<p>A long time ago I read about using amazon cloud instances when the value vs. effort made it profitable to mine with them, but that was before GPU-mining took over.</p>

<p>To be competitive today a service provider would have to employ ASICs. There would also be some economical overhead of providing the customer service, instead of just mining. Strict bitcoin mining operations like for example ASICminer have an advantage over that.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-30T15:09:03.263Z
No, it was after. Still unprofitable, though. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=8405.0
Nick ODell
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-30T12:38:25.917Z
2013-05-30T12:38:25.917Z
ABC
<p>TLDR; bad idea</p>

<p>I rented a VPS to do data analysis on the blockchain, so I ran a bitcoin client, which can have a heavy disk IO, and bitcoin-abe, which is similarly heavy due to a database backend. I loaded both bitcoind and mysql through libeatmydata to lessen the load (less syncs). I wasn't mining. Within a couple of hours, the provider suspended my account due to "bitcoin mining". I complained but they never unsuspended me.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-31T04:05:42.733Z
2013-05-31T04:05:42.733Z
Peter Šurda
<p>The main issue with CPU mining is that before you manage to finish a share the block becomes stale - you barely get anything out as far as I can tell.  </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-06-06T18:38:13.270Z
Like mining for actual blocks, there is no concept of progress 'toward' a share. Each hash is equally likely to result in a share.
Nick ODell
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-31T11:25:40.020Z
2013-05-31T11:25:40.020Z
btcpoolman.com
<p>Mining Bitcoin is possible, but almost certainly not profitable if it's the sole purpose of the VPS. You may, however, find profitability in other altcoins, such as Litecoin or Bytecoin.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-30T13:03:58.050Z
2013-05-30T13:03:58.050Z
Colin Dean
<p>It is possible, but not profitable.  Even if you consider the server as already paid for you will not generate nearly enough of a hashrate to earn more than a few cents a month.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-30T11:42:05.410Z
2013-05-30T11:42:05.410Z
jgm
<p>I have a vps, it's debian but i can install any os, i don't use it a lot, can i use it to mine bitcoins? Correct me if I'm wrong, bitcoins uses video cards, and as far as i know, vps and dedicated servers don't have video cards.</p>

<p>So therefore I'm asking, is it possible to use servers to mine bitcoins</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-30T15:33:55.073Z
possible duplicate of [Is CPU mining even worth it?](http://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/59/is-cpu-mining-even-worth-it)
Stephen Gornick
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-30T15:36:19.007Z
Are you asking if it is technically possible, or just whether or not to consider it.
Stephen Gornick
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-05-30T22:07:59.653Z
@StephenGornick i'm asking if it's technically possible, and if yes, then is it a good practice or not...
Lynob
<mining-profitability><cpu-mining><gpu><server>
Is it possible to use servers to mine bitcoins?
Lynob
# Is it possible to use servers to mine bitcoins?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2013-05-30)

I have a vps, it's debian but i can install any os, i don't use it a lot, can i use it to mine bitcoins? Correct me if I'm wrong, bitcoins uses video cards, and as far as i know, vps and dedicated servers don't have video cards.

So therefore I'm asking, is it possible to use servers to mine bitcoins

**Tags:** mining-profitability, cpu-mining, gpu, server

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: possible duplicate of [Is CPU mining even worth it?](http://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/59/is-cpu-mining-even-worth-it)  
> **username_1**: Are you asking if it is technically possible, or just whether or not to consider it.  
> **username_0**: @StephenGornick i'm asking if it's technically possible, and if yes, then is it a good practice or not...  

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## 5 answers

### Answer by username_7 on 2013-05-30. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

It is possible, but not profitable. Even if you consider the server as already paid for you will not generate nearly enough of a hashrate to earn more than a few cents a month.


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### Answer by username_2 on 2013-05-30. Score: 3

A long time ago I read about using amazon cloud instances when the value vs. effort made it profitable to mine with them, but that was before GPU-mining took over.

To be competitive today a service provider would have to employ ASICs. There would also be some economical overhead of providing the customer service, instead of just mining. Strict bitcoin mining operations like for example ASICminer have an advantage over that.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: No, it was after. Still unprofitable, though. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=8405.0  

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### Answer by username_4 on 2013-05-31. Score: 0

TLDR; bad idea

I rented a VPS to do data analysis on the blockchain, so I ran a bitcoin client, which can have a heavy disk IO, and bitcoin-abe, which is similarly heavy due to a database backend. I loaded both bitcoind and mysql through libeatmydata to lessen the load (less syncs). I wasn't mining. Within a couple of hours, the provider suspended my account due to "bitcoin mining". I complained but they never unsuspended me.


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### Answer by username_5 on 2013-05-31. Score: 0

The main issue with CPU mining is that before you manage to finish a share the block becomes stale - you barely get anything out as far as I can tell.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: Like mining for actual blocks, there is no concept of progress 'toward' a share. Each hash is equally likely to result in a share.  

---

### Answer by username_6 on 2013-05-30. Score: 0

Mining Bitcoin is possible, but almost certainly not profitable if it's the sole purpose of the VPS. You may, however, find profitability in other altcoins, such as Litecoin or Bytecoin.


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