“Stratum V2 is an updated version of the well-known Stratum mining protocol. It allows miners to create their own block templates, which helps reduce the centralization of mining pools. Unlike the original Stratum, setting up Stratum V2 is a bit more involved because it requires running your own Bitcoin node to generate block templates. This guide will walk you through the setup process step by step.”
If you prefer to have an even more geeky / nerd approach you can set all the component manually. This is explained in a separate tutorial here.
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This guides refers to the device where we will install our node as “server”. A server is just a normal computer that is running 24/7 and provides services. Any computers, laptop, raspberry pi, etc can become a server and a server can run a graphical user interface (aka desktop). It DOES NOT HAVE to be command line only.
Hardware Requirements
Hardware requirements for your server are similar to those for a standard Bitcoin node, especially if you have only a few miners. You don’t need a lot of storage because it can be pruned. An old gaming laptop would work perfectly for this. We recommend using an old gaming laptop because its screen serves as a built-in debug tool and usually they have good RAM and CPU. This is useful for those who are not familiar with using command line interfaces.
- Disk Space: 100 GB (sufficient for a pruned node)
- RAM: 4 GB
- CPU Requirement: Any Core i5 / AMD 64 bits equivalent from the past 6 years will suffice.
- Internet Usage ¹:
- Download: 15 GB per month, plus a one-time initial download of about 400 GB
- Upload: 150 GB per month
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¹ If you’re mining in a remote location with limited bandwidth, you can set up the node in an area with better internet access and connect your miner to it remotely. The node and miner don’t need to be in the same physical location.
Software Requirements
For this setup, Ubuntu Server would work well, but it only offers a command line interface. We recommend using Xubuntu a lightweight distribution that includes a graphical desktop, making it easier to use. Make sure you select the “Long Term Support” (LTS) version to benefit from an extended support. You can download it from the official website. It’s assumed that you know how to create a live USB installer and boot your computer from it. If not, there are numerous online tutorials that can guide you through the process.
Installation Process
Preparing the server
Once you have Xubuntu installed on your server, open a terminal and make sure it is updated.
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgradeDownload the script
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Urban-Hacker/Stratum-V2-in-a-box/main/install.shMake it executable
chmod +x install.shRun it
./install.shAfter the installation process is finished you need to do two things. First running the bitcoin daemon and then starting the stratum proxy. Go in the “Stratum V2 in a box” folder (it is placed your home directory /home/your_name/stratum_v2/Stratum-V2-in-a-box) and open a terminal.
./run_bitcoin_node.sh start./run_proxy.sh your_bitcoin_addressYou can then point your miner to the IP address of your server just like you would for a normal pool.