Pool Mining

Pool mining lets miners combine work and receive smaller, steadier payouts instead of waiting for rare solo blocks. The tradeoff is that the pool controls job construction, share accounting, and payout policy.

This page is for miners choosing or using a pool. Pool operators should use Mining Pool Operator Guide.

Current Status

Tidecoin’s mining path is changing toward scrypt merged mining through AuxPoW. Use the pool’s current instructions and verify whether the pool is operating pre-AuxPoW standalone mining or post-AuxPoW merged mining.

The docs do not maintain a vetted live pool list yet. Do not treat a pool as official unless it is linked from an official Tidecoin source.

What To Check Before Mining

Check	Why it matters
Network	Mainnet, testnet, and regtest are separate.
Mining mode	Pre-AuxPoW YespowerTIDE and post-AuxPoW scrypt merged mining use different miner setups.
Payout address	A wrong address can permanently lose payouts.
Payout method	PPS, PPLNS, and proportional pools distribute risk differently.
Fee	Pool fees affect expected return.
Minimum payout	Small miners may wait longer if the threshold is high.
Transparency	Look for visible blocks, shares, fee policy, and payout history.

Payout Method Basics

Method	Meaning
PPS	Pool pays a fixed amount per valid share and absorbs block variance. Usually higher fee.
PPLNS	Pool pays recent shares when blocks mature. Lower pool risk, more miner variance.
Proportional	Rewards for a round are split by shares submitted in that round.

Always read the pool’s policy. The name alone is not enough to know exact behavior.

Pools usually provide a Stratum URL, worker name, and password. The worker name often includes a payout account or address, but formats vary by pool.

Example shape only:


stratum+tcp://POOL_HOST:PORT
user = ACCOUNT_OR_ADDRESS.WORKER
password = x

Do not copy an example address or worker name from docs. Use the value issued by your pool or wallet.

How To Audit a Pool

Confirm the pool has found blocks that appear on a Tidecoin explorer or node.
Compare stated fees with actual payout history.
Check whether orphaned blocks are handled according to policy.
Verify that the pool refreshes jobs on new parent and Tidecoin tips.
Watch stale share rate; high stale rate can indicate connectivity or pool infrastructure issues.
Withdraw a small payout before committing larger hashrate.

AuxPoW-Era Difference

After AuxPoW activation, your mining work is scrypt parent-chain work. The pool is responsible for embedding the Tidecoin commitment and submitting Tidecoin AuxPoW proofs. End miners typically do not interact with submitauxblock directly.