Encyclopedia How the network works · Entry 220
Stratum mining: how pool jobs reach mining hardware
In this article
At a glance
Key facts
Follow the path from a device to a pool
A mining device receives work from an upstream pool or proxy. A proxy can combine connections or provide monitoring. The pool checks submitted shares and coordinates block propagation; the device’s main job is hashing the supplied work.
A template provider supplies candidate-block information. A job declarator can arrange custom work with the pool. One software system may perform several roles, but those roles are still conceptually distinct.
A V2 connection does not establish every optional feature
Suppose a farm upgrades its device-to-pool connection to the V2 mining protocol but does not run or connect a job declarator. The protocol specification explicitly allows mining without miner transaction selection. Calling the connection V2 does not prove that the farm now chooses the block contents.
To assess that capability, inspect the actual template, declaration and pool support in the deployed path rather than inferring it from a single version label.
Transport protection has a defined scope
V2 specifies authenticated encryption and a secure session setup, with a mandatory handshake for remote upstream access and a local-network exception described in the specification. These protections address observation and alteration of messages in transit.
They do not guarantee that a pool will pay its account balances, that hardware will be profitable or that a proposed block satisfies Bitcoin consensus. Those questions require separate checks.
Direct answers
Questions people ask
Is Stratum the protocol ordinary Bitcoin wallets use to send payments?
No. Stratum mining protocols coordinate candidate work and share submission. Bitcoin transaction relay and wallet payment interfaces perform different jobs.
Does encrypted mining traffic remove the need to trust a payout operator?
No. Transport security protects the communication channel. It does not ensure the pool’s accounting, solvency or fulfillment of its payout obligations.
Inspect the evidence
The answer and key facts have stable claim links. These records retain the scope and qualification when reused.
Stratum is a family of protocols used to send mining jobs to devices and submit their results upstream. It is different from Bitcoin’s peer-to-peer block and transaction network. Stratum V2 separates mining communication, job declaration and template distribution into related protocols. Basic V2 mining support does not by itself prove that a miner selects the transactions in its candidate blocks.
Educational explanation. Product-specific behavior is scoped to the cited documentation, checked 2026-10-02.
Scope: Bitcoin · data through 2026-10-02. Verification: verified · 2026-10-02T19:29:20.637Z.
Link to this claimMining protocol: Distributes jobs and accepts shares
Scope: Bitcoin · data through 2026-10-02. Verification: verified · 2026-10-02T19:29:20.637Z.
Link to this claimJob declaration: Supports declaring custom block templates
Scope: Bitcoin · data through 2026-10-02. Verification: verified · 2026-10-02T19:29:20.637Z.
Link to this claimTemplate distribution: Supplies candidate block information
Scope: Bitcoin · data through 2026-10-02. Verification: verified · 2026-10-02T19:29:20.637Z.
Link to this claimRevision history
- — First publication after primary-source research and separate automated verification.
Source register
Sources and references
Retrieval dates and locators are recorded individually.- MiningBitcoin developer documentation
Hardware work, candidate blocks and pool shares; historical examples are not current equipment recommendations.
Locator: Mining; Solo Mining; Pool Mining; Block Prototypes · Version / scope: Developer guide; historical implementation details require qualification · Retrieved: 2026-10-02T18:53:53.955ZOpen source - Protocol OverviewStratum V2 specification
Separate mining, job declaration and template distribution protocols.
Locator: 3. Protocol Overview: Mining Protocol, Job Declaration Protocol, Template Distribution Protocol and roles · Retrieved: 2026-10-02T18:53:58.669ZOpen source - Mining ProtocolStratum V2 specification
Mining jobs, channel types, share submission and custom-job support.
Locator: 5.1 Job; 5.3.11–14 SubmitShares messages; 5.3.17 SetNewPrevHash; 5.3.21 SetTarget · Retrieved: 2026-10-02T18:53:58.669ZOpen source - Protocol SecurityStratum V2 specification
Authenticated encrypted transport and its threat boundaries.
Locator: 4 Protocol Security; 4.1 Motivation for Authenticated Encryption with Associated Data; 4.5 Authenticated Key Agreement Handshake · Retrieved: 2026-10-02T18:53:58.786ZOpen source - P2P NetworkBitcoin developer documentation
Peer connections, initial download and block/transaction relay.
Locator: Peer Discovery; Connecting To Peers; Initial Block Download; Block Broadcasting; Transaction Broadcasting · Version / scope: Developer guide; historical implementation details require qualification · Retrieved: 2026-10-02T18:53:53.860ZOpen source - Bitcoin Mining Pools: 101f2pool
Historical 2020 explanation used for share-based reward mechanics and statistical variance; not current subsidy, price, fees, payouts or pool recommendation.
Locator: Mining pool payouts; Why do miners use a mining pool?; When should I consider solo mining? · Version / scope: Published 2020-03-18; historical example · Retrieved: 2026-10-02T18:54:53.532ZOpen source
Research and drafting use AI assistance. A separate automated review checks claims against primary sources; no external expert or named human review is implied. Publication, substantive editing, source retrieval and verification are recorded separately. This version was independently checked by an automated reviewer on 2 October 2026.
Editorial method and correctionsDegrees of Satoshi editorial project. “Stratum mining: how pool jobs reach mining hardware.” Published 2026-10-02; updated 2026-10-02. https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/bitcoin-stratum-mining/