The more powerful your video cards are, the faster they’ll solve equations – this is referred to as their hash rate. However, the most powerful video cards may run more than $1,000 USD a piece, an expense that will definitely cut into whatever profit you might earn.

Make sure your power supply has enough connection to support the number of GPUs you’re running. Since your energy costs have the most direct impact on your mining profits, get a plug for your rig that has energy monitoring capabilities. If your rig is consuming too much energy, you can shut it down temporarily.

Expect to spend between $100 and $200 USD for your motherboard. You can get a 6-pack of risers for under $50 USD.

In a 6-GPU set-up, an Intel i3 or Celeron chip should work to power your motherboard. These typically run under $200 USD.

If you were going to mine on your own without joining a pool, you would need a larger hard drive so you could download the entire blockchain. However, it’s not worth it to mine on your own with a rig this small – you would spend more than you made.

You can get the RAM you need for under $50 USD. If you plan on running Linux, you can get away with 4gb worth of RAM. If you’re running Windows, get at least 8gb worth of RAM.

You can build your own case with basic building materials such as wood and aluminum, or you can buy a pre-built frame. Even a pre-built case typically won’t cost you more than $50 USD.

It’s possible to use the monitor, mouse, and keyboard from your personal computer and just swap them back and forth when needed. Check your manuals or the manufacturer’s website for compatibility questions.

If you plan on running your rig 24/7, change the power options so that it automatically comes on when it has power. That way in the event of a power outage, your rig will come back online when power is restored. This is also handy if you haven’t installed a power button. Disable components you won’t use to save a little power. Typically you can disable onboard audio and most of the peripheral ports. Set the PCIe speed to Gen1 to ensure your OS recognizes all of your GPUs.

If you want to mine Ethereum, you should already have a working familiarity with most basic Windows tasks, including how to install the operating system.

Do not use a wireless connection or connect your mining rig to any WiFi network. No matter how secure you think it is, it’s likely not secure enough. Additionally, your signal likely won’t be strong enough to mine consistently. [8] X Research source

If you have problems getting the OS to recognize all of your video cards, you may need to play around a little bit. You can tweak your BIOS settings, or uninstall all of your GPUs and then reinstall them one by one. If you have to delete drivers, use an uninstaller program to remove them cleanly – don’t just move them to the trash.

To download the Mist package, go to https://github. com/ethereum/mist/releases and scroll down until you find the most recent version for your OS. It will be the version with the highest number. When you download the zip file, you’ll need to extract it using a file extraction tool. Your browser may have already come with one of these – if not, you’ll need to download one. If you’re familiar with cryptocurrency and already know what you’re doing, you can use any cryptocurrency wallet to store the Ethereum you mine.

If you’re planning on joining a mining pool, you don’t necessarily have to download the entire blockchain. However, you do have to download it to use the Mist app. If you want to bypass downloading the entire blockchain, you can instead create an Ethereum wallet at https://www. myetherwallet. com/.

Copy the address (a string of characters starting with “0x”) to a text file or write it down somewhere handy. This is the address you’ll give to your pool so your Ethereum can be deposited. It isn’t necessary to secure your address the way you do your password – it only allows anyone who has it to deposit Ethereum into your account, not to withdraw anything.

You can download the latest version of the software on the BitcoinTalk Forum. Look for the original post by Claymore, the developer of the software.

You don’t necessarily have to disable automatic updates. If you do, monitor for updates and install manually when you can. If you’re running anti-virus software, add an exception for the Claymore mining executable file, EthDcrMiner64. exe. This will keep the program from flagging the file as a virus and attempting to disable or delete it.

For example, if you live in the United States, you wouldn’t want to join a mining pool in China. The further away from the server you are, the greater the lag time between your rig and the server. If there’s a significant lag, your rig may be working on blocks that have already been solved. Research the reputation of mining pools before you choose one to join. Avoid pools that have only been in existence for a year or less.

Copy the code from the pool’s website. Then, from your desktop, open your Claymore miner folder. Right-click the text file named “Start” and click “Edit. " Paste the code into that file.

Paste the address string in your text file, replacing the server string or filler text that was originally in the code.

Your rig name is like your WiFi network name – avoid using your name or any private information, such as your birthday. Your rig name will be public within the pool.

Once you’ve saved your batch file, create a shortcut to the file on your desktop for easy access. You can delete the original text file you created.

Give your miner about 20 seconds to get going, then click “s. " This will display your hash rate. You can plug your hash rate and other information into a profitability calculator, such as https://etherscan. io/ether-mining-calculator, to determine how much Ethereum your rig will mine.