When it comes to the most anticipated projects in 2020, Filecoin is bound to be at the top. Recently, many miner friends have come to F2Pool to consult about Fileoin mining, wanting to understand the opportunities brought by Filecoin and the barriers to participation. F2Pool has been paying close attention to the progress of the Filecoin project since 2017. Taking this opportunity, we have compiled a list of Filecoin highlights for our miner friends, so that we can understand this phenomenal new currency from a mining perspective. Although there is news of "delay" again, the general expectation this time is that Filecoin has entered the final debugging stage and is very close to the "delivery" of the mainnet of this phenomenal project that is expected to "become a mainstream currency as soon as it goes online."
Whether it is financing, mining machine investment, application development, cloud computing products, summit forums, or even news of several "delays", all aspects of the discussion and hype surrounding Filecoin continue to arouse people's curiosity, allowing a large number of new forces in the mining circle who have seen this new opportunity to make money to join in. Not only that, miners who focus on traditional models such as ASIC and graphics cards have also begun to explore new opportunities in this popular network. For traditional miners, what kind of change in thinking does Filecoin mean? How difficult is it to "transform" to Filecoin? How to "avoid pitfalls"? Through the analysis of this article and the opinions given by industry insiders, I believe that miners can find their own answers. After repeated delays, what is the progress of Filecoin? Early projects and long waits We often hear Filecoin and IPFS mentioned at the same time, and occasionally the two words are used interchangeably. Although both are developed by Protocol Labs, they actually refer to the distributed storage protocol layer and the incentive layer .
IPFS (InterPlanetary File System) released its white paper in 2014, the first version of the network was released in 2015, and a stable version was released in May this year. It aims to create a protocol layer for distributed storage and file sharing, and is considered to be a promising alternative to the HTTP protocol and promote the advent of the Web3 era. Over the past five years, IPFS has been widely recognized and used in the open source community. The picture of ecological participants using IPFS comes from https://ipfs.io/ Filecoin aims to build an incentive layer on this decentralized network protocol. The first version of the white paper was released in 2014, just like IPFS. In 2017, Filecoin updated and released the white paper and completed the largest initial coin offering at the time on Coinlist. Together with the pre-sale, it raised a total of US$275 million . Filecoin is built on top of IPFS, which encourages participants to build a data market and encourages people to store and query data more efficiently. Although IPFS does not have to be "bound" to Filecoin to be used, backed by the extremely popular protocol layer and the officially developed "incentive layer", Filecoin is expected to be widely used in cryptocurrency. The design of technical implementation methods, code improvement, parameter design, hardware configuration and other aspects requires a lot of time, and the multiple changes to the expected time of the main network also make the wait seem even longer. In the second half of 2019 , March , May , June , August of this year, and until the most recent September , Filecoin's expected launch time has been "reset" many times, becoming the "king of pigeons". However, the network is currently in the final stages of the second phase of the testnet , and the latest extension is to give developers more time to improve the code and prepare for the Space Race incentive testnet phase. Usually, when a project enters the incentive testnet phase, it basically means that the mainnet is "determined", bugs have been found and fixed, and it is just waiting for the actual combat.Filecoin Official Roadmap https://app.instagantt.com/shared/s/1152992274307505/latest According to the latest roadmap, Filecoin is currently carrying out technical preparations such as security audits, testing and verification, and interoperability . The crypto-economic structure, proof structure, and recommended mainnet hardware settings are also in progress. The network is expected to conduct a three-week Space Race incentive testnet competition in August, and a total of 4.1 million FIL rewards will be distributed linearly within 6 months after the mainnet is launched. Among them, the top 100 miners in the world and the top 50 miners in each continent ranked by storage capacity will receive a total of 4 million FIL rewards, and the top 20 miners ranked by block rewards will receive a total of 100,000 FIL rewards. Usually after the incentivized testnet is completed, the mainnet will be launched soon within a few weeks. It is expected that Filecoin will be officially launched in September, ending the three-year wait from the completion of financing in September 2017 to the launch of the mainnet. What are the key points to understand storage mining consensus? From "computing power" to "storage power" When many miners first heard about Filecoin storage mining, they might first think of some similar projects in the past, such as "hard disk mining" or other distributed storage projects. After a simple comparison, they found obvious differences : What is the difference between Filecoin and the previous PoC project of "hard disk mining"? Take BHD as an example. It competes for the right to produce blocks with hard disk space, but it is not for storing files. Miners can exit flexibly after obtaining block rewards, while Filecoin has continuous data storage requirements. What is the main difference from previous distributed storage projects? Taking SC as an example, its token generation process and usage process are relatively independent, and it mainly competes for block rewards based on hash power, while Filecoin determines the possibility of obtaining block rewards based on hard disk storage. "Expected consensus + proof of replication + proof of space-time" is the core concept of Filecoin consensus and storage algorithm. Filecoin's expected consensus (EC) determines how and who the network chooses to receive block rewards. The more data a Filecoin miner effectively stores , the greater the chance of being elected as a block node. Unlike Bitcoin, which competes for block power through hash power, the core resource of the Filecoin network is storage capacity. The "effective storage" mentioned here refers to the size of the space that has been stored. The EC expected consensus allows storage miners to submit tickets through non-interactive calculations, and generate block miners by comparing the stored data through zero-knowledge proofs. The network can generate multiple blocks at a time point , reward multiple miners, and record these blocks in a Tipset, forming a Tipset chain with a DAG structure . How to publicly verify storage capacity? Filecoin has set up two storage algorithms: Proof -of-Replication (PoRep) is used to confirm that miners have successfully copied the data and encapsulated it in their own devices, and Proof -of-Spacetime (PoSt) is used to verify that miners continue to store data safely as promised. We will explain the specific process in combination with hardware configuration. How to accumulate more "storage capacity" to get a greater chance of producing blocks? The first is early participation. Filecoin mining is all about " accumulation ". Early players can not only accumulate tokens relatively easily because of the "first mining bonus", but more importantly, they can start the accumulation process of effective storage earlier. Miners can accept storage orders, or store non-specific data to indicate storage commitments , so that this part of the storage space can be upgraded to customer data after receiving subsequent orders. Another way is to increase the growth rate of storage capacity . This requires, 1) faster packaging speed and stable storage hardware; 2) storage of " useful data (such as weather, maps, technology and other data with actual use value) " of verified customers , so as to obtain "multiplication" and double the storage capacity. The official Filecoin Discover plan launched in May is a way to provide verified customer data. The official data purchased by miners is stored in hard drives and sent to miners offline . Miners get more rewards by packaging data and store more useful data.Regarding profit model and risk control, which perceptions need to be updated? The rewards and challenges of long-term engagement Similar to previous PoW mining, Filecoin's miner rewards or income also mainly come from newly minted network tokens and network mining fees. The following differences from traditional PoW mining need to be noted by traditional miners: 1) There are more roles on the Filecoin network, and miners who provide data storage and data query can earn income; 2) Filecoin requires collateral for mining, and the collateral tokens must be sufficient to constrain miners to complete long-term storage as promised in the contract; 3) A portion of the block rewards will be placed in locked funds, and all rewards will be obtained after the storage contract is completed. When the network is widely used and query demand is low, the main income from mining still comes from the new coin rewards issued to the "storage" miner network. In terms of block rewards, 70% of the total 2 billion FIL tokens in Filecoin can be obtained through mining. The rest are the development team (15%), investors (10%), and the foundation (5%). In terms of block rewards, 50% of the mineable tokens will be mined within 6 years . The specific parameters of the reward have not yet been finalized. Judging from the current test network design, Filecoin block rewards are composed of "simple supply + network baseline supply" . Before the network reaches a certain target storage scale , miners' rewards will be delayed . After reaching the network baseline, the reward model becomes a simple exponentially decreasing model. In terms of risk , we need to focus on the uncertainty in the process of "long-term participation". The pledge before starting mining and the lock-up of network rewards sacrifice the current liquidity. Not only that, if the time-space proof required by the network cannot be completed, or there is a disconnection or delay, the pledged tokens will be fined a certain percentage, and the "storage capacity" will also be lost. Therefore, when faced with the phenomenal project Filecoin, we should not only consider seizing the opportunity, but also first consider whether we can provide network performance that meets the network participation threshold and maintains stable performance. How high is the threshold for high-performance equipment competition? Mainnet launch is an “arms race” In order to achieve stable performance and accumulate storage capacity faster, the "arms race" of Filecoin mainnet launch has almost become a foregone conclusion. However, since the current testnet is not designed for large miners to compete in storage capacity, and its main function is to test the code, the real arms race will have to wait until at least a few weeks until the Space Race incentive testnet is officially announced. https://stats.testnet.filecoin.io/ In terms of hardware configuration, it is necessary to consider meeting many requirements based on the role of each configuration: CPU, GPU, hard disk, network connection, etc. are the main components of Filecoin mining configuration. The Lotus test network file of Filecoin's second phase gives the minimum configuration of "test network + small scale", including 2TB hard disk space, 8-core CPU, 128G memory, etc.
The upcoming storage competition and mainnet, whether from the perspective of network design or the advance layout of participants, do not seem to leave much room for the "minimum configuration". The market's heat and long-term preparation require miners to carefully consider advanced configurations . Based on the recently released official mining guide , we have summarized the following table to show you the high-level configuration requirements of CPU and GPU in Filecoin network activities, especially in data packaging and proof generation: It can be seen that although they are competing for storage power, high-performance CPUs and GPUs, coupled with larger memory, will still widen the gap in packaging speed . The most time-consuming "Packaging Pre-Submission Phase 1" has become one of the key points for optimizing configuration.
Filecoin utilizes the design concept of idle space storage. Although it does not have too many requirements for hard disks, subsequent expansion, basic quality assurance and redundancy considerations will also require miners to make continuous investments .
Filecoin, is there much room for traditional miners to participate? A brand new mining ecosystem I believe that miners who have read the above about the progress of the Filecoin network, consensus characteristics, network rewards, and hardware configuration have already formed their own basic judgments about Filecoin. Whether you can join the game depends on whether you are ready for large-scale mining, or whether you have done enough homework to judge and choose reliable partners. Don't rush to act before you fully understand it. Miners who have been working in traditional mining fields such as Bitcoin and Ethereum for many years need to make adjustments before exploring the new blue ocean of Filecoin, including understanding the new ecology brought by Filecoin . Since Filecoin mining is different from the instant "dig, sell, and withdraw" process of Bitcoin and other mining , miners are unlikely to turn on and off mining machines at any time according to the current coin price as usual, and equipment relocation similar to the "flood season" has become unrealistic. Filecoin requires that mining machines must be continuously online and are not easily replaced by each other . Mining farms, mining pools, mining machine manufacturers, and various industry ecosystem participants need long-term fixed cooperation and close contact. They need to use more stable IDC computer rooms for cluster mining and have full control over the entire process of each link in mining. All of this is a new form different from traditional mining. Regardless of the currency or mining rules, avoiding "pitfalls" and finding a relatively appropriate time are issues that potential miners need to think about. " The core influencing factors of Filecoin mining are cost-effective hardware + deeply customized mining system + stable operation and maintenance . The requirements for hardware, software, and operation and maintenance will be higher," said Yang Xiao, COO of Panda Miner & Niubit. He believes that the current industry is very mixed, with crazy sales and vicious competition between competing products, which discourage traditional miners when they first enter the circle. To avoid pitfalls, it is necessary to update cognition, " miners who know a little about hardware and mining are the most difficult ." As for the timing of participation, he believes that it should wait until the main network is launched to avoid being "sold expectations." Lang Ge, co-founder of Langshen Miner and a senior graphics card miner, said, "It is difficult for ordinary miners to participate, because Filecoin has strict requirements on network environment and power stability . In addition, it involves the optimization of underlying software, and ordinary teams are a little late to enter the market now. However, for small miners, although it is difficult for the first batch to participate, as the software is optimized in the later stage, it is still possible for small miners to assemble their own hardware and participate." He also reminded miners to be wary of products that guarantee capital preservation or short-term returns, and warned that " mining itself is a high-risk, high-return project ." Lao K from the Bixia Research Lab also pointed out in his introduction that miners need to think about risks and benefits before participating. He believes that for ordinary people, even if they participate in some "cloud computing power" products, paying attention to the relevant descriptions of the "mortgage mechanism" of Filecoin mining is the key to enhancing identification ability . "Does the cloud computing power you purchased mention the liquidity cost of the mortgaged coins, who needs to pay, and who will bear the loss if the mortgaged coins are confiscated?" Only promises of benefits, not risks, small-scale participants should think about the possible problems . Although the network still has codes and parameters to be finalized, and there are too many pitfalls and noise in the industry, overall, industry insiders are very optimistic about the long-term prospects of the network. Panda Miner & Niubit COO Yang Xiao analyzed, "According to its distribution mechanism, 70% is mined by miners, and 1.4 billion is used to incentivize miners. Based on the estimated daily output of 400,000 tokens, the daily output value is indeed expected to exceed 40 million, which is on par with Ethereum graphics card mining. This mining track does have the potential to rival or even surpass the scale of graphics card mining ." Now, Filecoin's clearer network parameters and industrial ecological pattern will be presented to us. Let us wait and see how stable the network is and what kind of pattern the mining industry will take. How will Filecoin change the mining industry? What do you think? What are your concerns about Filecoin mining? Welcome to leave a message in the comment section below this article and tell us your thoughts~ |
