Algorithms

Equihash

The memory-oriented proof-of-work used by Zcash — designed for ASIC resistance, conquered by ASICs in 2018.

Equihash bases mining on the generalised birthday problem, requiring substantial memory and bandwidth. The 200,9 parameter set used by Zcash was meant to keep mining on GPUs; Bitmain's Antminer Z9 broke that assumption in 2018 and the Z15 Pro (840 KSol/s) now defines the network.

Zcash chose not to hard-fork against ASICs, unlike Monero. For miners, Equihash hardware is a specialised bet on ZEC and its halving schedule — efficiency is measured in watts per kilosol.

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→ Equihash algorithm page
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Related Terms

ASIC Resistance
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