Transaction
A transaction is a signed record of a coin transfer. It goes into a queue, then into a block, and from that moment it is part of the chain.
What a transaction is
A transaction tells the network: these coins go to that address, and here is my signature. The signature is made with a private key, so a transfer cannot be forged, and taking it back is even less possible. The network does literally what you asked for.
At first a transaction hangs in the queue of unconfirmed records, which people call the mempool. Miners build a block out of that queue and take whatever pays better: the higher the fee per unit of size, the sooner a record lands in a block. On quiet days the difference is small, and on busy ones the queue stretches into hours.
The fee is paid for space in a block rather than for the amount transferred. A payment of ten euros and one of ten thousand cost the same when they take up the same space. For a miner those fees are part of the reward, and FPPS differs from PPS in exactly that: it shares them with participants.
A pool payout is an ordinary transaction too. So it carries a fee, and that is why pools set a minimum payout amount: sending dust costs more than the dust is worth. If your payout came later than you expected, that threshold is usually the reason rather than trouble at the pool.
Quick reference table
| What it is | a signed record of a transfer |
| What signs it | your private key |
| Where it waits | in the queue of unconfirmed records, the mempool |
| What the fee buys | space in a block, not the amount sent |
| Cancellation | not possible |
What this means for a miner
Check your payout address before the first transaction rather than after. A mistake in the address means the coins go where you wrote them, and there is nobody to get them back from.
Look at the minimum payout in your pool settings. One asic does not reach the sum every day, and that is a normal threshold rather than a delay.
Network fees reach your revenue through the block reward. On days when the queue is long, the fee slice of a payout grows noticeably, and on FPPS you see it in the numbers.
An example
The pool reached your minimum and sent the payout. A transaction appeared on the network, ten minutes later it was taken into a block, and confirmations started coming. There is no special mining operation here: it is the same transfer as any other on the network.
Related terms
Where to go next on the site
Coins
Hardware
- ASIC Miner knowledge base
Questions and answers
Why has my payout not arrived yet
Most often the sum has not reached the pool minimum. The other option is that the transaction is already sent and sitting in the queue, and then you can find it on the network by its identifier.
What does the fee depend on
On space in a block rather than on the amount transferred. The longer the queue, the more it costs to get into the next block.
Can a transaction be canceled
No. A signed and broadcast transfer cannot be taken back, which is why the address gets checked before sending.
How the terms connect
Every link in the chain is clickable. Orange marks where you are now.
Looking for an ASIC miner
The catalog holds 212 models. You can compare them by hashrate and by joules per terahash, then plug your own rate into the calculator and see what stays in your pocket.
Page written and checked by Denys Klimchuk. Updated .