At this point, I’m fairly certain that a majority of people have at least heard or are well aware of how cryptocurrencies work. I myself researched it a bit more when working on my Bounty posts. What surprised the most is how big crypto mining hosting business really is and how important as well.
But I’m getting ahead of myself a bit. Before I go into the details, for you newbies, let’s talk a bit about blockchain technology and how it works.
Let’s setup up the stage of understanding before we cover the key players.
What is Blockchain?
Today, there are many cryptocurrencies and every single one of them functions thanks to blockchain tech. All cryptocurrencies are decentralized and secure due to the blockchain. In short, it means that any transactions that occur are encrypted. Here’s how it works.
BLOCKCHAIN TL, DR (learn more about here): As soon as an encrypted transaction takes place it joins what is referred to as a “block.” When a fixed number of transactions is recorded the block itself is added to a huge chain — this is referred to as the blockchain.
Another thing that needs to be pointed out is that the blockchain is publicly available. As I’ve already mentioned, the transactions aren’t centralized and they remain anonymous in terms of location, which represents yet another secure aspect of cryptocurrency. Bitcoin, one of the most popular cryptocurrencies (ya know the one everyone talks about) is actually not as profitable as it once was, simply because of its high demand. It’s getting more and more difficult for miners for hold of Bitcoin. But with a well-thought-out strategy and the right service or at your back, anything is possible.
I’ll get to that later.
What is Mining?
Adding blocks to the blockchain denotes a complex encryption system. You can think of the processes as a fairly intricate puzzle that can be completed by a computer, or rather a piece of hardware that has the capacity to handle so many complicated operations. This is exactly where CPUs and GPUs come in. For example, high-end PCs or more specifically Radeon and Nvidia (GeForce) graphics cards are capable of handling such processes. When the math behind adding these blocks to the public blockchain is done, that operation is what can essentially be described as mining.
What Are Crypto Miners and Where Do Coins Come From?
After miners verify the transactions (to check if they are genuine) they will receive a reward for that verification. The reward comes in the form of a fee that’s paid in coin of the block in question. Basically, a payment is made once it is assessed how much the miner’s hardware was involved in solving the puzzle (i.e. the process of verification). That’s where cryptocurrencies or coins come from. Once the blocks are formed each miner gets a supply of coins.
So, You’ve Built Your First Mining Rack Now What?
Okay, then. First thing first. It’s important to establish what types of crypto mining are out there. While things may seem a bit confusing initially, things are really quite simple. Cryptocurrency mining is distinguished into the following diverse types:
- GPU Mining: setting up your own home rig, usually with a custom-case for a PC that contains various GPUs to handle the complex process of transaction verification.
- ASIC Mining: despite some recent political controversy, ASIC Mining is still fairly popular. To put it simply, it’s when the process of mining is strictly focused on a single cryptocurrency.
- Pool Mining: represents lending your mining with bigger groups and then sharing the profit. For those who are still eager to get their hands on Bitcoins, you’ll have a better chance with Pool Mining than with any other type of mining.
- Cloud Mining: probably the quickest way to eliminate the cost and expenses of home-based crypto mining. Cloud Mining gives you an opportunity to rent mining power from other miners without becoming a miner yourself (you rent from 3rd party companies or directly from cloud mining companies).
What are Crypto Mining Hosting Services For?
Now, anyone who has been in the game of crypto mining for some time will tell you that mining from home isn’t as lucrative as it used to be. Sure it’s doable and it does have some advantages, such as setting up your own system and making your own strategy for profit. As I found out while doing my BOUNTY post, with crypto mining hosting services, many new doors will open.
For example, you will no longer invest valuable time on managing your crypto mining efforts. All that is done for you professionally. What’s more, crypto mining is an expensive process and everything that’s needed to carry out this processes will be handled by the hosting company of your choice.
Other advantages include not having to worry about mining locations and you get better bandwidth with some of these hosting services. Traditionally, the process begins with a few devices at your disposal and even then the hosting service cheaper than it would be if you were mining with via a home rig. Hosting at home can actually lead to tremendous costs and, not to mention, worrying about heat emissions, as well as the noise made by the machines you have set up for crypto mining.
Who Are the Best Ones Right Now?
TeslaWatt
TeslaWatt has entered the market offering a very efficient and very simple system for ambitious crypto miners. The hosting service spares you of any annoying and potentially complicated hardware installations. Their goal is to help businesses and individuals to manage and control their mining operations remotely.
TeslaWatt allows crypto miners the use of their facility that enjoys the icy climate of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, boasting a capacity of 2.5 MW. The temperatures are controlled constantly, so the process of crypto mining is not disrupted.
Oregon Mines
With competitive and standard month-to-month contracts for hosting services, Oregon Mines admittedly seems like one of the better choices. Apart from standard contracts, they include discounts for longer-term contracts and prepayments. Oregon Mines appear to pride themselves on maximizing their clients’ mining profits, as well as welcoming newbie miners to assist them with crypto mining finesses such as wallets, pools, and equipment selection.
Great North Data
Great North Data (GND) set up their hardware operations all the way back in 2013. Fast forward to this day, when GND offers specialized hosting, utilizing high-density computer hardware. The service is also equipped to handle major power consumption and cooling. Despite that, their packages and deals promise green hydroelectricity (yep, they are, in fact, eco-friendly), which allows for some of the lowest prices for power usage. In a nutshell, with GND you pretty get good services at fair prices.
Frontline Data Services
Okay, this is a valid option regardless of the fact if you are new to the world of crypto mining, or if you’ve been part of it for some time. These guys will see to your needs — both equipment wise and temperature wise — no matter which level of crypto mining you happen to be interested in. You can easily handle your preferred GPU or ASIC Mining Rig(s) via a reliable and secure facility, supplied with more than enough power, in addition to increased cooling resources so you can push things a bit further in your crypto mining operations. Some of the advantages that come with this service include unlimited bandwidth, scaling without infrastructure costs (allowing for boosted mining ability), and what’s most important stable electric rates.
Giga Watt
Offering appealing options for both GPU and ASIC mining equipment, Giga Watt stands out for their easy-to-get-into system. They promise compact high-density facilities with short air flow distance, which saves on power and provides extremely efficient cooling. The costs are very reasonable, and they offer a wide variety of tech solutions, as well as custom options for strategic partners, shared risks investment options, shared profits investment options, equipment financing and more.
Light Speed
These guys have put themselves on the map thanks to their impressive array of features and services that are currently available. These include Cloud Servers that utilized high-end hardware that’s monitored and managed by a dedicated team. The team keeps an eye on the hardware in the data center, which denotes security, power, and connectivity, sparing you all the headaches and fuss that come with independent crypto mining. Recently, these dudes have also increased their client base thanks to the options of paying with cryptocurrencies, which is possible thanks to CoinPayments — they cover cryptocurrencies such as BitCoin, BitCoin Cash, LiteCoin, Cure Coin, DASH, Decred, Ether, Monero, NEO, VertCoin, and z-Cash.
Cascade Divide
Apart from services like Cascade Divide separates itself from the lot with other impressive services such as Colocating, which allows clients to have their servers in the company’s high-tech data centers. The data center features high capacity fiber connectivity, at a fair cost for the setup and maintenance of the client’s individual redundant facilities and network. In other words, if you go for this option you get a chance to run your own hardware that’s professionally managed at the data center, without the hassle and expenses of building, maintaining, and upgrading an in-house data center. Other advantages of Cascade Divide includes top-notch on-the-spot security, general reliability and up-time, as well as high-quality power and cooling.
Read on…the links :-)
Instead me making some type of conclusion to this post I am more eager to let you decide for yourself here. What I’m gonna do here is share a couple of posts/articles from people who could explain these things far better than me and whose posts helped me a lot. While I share the experience they share the knowledge.
What is Bitcoin mining?How to mine Bitcoin?How Does Cloud Mining Bitcoin Work?Bitcoin Mining Hardware GuideHow to Setup a Bitcoin ASIC MinerBest mining GPU 2018 : the best graphics cards for mining Bitcoin, Ethereum and moreWhat is GPU Mining, and How Does it Differ from ASIC Mining?