlockChain system. The authorities are looking for a way to resolve this issue and collect taxes from virtual coin holders. Legalization of Bitcoins, Litecoins, Ethereum, etc. will instantly cause a strong collapse of crypto-financial instruments, investor interest will drop sharply. The fair value of a bitcoin is around $1000/BTC.

There is another opinion, for example, experts from CERIK Capital Management predict a further increase in the rate of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Eternal growth is impossible and the current situation in the BTC market indicates the presence of a spike. The left side of the graph with prices rising exponentially is obvious; the appearance of the right side is only a matter of time. The instability of Bitcoin's exchange rate is a risk for the creators of cryptocurrency farms.

The obvious risk is a drop in profitability. Assembling a farm to mine encrypted currency involves financial costs. The complexity of calculations is constantly growing, video cards bring less profit. Experts consider investments in creating farms to be self-indulgence that will not pay off. Electricity costs will eat into the digger's profits, and the equipment will eventually break down.

Buying a ready-made mining farm

Ready-made mining rig
If you want to start mining as quickly as possible, purchasing a pre-assembled rig may be the best solution. It will cost more, but it will save time (in the sense that the miner will be able to start getting his money back much faster).

Many companies offer a ready-made assembly for purchase at a price of $2000 or more, depending on the selected characteristics.

Any of them will pay off in no less than a year. If you have no experience in creating farms, then it is better to go this route.

Note that in addition to the difficult assembly, managing a large GPU mining rig will require much more effort than managing an ASIC data center. In this regard, large players choose the second option, leaving mining on video cards to small companies and individuals.

If a miner can afford to mine on an ASIC farm, then he will not only get a simpler farm in terms of hardware management, but also more efficient cryptocurrency mining.