Hi guys, as a bitcoiner (for at least 2 years now) I have really never contributed to bitcoin, besides buying some and holding.
So last week I rented a cheap cloud server and installed bitcoind, to help bitcoin network stay stable and strong,
and it feels really good.
It costs only 5$ a month and has 20gb SSD (faster than HDD) so the blockchain fits pretty well. Been running for a week and hasn't crashed. (running on ubuntu 12.04 x32)
(located in amsterdam)
(bandwidth going out peaks)
(cpu in the last 24h)
Tutorial on how to install bitcoind
ubuntu 12.04://installing bitcoind on ubuntu 12.04, run this commands on putty
sudo aptitude install python-software-properties
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:bitcoin/bitcoin
sudo aptitude update
sudo aptitude install bitcoind
mkdir ~/.bitcoin/
Next STEP: Configure Bitcoind
Edit an empty ~/.bitcoin/bitcoin.conf file in the .bitcoin folder:
nano ~/.bitcoin/bitcoin.conf
Insert the following code in it:
server=1
daemon=1
rpcuser=INVENT_A_UNIQUE_USERNAME
rpcpassword=INVENT_A_UNIQUE_PASSWORD
press Ctrl+O to save and Ctrl+X (to exit I think)
Then, to start bitcoind write:
bitcoind
It will output “Bitcoin server starting”
The blockchain now will begin to download, to view the status of the download write:
bitcoind getinfo
For
ubuntu 13.10
//installing bitcoind on Ubuntu 13.10, run this commands on putty
mkdir ~/.bitcoin/
sudo aptitude update
sudo aptitude upgrade
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:bitcoin/bitcoin
sudo aptitude install bitcoind
Next STEP: Configure Bitcoind
Edit an empty ~/.bitcoin/bitcoin.conf file in the .bitcoin folder:
nano ~/.bitcoin/bitcoin.conf
Insert the following code in it:
server=1
daemon=1
rpcuser=INVENT_A_UNIQUE_USERNAME
rpcpassword=INVENT_A_UNIQUE_PASSWORD
press Ctrl+O to save and Ctrl+E (to exit I think)
Then, to start bitcoind write:
bitcoind
It will output "Bitcoin server starting"
The blockchain now will begin to download, to view the status of the download write:
bitcoind getinfo
More commands
here+++++++++++++++++++
It costs only 5 bucks and you are helping the network grow stronger.
website: https://www.digitalocean.comVerifying transactions absolutely DOES help the network even if you are not mining. Here's a recap of why we need nodes:
To operate, P2P wallets need to connect to P2P nodes.
Then they need to download the block chain, possibly a filtered version of it. And they need to hear about any transactions that didn't confirm yet, but which are valid and sitting in the memory pool. This is vital so someone can send you money, and you can open your wallet and see it immediately.
Storing the block chain, serving/filtering the chain, verifying and relaying transactions, all this takes resources.
When you run a node, you take some of that load onto your own shoulders. The work gets spread out, so as the number of users goes up, we need to keep adding nodes to ensure it stays relatively cheap and easy to do so.
The most important things when running a node are
1) ensuring that you are allowing inbound connections. If you run a node at home or behind a firewall, it's vital you ensure it's set up right so other nodes and wallets can connect to yours.
2) staying up to date with the latest software
Thanks to everyone who is running a node, upgrading it and accepting inbound connections! You are contributing to Bitcoin in a very direct and helpful manner.
