Bitcoin Forum

Hi,

I am new to bitcoin core.  I run bitcoin core about 1 week to download the blocks data.  However, it just downloads about 60% of blocks data and requires an estimated 6 weeks to finish.  How can I accelerate the procedure?  Can I download the blocks directly?

Thanks.

 

Before there is a link to download the whole latest blockchain blocks but right now they stop providing it directly to download.

If you want to speed up or accelerate the syncing process you will need to add more ram memory it will help to speed up syncing.

Another way to speed up is by adding this code below in your bitcoin.conf
Change and increase the value of dbcache and maxmempool by 50 in increment. Note don't push too much it can freeze your PC so check your task manager and monitor the ram memory.

Also  use a large ssd 1tb should be good .

Once it fully loads you won't take as much time. Since you won't be loading  more then 5% of the chain.

I have a 2tb  ssd with about 250gb for the blockchain
750gb for other files
and 1 tb empty
I have 8gb ram
a 2014 i5 intel cpu
and it is loaded up to date as of today I will shut it down and up load it in a month

but it will take under and hour to do it.

In your case  most likley you have no ssd not much ram etc.

You will need to bit the bullet at least one time.  To get it fully loaded it  may be more then  a week with a slow hdd and 4gb ram.

I do not think 6 weeks but maybe you have a poor internet speed.

What you are doing does nothing as it resets each time you stop like you are doing.


https://i.imgur.com/9Wo7C8m.png

To be more concrete, the Bitcoin bootstrap torrent used to save time, but since 0.10.0 the direct download via Bitcoin Core is actually faster [1].

[1] https://bitcoin.org/bin/block-chain/README.txt


@OP: If you're not planning on running a full node consider using a SPV wallet such as Electrum ( https://electrum.org/ ) instead. That way you can use Bitcoin without having to download the whole blockchain.

If you mean to download it from a "trusted" source or from a full node you trust instead of downloading it from the internet, then I think the answer is yes.
Remember to create a backup copy of the wallet.dat file, and modify some settings (to suit the characteristics of your device..)
you will find it here ---> %AppData%\Bitcoin

I really don’t get the need to download blocks from a “trusted” counterpart, this is something I would never do, as bitcoin is by design a trustless environment.
Risks are limited, as downloading a “corrupted” blockchain would be immediately rejected by your node itself, or, in any way, your node wouldn’t be able to connect to the bitcoin network.

If you really want to proceed down this path, I would recommend downloading from:

https://blockchair.com/dumps#node

I think this is at least a well known source, and I think they wouldn’t risk their reputation doing something stupid.

I would advise you to download the blockchain via bitcoin core no matter how long it takes and create backups on some other harddisk and update them from time to time.

By doing this not just you won't have any questions left in your mind regarding to the legitimacy of your data source, you'll always have a backup ready for some other potential project.

Maybe you'll want to try LN on your little raspberry pie one day who knows...

Unless something has changed in recent versions, the risk of downloading a pre-verified blockchain can be quite substantial. With the chainstate being built, it is possible for the attacker to manipulate the client to display the wrong information or to get you to a wrong fork. The checks that Bitcoin Core does during start up only validates the recent blocks for corruption and doesn't check through the whole blockchain.

You are right.
I assumed a -reindex command after downloading the blockchain.
Also, seeing your nodes on a website like https://bitnodes.earn.com might help you defend against attackers putting you on a different chain/fork.
You are correct, always better to specifiy all the assumptions made.