Understand luck value in Filecoin mining and how it affects block rewards. Learn how to improve luck value through network stability and efficient computations.
In the block explorer, the computing power between nodes is the same, and the factor of lucky value can often be seen. It is also a factor in the FIL block reward output, but the actual income is very different. , What affects the actual income is the lucky value of the block. The greater the luck value, the greater the number of unexpected items, and the greater the corresponding profit.
Table of Contents
What is Lucky Value?
The lucky value in Filecoin is the ratio of the actual number of blocks mined by a miner node within a certain period to the theoretical number of blocks that should have been mined in that period. The actual number of blocks mined refers to the block rewards obtained by the node in the Filecoin mainnet using its effective computing power within a certain period. The theoretical number of blocks, on the other hand, is the product of the “proportion of the node’s effective computing power to the total network computing power within the period” and the “block rewards generated by the entire network within the period.”
For example, let’s assume that the total number of blocks mined in the Filecoin network in a 24-hour period is 14,400, and the total network computing power is 3 EiB. Node A has a computing power of 3 Pib, which is 1/1000 of the total network computing power. Therefore, its theoretical rewards would be 0.001 * 14,400 = 14.4 blocks. The value of 14.4 is the threshold for 100% luck. If Node A has mined more blocks than 14.4 in the past 24 hours, we would consider it to have a high lucky value (above 100%); conversely, if it has mined fewer blocks, we would consider it to have a low luck value(below 100%).
Three Steps to Obtain Block Rewards Consists of Three Steps
PART 1: After each mining epoch begins, miners receive the latest block messages from other nodes in the mainnet. When a specific receiving deadline is reached, the miner selects a TipSet from the received block messages as the main chain based on weights and calculates the block power based on that main chain. The calculation parameters for block power include a random number from the main chain TipSet and the ratio of the miner’s current effective computing power to the total network effective computing power. In statistical terms, the higher the miner’s effective computing power compared to the total network effective computing power, the greater the probability of obtaining block power.
PART 2: If the miner obtains block power on the main chain, they enter the WinningPoSt phase. The system uses the sampling parameters obtained from the chain to identify the sectors to be sampled and a random segment of data within those sectors.
PART 3: After sampling the data, the miner performs a simple calculation, produces the result, and broadcasts it. Once the broadcast is approved by the mainnet, the miner can obtain the block reward.
It’s important to note that any error or failure in the WinningPoSt and calculation steps, or exceeding the 30-second time limit, will result in block failure.
Four Factors Determine the Actual Number of Blocks Mined by a Miner
- Effective computing power: Effective computing power determines the probability of a miner obtaining block power. In the long run, the proportion of block power obtained by a node tends to be proportional to its effective computing power compared to the total network effective computing power.
- Lucky value: Since obtaining block power depends on a random number in the main chain, there can be significant randomness in luck over shorter periods, such as 24 hours. Therefore, it’s normal for a miner to have luck significantly above or below 100% over shorter periods, and there’s no need to worry.
- Storage and computing performance: After obtaining block power, the miner needs to complete storage sampling and proof calculation within 30 seconds and broadcast the block to other nodes to successfully mine it. If this process is not completed, the miner will not receive the block reward, even with block power.
- Network latency: If there is significant network latency, the miner may not receive all the block messages from the main chain before the deadline. If the miner performs block calculation based on an incomplete main chain, it will be rejected by other nodes, resulting in block failure. Another scenario is when the miner correctly performs storage sampling and proof calculation based on the correct main chain but fails to immediately broadcast the block to other nodes due to high network latency, leading to block failure.
Using Node A mentioned in the previous example, based on the proportion of total network computing power, Node A should have obtained block power 14.4 times in 24 hours. However, on a particular day, it had exceptional luck and obtained block power 28 times by “hitting” the random number. However, due to 15 failures in WinningPoSt among those 28 instances, Node A ultimately only obtained 13 blocks, resulting in a luck value of approximately 90.28% (13/14.4).
How to Improve Lucky Value in Filecoin Mining?
A miner’s “lucky value” depends on the number of times it encounters a random number. Since it is based on randomness, over a longer time period, the proportion of block power obtained by a node tends to be infinitely close to its effective computing power compared to the total network computing power. The impact of luck on the lucky value can be considered relatively small. Therefore, to ensure a relatively high lucky value, improving the success rate of WinningPoSt is the key.
To achieve “one block power, one block reward,” the following measures can be taken:
- Stable network status: Smooth network transmission ensures that a miner’s computational results are broadcasted to the Filecoin network in a timely manner, reducing the time to obtain block rewards. It also maintains synchronization between the miner and the block height, avoiding broadcast anomalies. For miners with conditions, it is recommended to use the BGP (Border Gateway Protocol) network to set up the Filecoin cluster.
- Excellent storage read/write speed: After obtaining block power, sector data needs to be extracted. Instabilities or slow read/write speeds caused by storage hardware or software can result in data extraction failures, leading to the inability to mine blocks.
- Powerful computing capabilities: WinningPoSt has a very short time frame, and exceeding the computation timeout will result in the inability to obtain block rewards. In addition to well-configured hardware, optimization at the algorithm level is also crucial. Extensive code-level optimization for WinningPoSt calculations significantly reduces the required computation time, eliminating the risk of losing block rewards due to computation timeouts.
Lucky value: A factor that affects mining efficiency, but a factor that makes many people enter the pit.
