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<p class="kicker">FAQ</p>
<h1>Common questions</h1>
<p>Why this is still Bitcoin, why it is not BIP-110, what happened on August 8, and what to do about nodes, coins, Lightning, and exchanges.</p>
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<article class="wrap prose">
<ul class="faq-index">
<li><a href="#q-bip110">Is this hardfork the same as BIP-110?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q1">Why isn't this an altcoin?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q2">Why change SHA256d?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q3">What exactly happened on August 8?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q4">Were the miners attacking Bitcoin or simply rejecting BIP-110?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q5">What does “fire the miners” mean?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q6">Who mines this chain?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q7">Does changing PoW affect my coins or private keys?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q8">What happens if I stay on Core?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q9">What happens to Lightning?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q10">What should exchanges do?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q11">Can I claim coins on both chains?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q-sighash">What is SIGHASH_UNIFIED?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q12">Why BLAKE2b?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q13">Is the BLAKE2b change temporary too?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q-expiry">When do the data limits expire?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q14">What if the BLAKE2b chain initially has very little mining power?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q15">Do hardware wallets need updates?</a></li>
<li><a href="#q16">I'm pruned; exactly when do I need to resync?</a></li>
</ul>
<section class="faq-item" id="q-bip110">
<h2>Is this hardfork the same as BIP-110?</h2>
<p>No. BIP-110, in alignment with the vast majority of node policy, attempted to reject use of the network for arbitrary data storage while leaving ordinary payments alone. That was a softfork: a tighter rule that old software can still follow, and it is not this hardfork. This hardfork was a denial of abuse of the Bitcoin network, and changed proof of work from SHA256d to BLAKE2b, a different algorithm, at height 961640 (30 August 2026). Temporary limits on arbitrary data storage began at that height with BLAKE2b, not on August 8, and then expire on their own. They are not BIP-110's old miner-vote schedule.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q1">
<h2>Why isn't this an altcoin?</h2>
<p>Bitcoin is the ledger your node accepts: the same history, coins, and keys through the fork. An altcoin starts a new book. This release continues the existing book and changes how the next pages are proven. Running a node is how anyone can participate and verify for themselves. The algorithm changed because large miners kept producing blocks that used transactions most nodes would not relay as a matter of policy, leaving every node operator on that chain to store arbitrary data at their own expense and, most importantly, risk.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q2">
<h2>Why change SHA256d?</h2>
<p>SHA256d mining power blocked a cap on arbitrary data storage. Firms that mine at scale profit when they sell block space for that use. After August 8, 2026, nodes enforcing BIP-110 stopped accepting blocks that did not support it, while most SHA256d miners kept producing those blocks, so the money-only rules could not activate. Anyone can still verify that chain, but every node operator who follows it must store that data at their own expense and, most importantly, risk. Proof of work later changed from SHA256d to BLAKE2b, a different algorithm, so today's SHA256d miners cannot add blocks here. The first BLAKE2b block is 961640 (30 August 2026). Bitcoin with the BLAKE2b algorithm keeps Bitcoin as money only.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q3">
<h2>What exactly happened on August 8?</h2>
<p>BIP-110 was scheduled as a user-activated softfork in 2026. On August 8, nodes enforcing it stopped accepting blocks that did not support it, while most SHA256d mining power, including large public-company style pools, kept producing those blocks, so the money-only rules could not activate. People who wanted Bitcoin as money only were left without enough work to produce blocks. The change to the BLAKE2b algorithm came later, as a way out of that bind, and not as a rename of BIP-110.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q4">
<h2>Were the miners attacking Bitcoin or simply rejecting BIP-110?</h2>
<p>They declined BIP-110 and kept producing blocks that used transactions most nodes would not relay as a matter of policy. Arbitrary data storage is a product those miners can sell. After August 8, nodes enforcing the softfork also stopped accepting blocks that did not support it, so the money-only rules could not activate. That was mining power against the policy most nodes were already running, and every node operator on that chain must store that data at their own expense and, most importantly, risk. Changing the proof-of-work algorithm is the answer to that veto.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q5">
<h2>What does “fire the miners” mean?</h2>
<p>People tried to keep Bitcoin as money only. The mining power that said no also stopped the money-only rules from activating. A new proof-of-work algorithm means those machines cannot make valid blocks here. They lose the ability to impose arbitrary data storage on every node operator.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q6">
<h2>Who mines this chain?</h2>
<p>Purpose-built BLAKE2b machines are supported from the first block, including Antminer A3 and other Sia-style BLAKE2b hashers such as the Goldshell SC5 Pro and SC Lite. Today's SHA256d miners are not the mining market for this chain. Miners who want to choose their own transactions, including when they share rewards with a pool, should run <a href="/mining">Bitcoin Knots 29.4.1</a> and the <a href="https://github.com/CONVOYMining/datum_gateway" rel="noopener">DATUM Gateway</a> from CONVOY, the BLAKE2b and header-v2 fork. See <a href="/miners">miners and DATUM</a>.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q7">
<h2>Does changing PoW affect my coins or private keys?</h2>
<p>No. Your addresses, keys, and coins stay the same. You did not need to move bitcoin for the fork. Sending still uses the same signatures. What changed is the proof-of-work algorithm a new block must satisfy.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q8">
<h2>What happens if I stay on Core?</h2>
<p>Bitcoin Core, and older <a href="https://bitcoinknots.org/" rel="noopener">Bitcoin Knots</a>, still use the legacy SHA256d algorithm. After the BIP-110 softfork they follow a different blockchain. If you want this chain, you need Knots 29.4.1. Download it from <a href="https://bitcoinknots.org/?29.4.1.20260508?twitter" rel="noopener">bitcoinknots.org</a>. Other options are on the <a href="/mining">mainnet solo mining guide</a>. Source is at <a href="https://github.com/bitcoinknots/bitcoin" rel="noopener">github.com/bitcoinknots/bitcoin</a>.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q9">
<h2>What happens to Lightning?</h2>
<p>Lightning follows the chain your node and your counterparties follow. Channels opened before the fork still exist on the BLAKE2b chain, but both sides need software that understands the new rules, and both must be on the same chain. Software that stayed on SHA256d is on a different ledger. If a counterparty is not on this chain, close or settle that channel.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q10">
<h2>What should exchanges do?</h2>
<p>Run this release. If deposits and withdrawals are still open, halt them until your node is on the intended chain, and say which chain you credit. Treat the SHA256d chain as a separate asset if you list it at all. A spend of pre-fork coins can be copied onto the other chain if it uses an ordinary signature. An opted-in <code>SIGHASH_UNIFIED</code> spend does not copy that way. Holders who intend to sell, gift, or spend the fake “bitcoins” on that altcoin should first send their bitcoins to themselves with that format on this chain and wait for the payment to confirm. See <a href="#q-sighash">What is SIGHASH_UNIFIED?</a></p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q11">
<h2>Can I claim coins on both chains?</h2>
<p>If you had coins before the fork, those coins exist on both chains if both keep going. You do not have to move them to keep them here. New coins created after the fork are separate. A spend of the same coins can be copied onto the other chain if it is signed the ordinary way. Use the opt-in <code>SIGHASH_UNIFIED</code> format if you need that spend not to copy. If you intend to spend the SHA256d-chain coins, see <a href="#q-sighash">What is SIGHASH_UNIFIED?</a></p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q-sighash">
<h2>What is SIGHASH_UNIFIED?</h2>
<p><code>SIGHASH_UNIFIED</code> is an opt-in signature hash (<a href="https://github.com/bitcoinknots/bitcoin/pull/357" rel="noopener">Knots PR 357</a>). One message covers bare, P2SH, segwit v0, and taproot. For inputs that set the bit it removes two long-standing defects: CVE-2013-2292 (legacy quadratic hashing) and CVE-2020-14199 (the BIP143 / segwit v0 fee trick). BIP341 already had both fixes. This gives the older input types the same treatment.</p>
<p>Because that message is not any of the three hashes in use today, an opted-in signature also will not verify on a chain that does not implement it. That replay protection is incidental to the new message, one-way, and per signature. A payment signed the old way can still be copied. Ordinary signatures stay valid. You do not need this format just to keep coins on this chain.</p>
<p>If you intend to sell, gift, or spend the fake “bitcoins” on the SHA256d altcoin launched by former miners, first confirm your wallet supports <code>SIGHASH_UNIFIED</code>, then send your bitcoins to yourself with that format on this chain. Wait for that payment to confirm before you spend on the other chain. Wallets that spend on both chains should use this format.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q12">
<h2>Why BLAKE2b?</h2>
<p>This hardfork changed proof of work from SHA256d to BLAKE2b, a different algorithm, so today's SHA256d miners cannot take this chain by default. Purpose-built BLAKE2b machines are supported from the first block. That keeps the old machines from imposing use of the network for arbitrary data storage.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q13">
<h2>Is the BLAKE2b change temporary too?</h2>
<p>No. This matters. The BLAKE2b algorithm is permanent. Temporary limits on arbitrary data storage began at height 961640 with BLAKE2b, not on August 8, and then end on their own. Continuing those limits after that date is a later choice for node operators. BIP-110 itself was a softfork; it was never this hardfork.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q-expiry">
<h2>When do the data limits expire?</h2>
<p>Temporary limits on arbitrary data storage began when BLAKE2b began, and they last until 1 September 2027, 00:00 UTC. They are not a leftover BIP-110 miner-vote schedule. The technical clock is the previous block's median time past. That clock only moves forward, so the next block is either still inside the window or past it. The 800,000-weight cap (about 300 kB serialized) ends with that window. During the window, coins created before the fork can still be spent under the old script rules. Continuing those limits after that date is a later choice for node operators. The BLAKE2b algorithm remains.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q14">
<h2>What if the BLAKE2b chain initially has very little mining power?</h2>
<p>Purpose-built BLAKE2b machines are supported from the first block. If hashpower is still lower than the old SHA256d network, difficulty will fall to match. Staying on the legacy SHA256d algorithm left the old pools able to keep a chain built from transactions most nodes would not relay, so every node operator on that chain would keep storing arbitrary data at their own expense and, most importantly, risk. Starting BLAKE2b with less hashpower is preferable to leaving that veto in place.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q15">
<h2>Do hardware wallets need updates?</h2>
<p>Private keys do not change, and ordinary payment signing still works. You do not need a new signature format just to keep coins on this chain. If the holder intends to sell, gift, or spend the fake “bitcoins” on the SHA256d altcoin launched by former miners, the device should support the opt-in <code>SIGHASH_UNIFIED</code> format so they can send bitcoins to themselves on this chain first. The format is an opt-in sighash (<a href="https://github.com/bitcoinknots/bitcoin/pull/357" rel="noopener">PR 357</a>). Replay protection is only for signatures that set the bit. Firmware needs an update if the device checks proof of work, block headers, or which chain it is on. Watch-only checking against the BLAKE2b chain needs compatible software. Ask your vendor.</p>
</section>
<section class="faq-item" id="q16">
<h2>I'm pruned; exactly when do I need to resync?</h2>
<p>If you already upgraded, you do not need to resync. If you are switching now and your node still has the blocks needed to walk back to the fork, this release does that and then downloads the BLAKE2b chain. If you already deleted those blocks to save space, or the node followed invalid blocks after a late upgrade, rebuild the node and download the chain again. This release may ask at startup whether that resync is required. A BLAKE2b block that breaks the data or size rules is a <code>-reindex</code> job, not that automatic walk-back.</p>
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