Metered connection - how much data?

[bitcoinrocks]

How much data does Bitcoin-qt download over time once it has already downloaded the entire blockchain?  I'm on a metered connection so I need to keep an eye on this.

[malevolent]

Not sure about the download (shouldn't be much) but if you accept incoming connections / have ports forwarded if you're connecting through NAT, you may see a lot of upload from your side.

[Remember remember the 5th of November]

It used to use less bandwidth, but obviously now that it has gained more attention, there are more transactions being relayed from and to and it may end up using quite a lot over time.

[bitcoinrocks]

So bitcoin-qt takes part in the BTC network in some way when it's online?  I thought it was just a wallet.  Does electrum do this too?  Are there any BTC apps that are just a wallet?

[farlack]

So bitcoin-qt takes part in the BTC network in some way when it's online?  I thought it was just a wallet.  Does electrum do this too?  Are there any BTC apps that are just a wallet?

Pretty sure the bottom right shows connections.

[r3wt]

sadly, 99 percent of people still don't understand how the internet works

[bitcoinrocks]

sadly, 99 percent of people still don't understand how the internet works

Is this supposed to be me?  It's BTC I don't understand.  Once the client has established the wallet's balance, what data does it upload/download?

[bitcoinrocks]

I've switched to electrum which also doesn't need the full blockchain but I've noticed it still transfers data regularly.  Does anyone know if there's a way to get a handle on the amount of data transferred?  Stop it, limit it, or at least monitor it so I can see how much is being transferred overall?

[FiatKiller]

How about viewing your internet connection for bytes sent & received?

[saddambitcoin]

a few months ago i was uploading like crazy, like 5 GB if i just left the client open for a few hours.  today i had my client running for most of the day and i'm up to 2 GB upload.  less new users downloading the blockchain i guess.

[saddambitcoin]

So bitcoin-qt takes part in the BTC network in some way when it's online?  I thought it was just a wallet.  Does electrum do this too?  Are there any BTC apps that are just a wallet?

bitcoin-qt is a wallet.  it also runs a full node, meaning it hosts an entire copy of the blockchain and relays transactions. this supports the network and all that.

electrum is a lightweight client meaning you do not have to download the entire blockchain.

if you just want to have a wallet go to bitaddress.org and print one out, send your BTC there and don't worry about your bandwidth usage.

[bitcoinrocks]

If electrum doesn't download the blockchain, what data is it constantly transferring?

[grue]

If electrum doesn't download the blockchain, what data is it constantly transferring?

it's still getting transaction data from servers. That's why it knows when you received a transaction.