MacMetal Miner

Native Metal GPU Bitcoin Solo Miner for Apple Silicon Macs - 350+ MH/s

Overview

MacMetal Miner is a high-performance Bitcoin mining application that leverages Apple's Metal GPU framework to achieve maximum hashrate on Apple Silicon Macs. The CLI miner includes a built-in test suite that mathematically proves correct SHA256d computation using real Bitcoin block data.

Features

• Metal GPU Acceleration - Full Apple Silicon GPU utilization
• 350+ MH/s on M3 Pro (varies by chip)
• Verified Correct - Built-in test mode proves SHA256d accuracy
• Solo Mining - Mine directly to your wallet
• Stratum Protocol - Compatible with any Stratum v1 pool
• Ayedex Pool - Included solo mining pool server

Verified Working

The miner includes a --test flag that proves correctness using Bitcoin Block #125552:

[TEST 2] GPU Mining - Find Known Nonce
   → Nonce: 0x9546a142 (2504433986) - 67 bits
   [PASS] ✓ GPU found correct nonce!
   Verified hash: 00000000000000001e8d6829a8a21adc5d38d0a473b144b6765798e61f98bd1d

   ╔═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
   ║  ✅ ALL TESTS PASSED - GPU MINER VERIFIED WORKING                 ║
   ╚═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

Quick Start

Build

./build.sh

Or manually:

swiftc -O -o MacMetalCLI main.swift -framework Metal -framework CoreGraphics

Verify Installation

./MacMetalCLI --test

Run (Connect to Pool)

./MacMetalCLI <bitcoin_address> --pool <host:port>

Usage Examples

# Run verification tests
./MacMetalCLI --test

# Connect to public pool
./MacMetalCLI bc1qYourAddress --pool public-pool.io:21496

# Connect to local Ayedex Pool
./MacMetalCLI bc1qYourAddress --pool 127.0.0.1:3333

# With custom worker name
./MacMetalCLI bc1qYourAddress --pool solo.ckpool.org:3333 --worker myrig

Solo Mining with Ayedex Pool

For true solo mining with zero fees, use the included Ayedex Pool server.

1. Configure Bitcoin Core

Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Bitcoin/bitcoin.conf:

# RPC Settings
rpcuser=ayedex
rpcpassword=YourSecurePassword
rpcallowip=127.0.0.1
rpcbind=127.0.0.1
server=1

# Optional: Reduce memory usage
dbcache=450
maxmempool=300

Restart Bitcoin Core after changes.

2. Build and Run the Pool

cd AyedexPool
./build.sh
./AyedexPool bc1qYourAddress \
    --rpc-user ayedex \
    --rpc-pass 'YourSecurePassword' \
    --start-diff 0.001

3. Connect the Miner

./MacMetalCLI bc1qYourAddress --pool 127.0.0.1:3333

Architecture

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                     MacMetal CLI Miner v2.1                              │
│  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │  Metal Compute Shader                                              │  │
│  │  ├── SHA256d (double SHA256) implementation                        │  │
│  │  ├── 16 million hashes per GPU batch                               │  │
│  │  └── Parallel nonce testing across GPU cores                       │  │
│  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
│  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │  Stratum v1 Client                                                 │  │
│  │  ├── mining.subscribe / mining.authorize                           │  │
│  │  ├── mining.notify (job reception)                                 │  │
│  │  └── mining.submit (share submission)                              │  │
│  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                                    │
                                    ▼ Stratum Protocol (TCP)
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                  Ayedex Pool (Nerd Edition) v1.1                         │
│  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │  Stratum Server (:3333)                                            │  │
│  │  ├── Variable difficulty (vardiff)                                 │  │
│  │  ├── Multiple worker support                                       │  │
│  │  └── Real-time statistics                                          │  │
│  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
│  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │  Bitcoin Core RPC Client                                           │  │
│  │  ├── getblocktemplate (fetch new work)                             │  │
│  │  └── submitblock (broadcast found blocks)                          │  │
│  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                                    │
                                    ▼ JSON-RPC
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                         Bitcoin Core                                     │
│                    └── Mainnet (fully synced)                            │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Performance

Chip	Expected Hashrate
M1	~200-250 MH/s
M1 Pro	~280-300 MH/s
M1 Max	~350-400 MH/s
M2	~220-280 MH/s
M2 Pro	~300-330 MH/s
M2 Max	~380-420 MH/s
M3	~250-300 MH/s
M3 Pro	~320-360 MH/s
M3 Max	~400-450 MH/s

Actual performance varies based on thermal conditions and system load.

Requirements

• macOS 12.0+ (Monterey or later)
• Apple Silicon Mac (M1/M2/M3 series)
• Xcode Command Line Tools (xcode-select --install)
• Bitcoin Core (for solo mining with Ayedex Pool)

Test Mode Details

The --test flag runs three verification tests:

Test 1: CPU SHA256d Verification

Computes the hash of Bitcoin Block #125552 using CPU and verifies against the known hash.

Test 2: GPU Mining Verification

Uses the GPU to search for the winning nonce of Block #125552. Finding the exact nonce proves the GPU SHA256d implementation is mathematically correct.

Test 3: Hashrate Benchmark

Runs three batches of 16 million hashes each to measure GPU performance.

File Structure

MacMetal-Miner/
├── main.swift              # CLI Miner source code
├── build.sh                # Build script
├── README.md               # This file
├── technical.md            # Technical documentation
├── LICENSE                 # Source Available License
└── AyedexPool/
    ├── AyedexPool.swift    # Pool server source code
    ├── build.sh            # Pool build script
    └── README.md           # Pool documentation

Troubleshooting

"No Metal device found"

Your Mac doesn't have a compatible GPU. Apple Silicon is required.

"Connect failed"

• Ensure the pool is running and accessible
• Check firewall settings
• Verify the host:port is correct

Low hashrate

• Close other GPU-intensive applications
• Ensure Mac is plugged in (not on battery)
• Check Activity Monitor for thermal throttling

Shares rejected

• Verify your Bitcoin address is correct
• Check pool difficulty settings
• Ensure system clock is synchronized

License

Source Available License - (c) 2025 David Otero / Distributed Ledger Technologies

This software is provided for inspection and personal use only. See LICENSE for full terms.

Commercial use: Purchase GUI version

Contact: david@knexmail.com

Disclaimer

Solo Bitcoin mining with consumer hardware is extremely unlikely to find a block due to the enormous network difficulty. At current difficulty (~148T), a single Mac mining at 350 MH/s has approximately a 1 in 13 trillion chance of finding a block per day. This software is provided for educational, entertainment, and lottery-like purposes. Mine responsibly.

Links

• Website: www.distributedledgertechnologies.com
• GUI Version: Purchase on Gumroad
• Support: david@knexmail.com