One remark: the database isn't encrypted... Your wallet file is encrypted, and you can store the blockchain on an encrypted partition, but the ledger isn't encrypted: anybody who has access to the blocks can read them without decrypting them first. And if you don't have access to the ledger, you can install a full node and the other nodes will just send you all data you need.

100% correct, but i assumed the OP didn't yet run bitcoind. But you are correct, i should have asked if he did already.
@OP: if you ran bitcoind, you have to follow seoincorporation's advice aswell (unless you ran bitcoind and sent funds to this wallet), if you did not run bitcoind my initial advice was sufficient.

EDIT: if you ran bitcoind, it never hurts to copy your wallet.dat BEFORE deleting ~/.bitcoin, it's always a good idear to keep any wallet you ever created in your archive... You never know if you passed along an address generated by a wallet.

Last night i started thinking about this topic, and i realized we didn't start from the beginning and jumped right into trying to fix the problem you were posting.

The initial question in this topic should have been: "what are you trying to do?".
Why do you need to mine a block, are you going to setup a solo mining operation or do you just want to test out your setup on the testnet, or maybe your goal is something else?

If it's the first case (you wanting to solo mine), do realize this is a difficult setup... I've set up solo mining operations on the testnet in the past, and it's quite hard to get things up and running, and keep them running over a longer time. There are solo mining pools that ask a very moderate mining fee, it might be a good first step to use them instead. Oh yeah, you'll need a recent ASIC, basic knowledge and dirt cheap electricity to pull this off...

If it's the second case (you wanting to test your setup), you don't need to mine a block, you can just claim some tBTC from a couple tBTC faucets...

If your goal is something else, i wonder if you'd be willing to share said goal...

It's just that in numerous occasions, i've seen people coming to the forum asking a bunch of questions, but when they finally say what they want to accomplish, we immediately tell him he/she was taking the completely "wrong" approach to solving the problem in the first place.

correct, and IIRC, the block reward is really low nowadays aswell...

But, just FYI, you could follow a tutorial like this one:
https://number1.co.za/running-a-mainnet-and-testnet-on-the-same-bitcoin-node/
to run 2 nodes under the same linux account.

You could also add a new user and run your testnet node under this second user... That's how i do it... 2 users each running a full node: one user running a node on the main net, the other on the testnet.

But still, yeah, you'll need an ASIC to mine on the testnet...

If you want tBTC, you can use a tBTC faucet.

Then the initial question remains: ARE you running a node on the testnet? You cannot run a node on the main net, and just expect bitcoin-cli -testnet to work...

could you execute

At least, i'm assuming you're working on linux, right? I have no idear how to check if you're listening on a port on windows...
EDIT: you're talking about Raspiblitz, that's linux

He's probably talking about your trustlist instead of negative feedback on his trustpage:
https://loyce.club/trust/2020-08-22_Sat_05.07h/897509.html

But when he says he has contacted you before, but you have no record of such a PM might be an indication of being an alt... Whether or not it's sufficient proof: i have no idear...

bitcoin-cli need options... For example
bitcoin-cli by itself does nothing... you need to tell it what you want to do

output:


But, if you only have one instance running, and you run bitcoin-cli as the same user you're running bitcoind, you shouldn't need the -testnet option. You just add
"testnet=1" to "~/.bitcoin/bitcoin.conf", start your node, and then use bitcoin-cli without the "-testnet" option.
You ARE running a testnet node, right? You can't run your node on the main net, and magically use the bitcoin-cli on the testnet...

I'm not a mac user myself, but i assume it's exactly the same as on other *nix systems.
First make sure you're in the correct folder:

The output should show the bitcoin folder you cloned, verify the timestamp!

IF you see the folder listed AND it's timestamp corresponds to the time where you cloned bitcoin AND you're completely sure you want to delete the folder, execute:

Now, a word to the wise: it's imperative you add the folder you want to delete at the end of this command (in this case bitcoin/)... rm is extremely powerfull, especially when executed as root...

I have heard this term before, always in the context Potato Chips already described: it's a popular (old) scam method given a new name to lure in new victims.

No and no.
I don't see any reason to do so, in neither case. If i expect payment from somebody, i'll open my wallet to see if i received said payment. If i were to get an alert of an incoming transaction to my wallet, i'll see said transaction the next time i open my wallet anyways. If i were to see an unauthorized outgoing transaction, it's to late anyways.

And as for whales: i don't care about those movements...

I'm going to try my luck aswell... 

bc1ql5shq8aevnuttxuxfsawxzn5ml5s5wvfvqnluj

@PrimeNumber7: true... But in my particular usecase, i would care less that the government knows how much funds i hold (i'm not saying i wouldn't care at all, it's just not my primary objective to hide my funds from the government). My biggest concern is criminals (and beggars). I'm not doing anything illegal, best case scenario the mixer is run by an honest company and nobody knows how much funds i hold, if it's run by a 3 letter agency i would be dissapointed, but i'm pretty sure a 3 letter agency will not come to my front door with a shotgun or a crowbar to threaten my family and steal my funds.

But once again, that's my usecase... It doesn't have to map with the usecase of other users.

If they'd print such a table, they'd be lying.
Since you keep on giving dollar values, i'll break it down in dollar values. Be advised that the chipsizes in BTC are not equal to the chipsizes in FIAT, so a $5 bill does not match an actual chipsize.

This is a service that has $5, $10, $50 and $100 bills. They do not deal in metal change coins. If you mix $6, they'll give you a $5 bill and you have donated $1 (since they don't have one dollar bills). If you would have send $15, you would have gotten a $5 and a $10 bill back, and you would have payed no fee.

This is clearly explained on multiple spots on chipmixer's site.

What i see is that you have accused every user of every mixer to be a criminal, but you failed to provide proof.
You have also accused chipmixer of scamming users that mix huge amounts without providing proof.

Now go ahead and make this all about chipmixer campaign users that are protecting chipmixer without providing any evidence for your accusations.

I use chipmixer because i think it's nobody's business to know how much funds i hold and where i hold them. This protects my family from a $5 wrench attack.
You called me a criminal, please provide proof that i did anything illegal in my current jurisdiction.

You're linking to "chipmixer", not "cheapmixer". Why would you care how much money they make? They run a business, they're providing a service, kudos for them if they make some money from their business setup...

Sure i'm in their sigcampaign, which doesn't make me completely impartial... But still, i can honestly say i'd give the exact same response if i wasn't affiliated with them in any way.

Nobody knows what it'll do for the price...

If it's just the US government trying to clamp down on crypto users again and again by doing stuff like this, i doubt it'll be good for the price tough.

Well, you're in the bitcoin subforum, so i'll give you a bitcoin answer: you can not mine with a graphics card anymore... Sure, in theory you can, but the hashrate is SOOOOOOO low compared to the difficulty, odds are you won't be able to solve a single share in a reasonable timeframe (if you're pool mining).

right here, on this forum  

But kidding aside, it's up to you... Why are you interested in bitcoin? The technical aspects, the fact that it's a method of sending and receiving funds, or are you looking to invest?

If it's the technical aspects, i'd probably tell you to read the whitepaper, or one of the many technical books... And if you have questions afterwards, you can come to this forum to ask them.

If you're not interested in the technical aspects, i'd still urge you to watch a couple introductory movies, afterwards you can download a (testnet) wallet, exchange some funds and start right away...

Just make sure that you always remember that crypto transactions are irreversible, and there are many scammers (there are scams outside of the crypto community aswell, but since crypto is relatively new, the scammers seem to get away with more than in an offline environment). The fact that crypto is irreversible and you don't need to meet up IRL to send funds makes the scammers even more bold... If you're suspecting something is fishy, it never hurts to come to this forum and ask advice before sending money.