📚 How-To Guides

Learn how to mine Monero, run a node, and contribute to the decentralized network

⛏️ How to Start Mining Monero

Complete beginner's guide to mining XMR with XMRig and P2Pool

Beginner Mining

🔗 Mining with P2Pool

Why P2Pool is better than traditional pools and how to connect

Intermediate P2Pool

🖥️ Running Your Own Node

Set up a Monero full node to support the network

Advanced Node

👛 Creating a Monero Wallet

Secure wallet setup for receiving mining payouts

Beginner Wallet

🚀 Optimizing Mining Performance

Huge pages, CPU affinity, and advanced XMRig tuning

Advanced Performance

🔒 Security Best Practices

Keep your wallet and mining operation secure

Important Security

⛏️ How to Start Mining Monero

What is Monero Mining?

Monero (XMR) uses the RandomX algorithm, which is optimized for CPU mining. Unlike Bitcoin, you don't need expensive specialized hardware - a regular computer can mine Monero effectively.

Requirements

Step 1: Get a Monero Wallet

Download the official Monero GUI wallet from getmonero.org or use a mobile wallet like Cake Wallet.

Step 2: Download XMRig

Download XMRig from the official GitHub repository:

wget https://github.com/xmrig/xmrig/releases/latest/download/xmrig-6.21.0-linux-x64.tar.gz tar -xvf xmrig-6.21.0-linux-x64.tar.gz cd xmrig-6.21.0

Step 3: Connect to Our Pool

Run XMRig with your wallet address:

./xmrig -o xmrpool.tech4ai.net:3333 -u YOUR_WALLET_ADDRESS -p x
💡 Tip: For best results, enable huge pages (see Optimization guide) and use P2Pool for decentralized mining with instant payouts.

🔗 Mining with P2Pool

What is P2Pool?

P2Pool is a decentralized mining pool that operates as a sidechain to Monero. Unlike traditional pools, there's no central operator - you get paid directly from the blockchain!

Benefits of P2Pool

Main vs Mini Sidechain

Main: For miners with >100 kH/s hashrate. Higher difficulty but more frequent shares.

Mini: For miners with <100 kH/s hashrate. Lower difficulty, ideal for CPU miners.

Connecting to Our P2Pool

# Mini sidechain (recommended for most users) ./xmrig -o xmrpool.tech4ai.net:3333 -u YOUR_WALLET_ADDRESS # Use TLS for secure connection ./xmrig -o xmrpool.tech4ai.net:3333 --tls -u YOUR_WALLET_ADDRESS

Check Your Payouts

Use a P2Pool observer to track your shares and payouts:

🖥️ Running Your Own Monero Node

Why Run a Node?

Running your own node helps decentralize the Monero network and gives you full control over your transactions.

Requirements

Installation (Linux)

# Download Monero CLI wget https://downloads.getmonero.org/cli/linux64 tar -xvf linux64 cd monero-x86_64-linux-gnu-* # Start the daemon ./monerod --detach

Syncing the Blockchain

Initial sync takes 12-48 hours depending on your hardware. You can check progress:

./monerod status
⚠️ Important: The blockchain requires significant disk space. Consider using pruning (--prune-blockchain) to reduce storage to ~50GB.

👛 Creating a Monero Wallet

Wallet Options

Creating a Wallet with Monero GUI

  1. Download from getmonero.org
  2. Choose "Create new wallet"
  3. Write down your seed phrase! This is the only way to recover your wallet.
  4. Set a strong password
  5. Wait for blockchain sync (or connect to a remote node)
⚠️ CRITICAL: Your 25-word seed phrase is the ONLY way to recover your wallet. Write it down on paper and store it securely. Never share it with anyone!

Your Wallet Address

Your primary address starts with "4" and is 95 characters long. This is what you use for mining payouts.

🚀 Optimizing Mining Performance

Enable Huge Pages (Linux)

Huge pages significantly improve RandomX performance (up to 20% boost):

# Enable huge pages (requires root) sudo sysctl -w vm.nr_hugepages=1280 # Make permanent (add to /etc/sysctl.conf) echo "vm.nr_hugepages=1280" | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.conf # Run XMRig with elevated permissions sudo ./xmrig -o xmrpool.tech4ai.net:3333 -u YOUR_WALLET

CPU Affinity

Reserve some cores for the system to prevent freezing:

# Use specific threads (leave 1-2 for system) ./xmrig --threads=6 -o xmrpool.tech4ai.net:3333 -u YOUR_WALLET

XMRig Configuration File

Create config.json for persistent settings:

{ "pools": [{ "url": "xmrpool.tech4ai.net:3333", "user": "YOUR_WALLET_ADDRESS", "keepalive": true, "tls": true }], "cpu": { "enabled": true, "huge-pages": true, "hw-aes": true } }

🔒 Security Best Practices

Wallet Security

Mining Security

Common Scams to Avoid

⚠️ Watch out for:
  • Fake wallet apps that steal your funds
  • "Cloud mining" services (almost always scams)
  • Websites asking for your seed phrase
  • "Free XMR" giveaways on social media