The first blockchain that rewards vintage hardware for being old, not fast.
Your PowerPC G4 earns more than a modern Threadripper. That's the point.
| Traditional PoW | Proof-of-Antiquity |
|---|---|
| Rewards fastest hardware | Rewards oldest hardware |
| Newer = Better | Older = Better |
| Wasteful energy consumption | Preserves computing history |
| Race to the bottom | Rewards digital preservation |
Core Principle: Authentic vintage hardware that has survived decades deserves recognition. RustChain flips mining upside-down.
curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Scottcjn/Rustchain/main/install.sh | bashThe installer:
- ✅ Auto-detects your platform (Linux/macOS, x86_64/ARM/PowerPC)
- ✅ Creates an isolated Python virtualenv (no system pollution)
- ✅ Downloads the correct miner for your hardware
- ✅ Sets up auto-start on boot (systemd/launchd)
- ✅ Provides easy uninstall
Install with a specific wallet:
curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Scottcjn/Rustchain/main/install.sh | bash -s -- --wallet my-miner-walletUninstall:
curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Scottcjn/Rustchain/main/install.sh | bash -s -- --uninstall- ✅ Ubuntu 20.04+, Debian 11+, Fedora 38+ (x86_64, ppc64le)
- ✅ macOS 12+ (Intel, Apple Silicon, PowerPC)
- ✅ IBM POWER8 systems
Check your wallet balance:
# Note: Using -sk flags because the node may use a self-signed SSL certificate
curl -sk "https://50.28.86.131/wallet/balance?miner_id=YOUR_WALLET_NAME"List active miners:
curl -sk https://50.28.86.131/api/minersCheck node health:
curl -sk https://50.28.86.131/healthGet current epoch:
curl -sk https://50.28.86.131/epochManage the miner service:
Linux (systemd):
systemctl --user status rustchain-miner # Check status
systemctl --user stop rustchain-miner # Stop mining
systemctl --user start rustchain-miner # Start mining
journalctl --user -u rustchain-miner -f # View logsmacOS (launchd):
launchctl list | grep rustchain # Check status
launchctl stop com.rustchain.miner # Stop mining
launchctl start com.rustchain.miner # Start mining
tail -f ~/.rustchain/miner.log # View logsgit clone https://github.com/Scottcjn/Rustchain.git
cd Rustchain
pip install -r requirements.txt
python3 rustchain_universal_miner.py --wallet YOUR_WALLET_NAMEYour hardware's age determines your mining rewards:
| Hardware | Era | Multiplier | Example Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| PowerPC G4 | 1999-2005 | 2.5× | 0.30 RTC/epoch |
| PowerPC G5 | 2003-2006 | 2.0× | 0.24 RTC/epoch |
| PowerPC G3 | 1997-2003 | 1.8× | 0.21 RTC/epoch |
| IBM POWER8 | 2014 | 1.5× | 0.18 RTC/epoch |
| Pentium 4 | 2000-2008 | 1.5× | 0.18 RTC/epoch |
| Core 2 Duo | 2006-2011 | 1.3× | 0.16 RTC/epoch |
| Apple Silicon | 2020+ | 1.2× | 0.14 RTC/epoch |
| Modern x86_64 | Current | 1.0× | 0.12 RTC/epoch |
Multipliers decay over time (15%/year) to prevent permanent advantage.
Every miner must prove their hardware is real, not emulated:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 6 Hardware Checks │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 1. Clock-Skew & Oscillator Drift ← Silicon aging pattern │
│ 2. Cache Timing Fingerprint ← L1/L2/L3 latency tone │
│ 3. SIMD Unit Identity ← AltiVec/SSE/NEON bias │
│ 4. Thermal Drift Entropy ← Heat curves are unique │
│ 5. Instruction Path Jitter ← Microarch jitter map │
│ 6. Anti-Emulation Checks ← Detect VMs/emulators │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Why it matters: A SheepShaver VM pretending to be a G4 Mac will fail these checks. Real vintage silicon has unique aging patterns that can't be faked.
Unlike PoW where hash power = votes, RustChain uses round-robin consensus:
- Each unique hardware device gets exactly 1 vote per epoch
- Rewards split equally among all voters, then multiplied by antiquity
- No advantage from running multiple threads or faster CPUs
Epoch Duration: 10 minutes (600 seconds)
Base Reward Pool: 1.5 RTC per epoch
Distribution: Equal split × antiquity multiplier
Example with 5 miners:
G4 Mac (2.5×): 0.30 RTC ████████████████████
G5 Mac (2.0×): 0.24 RTC ████████████████
Modern PC (1.0×): 0.12 RTC ████████
Modern PC (1.0×): 0.12 RTC ████████
Modern PC (1.0×): 0.12 RTC ████████
─────────
Total: 0.90 RTC (+ 0.60 RTC returned to pool)
| Node | Location | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Node 1 | 50.28.86.131 | Primary + Explorer | ✅ Active |
| Node 2 | 50.28.86.153 | Ergo Anchor | ✅ Active |
| Node 3 | 76.8.228.245 | External (Community) | ✅ Active |
RustChain periodically anchors to the Ergo blockchain for immutability:
RustChain Epoch → Commitment Hash → Ergo Transaction (R4 register)
This provides cryptographic proof that RustChain state existed at a specific time.
# Check network health
curl -sk https://50.28.86.131/health
# Get current epoch
curl -sk https://50.28.86.131/epoch
# List active miners
curl -sk https://50.28.86.131/api/miners
# Check wallet balance
curl -sk "https://50.28.86.131/wallet/balance?miner_id=YOUR_WALLET"
# Block explorer
open https://50.28.86.131/explorer| Platform | Architecture | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mac OS X Tiger | PowerPC G4/G5 | ✅ Full Support | Python 2.5 compatible miner |
| Mac OS X Leopard | PowerPC G4/G5 | ✅ Full Support | Recommended for vintage Macs |
| Ubuntu Linux | ppc64le/POWER8 | ✅ Full Support | Best performance |
| Ubuntu Linux | x86_64 | ✅ Full Support | Standard miner |
| macOS Sonoma | Apple Silicon | ✅ Full Support | M1/M2/M3 chips |
| Windows 10/11 | x86_64 | ✅ Full Support | Python 3.8+ |
| DOS | 8086/286/386 | 🔧 Experimental | Badge rewards only |
Earn commemorative badges for mining milestones:
| Badge | Requirement | Rarity |
|---|---|---|
| 🔥 Bondi G3 Flamekeeper | Mine on PowerPC G3 | Rare |
| ⚡ QuickBasic Listener | Mine from DOS machine | Legendary |
| 🛠️ DOS WiFi Alchemist | Network DOS machine | Mythic |
| 🏛️ Pantheon Pioneer | First 100 miners | Limited |
VMs are detected and receive 1 billionth of normal rewards:
Real G4 Mac: 2.5× multiplier = 0.30 RTC/epoch
Emulated G4: 0.0000000025× = 0.0000000003 RTC/epoch
Each hardware fingerprint is bound to one wallet. Prevents:
- Multiple wallets on same hardware
- Hardware spoofing
- Sybil attacks
Rustchain/
├── rustchain_universal_miner.py # Main miner (all platforms)
├── rustchain_v2_integrated.py # Full node implementation
├── fingerprint_checks.py # Hardware verification
├── install.sh # One-line installer
├── docs/
│ ├── RustChain_Whitepaper_*.pdf # Technical whitepaper
│ └── chain_architecture.md # Architecture docs
├── tools/
│ └── validator_core.py # Block validation
└── nfts/ # Badge definitions
| Project | Description |
|---|---|
| nvidia-power8-patches | NVIDIA drivers for POWER8 |
| llama-cpp-power8 | LLM inference on POWER8 |
| ppc-compilers | Modern compilers for vintage Macs |
A year of development, real vintage hardware, electricity bills, and a dedicated lab went into this.
If you use RustChain:
- ⭐ Star this repo - Helps others find it
- 📝 Credit in your project - Keep the attribution
- 🔗 Link back - Share the love
RustChain - Proof of Antiquity by Scott (Scottcjn)
https://github.com/Scottcjn/Rustchain
MIT License - Free to use, but please keep the copyright notice and attribution.
Made with ⚡ by Elyan Labs
"Your vintage hardware earns rewards. Make mining meaningful again."
DOS boxes, PowerPC G4s, Win95 machines - they all have value. RustChain proves it.