Complete noob Windows GPU build and
troubleshooting guide!
reddit.com/r/gpumining/comments/6qkiso/complete_noob_windows_gpu_build_and
Building a custom GPU miner is not for the person who has never built a PC before. You
should practice building a regular system to gain a basic understanding of PC build
fundamentals. Once that system is stable, then you can move up to the demands and skills
of a custom rig.
You will need basic isolating and troubleshooting skills, which only come with practice.
GPU mining is a test of patience and fortitude. Rarely (if ever) can you build a multi card
system like this and have it work perfect 100% of the time.
(troubleshooting guide below)
WHAT TO GET: HARDWARE
a cheap board with enough PCIe slots, cheap HDD (50GB minimum), cheap ram
(4Gb is enough)
a GOOD PSU (for eg I'm running 1200 kW for 4x 1080ti)
DO NOT buy cheap risers (especially un-powered) as they will fail, sometimes
intermittently. Get USB risers as they appear to be more reliable.
if you have more than 2 cards, build an IKEA rack, milk crate or other custom
units otherwise you WILL run into heat issues. There is a good video about this in
YOUTUBE where a guy makes a cheap rack out of Ikea parts.
DO NOT install a side panel on your PC if you are running with more than 1 card.
Unless you have very good heat extraction, you will destroy the cards (either the fans
or the cards themselves) from 24/7 mining.
20$ external fan to help with cooling rather than destroy the fans on the GPU, again
no side panel.
you DO NOT need more than x1 speeds, so any x1-x16 slot will do
x1 riser can go into x16 slot
(OPTIONAL) remote/wifi-based AC power outlet so that you can remotely turn
on/off the unit.
DEALING WITH: BIOS
bios updates, check for latest
1/3
above 4g decoding for multi card installs, otherwise your other cards may not get
detected
set PCI-e to "gen1". Miners DO NOT need to run x16 speeds - also NO SLI/xfire
disable ALL other BIOS features you dont need, eg. serial port, audio, etc.
NO overclocking of CPU or RAM, you want the most STABLE system possible
here.
WINDOWS
recommend creating a scheduled task (in task scheduler) to have pc auto reboot
once or more a day often(I do every 6 hours?)
install msi afterburner to adjust card internals (eg. 120% power)
(lazy mining) nicehash mining - add the program shortcut to the Windows auto
startup folder (for W8 and above, use start->run -> shell:startup for Windows 10)
as little software as possible, no antivirus, etc.
avoid mobo drivers, just use WINDOWS basic drivers for the system
avoid GPU accessory drivers (3d, physx, etc.) - install JUST the latest driver for the
GPU
lower the screen resolution
NO NEED TO ACTIVATE WINDOWS 10
no updates (needs to be disabled manually through Windows 10 "services" )
power savings - set to HIGH POWER MODE
vnc / teamviewer / chrome desktop for remote access
pulseway for optional remote email/text alerting to system offline or rebooting, etc.
set your VIRTUAL memory to 16GB or more.
OPERATION
Your cards should be (ideally) pushing 60-80c temps and your GPU fans around
50%. Running full fans at hot temps is a sure way to wear out the GPU (again, get an
external fan)
Network issues are often solved by rebooting
TROUBLESHOOTING
2/3
sometimes cards need to be 'initialized' by connecting a monitor
is your PSU up to the task?
any beep codes?
FOR TROUBLESHOOTING, PLEASE CONSULT THE LIST SECTION BY SECTION
For most of the issues you come across with a rig, the theme is to ISOLATE as much as
possible.
For eg. if your system shows 3 cards but not 4 - is the 4th card detected in BIOS? Can you
connect a HDMI cable to it and see if it displays the BIOS screen? It might be a BOARD
issue rather than a GPU issue. Swapping cables and/or physical location on the board
would server further to ISOLATE the problem.
3/3
