Ore Mining is Heating Up: Is It Still Worth Participating?

Ore, an experimental hackathon project, once caused congestion on the Solana network due to its token’s attention-grabbing price. The launch of its second phase has drawn significant interest. This article will guide you through the process of striking gold with Ore.

What is Ore?

Ore is a digital currency deployed on the Solana blockchain using a Proof of Work (PoW) algorithm. This algorithm allows miners to secure the network by solving cryptographic problems, for which they are rewarded with cryptocurrency. Unlike traditional mining projects, Ore employs a non-exclusive reward mechanism to ensure fair distribution of mining rewards.

Each miner is given personalized computational challenges, and upon completion, they receive a reward. This approach avoids the “winner-takes-all” scenario in mining, giving every participant a chance to earn rewards, thereby enhancing network inclusivity and fairness. Ore has also set a strict supply growth rate of 0 to 2 Ore per minute to manage supply inflation.

However, the Ore project team remains largely mysterious, with Hardhat Chad being the only known core developer.

The second phase of Ore mining commenced at 00:00 AM UTC Time on August 6, activating the V2 upgrade while updating the V1 token metadata.

Ore V2 Update

Hardhat Chad, the founder of Ore, released the ORE V2 update. The new version will roll out in three phases (upgrading V1 token metadata, activating the V1 to V2 upgrade, and enabling mining). The Ore V2 update introduces several new features and improvements for miners:

• Removal of Admin Variables: The new version removes admin variables by adopting open-source algorithm management, enhancing system decentralization.
• Supply Cap: Ore V2 sets a total supply cap of 21 million coins, expected to be mined by 2064.
• Staking Mechanism: Miners can earn up to double the mining rewards through staking.
• CPU-Friendly Hash Function: The new hash function is more CPU-friendly, lowering equipment requirements and increasing mining accessibility.
• Anti-Sybil Attack Optimization: Strategies have been optimized to reduce the risk of Sybil attacks.
• Client Upgrade: Future support for more devices.
• Upgradable Smart Contracts: Initially upgradable smart contracts, which will be permanently frozen later.
• Token Swap: V1 tokens can be exchanged 1:1 for the new Ore within three months, offering a smooth transition for V1 token holders.

How to Participate?

Browser Mining Guide

1. Create an Account: Visit the Ore official website, register, and create a new mining account.
2. Deposit Funds: Deposit 0.1 SOL into your account for gas fees.
3. Start Mining: In your account interface, find and click the “Mine” button. The system will automatically assign block difficulty, allowing you to start earning Ore.
4. Check Rewards: You can view the amount of Ore mined in real-time on the mining interface. Once confirmed, these rewards will be added to your account balance.

Script Mining Guide

For command-line mining (suitable for Linux or Mac systems):

If you participated in the first season, execute: cargo install ore-cli, then enter ore --version to confirm it returns ore-cli 1.1.0.

Install Rust Environment: curl https://sh.rustup.rs -sSf | sh

Install Dependencies: sudo apt-get install build-essential

Install Solana Development Environment: sh -c "$(curl -sSfL https://release.solana.com/v1.18.4/install)"

Install ORE Mining CLI: cargo install ore-cli

Create ORE Mining Wallet: solana-keygen new

Start Mining: Enter the following command: ore --rpc https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com --keypair ~/.config/solana/id.json --priority-fee 1 mine --threads 4

Check Mining Rewards: ore --rpc https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com --keypair ~/.config/solana/id.json rewards

Claim Rewards: ore --rpc https://api.mainnet-beta.solana.com --keypair ~/.config/solana/id.json claim

(Script mining guide reference: @Btc_Crush)

Mac and Linux are more convenient as they have native terminals. For Windows, it is recommended to use the Ubuntu subsystem.

(Official mining guide reference: Ore Official Guide)

Mining Efficiency Analysis

Ore rewards are based on difficulty: the higher the difficulty, the higher the rewards. Difficulty allocation is random, largely depending on luck to find high-difficulty blocks.

Finding high-difficulty blocks is challenging:

• If you extend the default 30s time to find high-difficulty blocks, each instance will halve the reward, making it difficult to calculate earnings.
• Setting a minimum difficulty limit in the source code and rejecting multiple times can also cause losses, making it hard to balance.

Currently, Ore mining is competitive; high gas fees and low difficulty may result in losses.

Gas fees below 50w may not be able to get on-chain. Based on current calculations, difficulty below 18 might not cover costs, leading to losses. Machines below M3 configuration are advised to participate cautiously. Given the current mining enthusiasm, the token price trend is somewhat lackluster and remains high.

Here’s a simple calculation of the current cost and token price relationship:

If gas is above 50w, assuming a successful transaction every minute, consuming 0.00023 Sol, the daily cost is:
0.000255 Sol x 148 USD x 60 x 24 = 54.3 USD

Based on Dune’s statistics, there are around 10,000 participating addresses. Assuming the current token price is 450 USD, the expected daily profit is:
0.0001 x 450 USD x 60 x 24 = 64.8 USD (If lucky, with difficulty above 25, the rewards are substantial)

Although the current participation rewards are average, Ore, as a PoW token on Solana, is still worth keeping an eye on.