Need to know more about cold storage

[Rude Boy]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..
Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?
An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?
Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?
Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?
Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

[dznuts85]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..
Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?
An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?
Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?
Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?
Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Cold_storage

pls take time to read that.. hope it can answer your questions

[notlist3d]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..
Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?
An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?
Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?
Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?
Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

If you think as cold storage as offline storage it might help you.

It's offline on a usb stick or paper wallet in most cases.

[Amph]

cold storage are like hot storage, but they are disconnected from the internet , that's why they are called "cold" storage, they could be paper wallet or usb, or another desktop

you just put a backup and a new wallet there, for security purpose

[Muhammed Zakir]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..

In general, cold storage means to keep the a thing in a place for preservation. For Bitcoin, cold storage means the same. Simple definition is storing Bitcoins in a thing which is not connected to internet.

Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?

Cold storage will contain private keys. Yes, cold storage can also be hacked by malwares and keyloggers. However, for this to happen you need to access directly or indirectly using a USB or other disks.

This rule doesn't apply to every cold storage. For example, a paper wallet is a cold storage and obviously, it can't be hacked.

An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?

Like I said, online wallet will be connected to internet. So it can't be used as cold storage.

NB: If you mean wallets like Blockchain.info, Coinbase, Xapo etc... by "online wallets", I highly recommend you not to store your coins in online wallets unless you know what you are doing.

Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?

An offline computer or phone is enough for this. You can also use a paper wallet and use Mycelium to spend Bitcoins from it. If you have many Bitcoins to store, I highly recommend you to buy a Ledger or Trezor hardware wallet.

Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?

No, they are mixers. Mixers help you to secure your privacy and cold storage help you to secure your Bitcoins.

Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

No, it isn't. All transactions will be on-chain.

[Muhammed Zakir]

=snip=

you just put a backup of your wallet there, for security purpose

Maybe you didn't phrase this correctly. If yes, please correct it. This may confuse other users.

A back up in a place never will be a cold storage. What you store in cold storage must not be in a hot/online storage. If yes, then there isn't a need for cold storage because cold storage is protect your Bitcoins from hackings and all but if you store this in a hot/online wallet, private keys are already exposed to danger.

[Amph]

=snip=

you just put a backup of your wallet there, for security purpose

Maybe you didn't phrase this correctly. If yes, please correct it. This may confuse other users.

A back up in a place never will be a cold storage. What you store in cold storage must not be in a hot/online storage. If yes, then there isn't a need for cold storage because cold storage is protect your Bitcoins from hackings and all but if you store this in a hot/online wallet, private keys are already exposed to danger.

actually i store both, a backup and a different wallet in a cold storage, the first even if you use it in a wallet(low amount) you need a copy of it anyway, your hdd could have be damage one day or other accident, the second with more bitcoin, which it isn't shared with the hot wallet, as you said

[redsn0w]

=snip=

you just put a backup of your wallet there, for security purpose

Maybe you didn't phrase this correctly. If yes, please correct it. This may confuse other users.

A back up in a place never will be a cold storage. What you store in cold storage must not be in a hot/online storage. If yes, then there isn't a need for cold storage because cold storage is protect your Bitcoins from hackings and all but if you store this in a hot/online wallet, private keys are already exposed to danger.

actually i store both, a backup and a different wallet in a cold storage, the first even if you use it in a wallet(low amount) you need a copy of it anyway, your hdd could have be damage one day or other accident, the second with more bitcoin, which it isn't shared with the hot wallet, as you said

But a real cold wallet must be never connected on Internet and especially their copy/buckup should be never exposed outside from that "offline machine". The cold wallet question bring to my mind the Bter cone 'hack', they have said someone stolen 7'000 bitcoin from their cold storage but the unique way for hack and stole those Bitcoins was to be physically in front of that machine/device. Remember if you expose a cold wallet online also for 1 minute you can't continue to name it 'cold'

[Amph]

=snip=

you just put a backup of your wallet there, for security purpose

Maybe you didn't phrase this correctly. If yes, please correct it. This may confuse other users.

A back up in a place never will be a cold storage. What you store in cold storage must not be in a hot/online storage. If yes, then there isn't a need for cold storage because cold storage is protect your Bitcoins from hackings and all but if you store this in a hot/online wallet, private keys are already exposed to danger.

actually i store both, a backup and a different wallet in a cold storage, the first even if you use it in a wallet(low amount) you need a copy of it anyway, your hdd could have be damage one day or other accident, the second with more bitcoin, which it isn't shared with the hot wallet, as you said

But a real cold wallet must be never connected on Internet and especially their copy/buckup should be never exposed outside from that "offline machine". The cold wallet question bring to my mind the Bter cone 'hack', they have said someone stolen 7'000 bitcoin from their cold storage but the unique way for hack and stole those Bitcoins was to be physically in front of that machine/device. Remember if you expose a cold wallet online also for 1 minute you can't continue to name it 'cold'

well i'm must retrieve those bitcoin to spend them(i don't like electrum and company, i just use Core) they are still in a cold storage, but when i plug the usb they become "hot" i know, it does not bother me, because in my desktop i have a "trap wallet" which is the best antivirus, if they don't steal that wallet, then i know my machine is safe and i can plug the usb without worrying about anything

[Agestorzrxx]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..
Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?
An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?
Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?
Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?
Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

Cold storage means you should never let your private key to be online. If your private key connected to internet, you are not absolutely safe.

[notlist3d]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..
Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?
An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?
Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?
Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?
Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

Cold storage means you should never let your private key to be online. If your private key connected to internet, you are not absolutely safe.

This is not 100 percent true.  It means it is stored offline.   But you can use a computer that is not a web surfing computer to load it and fill up your hot wallet if needed.

You do try to make sure to use it as less as possible.   And keep offline as much as possible.

[ChuckBuck]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..
Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?
An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?
Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?
Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?
Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

Easiest way to break it down.

Hot = Online, always connected.  Could be web wallet or desktop wallet or mobile phone wallet

Cold = Offline, never connected.  Could be paper wallet, usb drive, or air gapped hard drive

[redsn0w]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..
Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?
An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?
Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?
Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?
Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

Cold storage means you should never let your private key to be online. If your private key connected to internet, you are not absolutely safe.

This is not 100 percent true.  It means it is stored offline.   But you can use a computer that is not a web surfing computer to load it and fill up your hot wallet if needed.

You do try to make sure to use it as less as possible.   And keep offline as much as possible.

What does it mean exactly  ? There are only two option : online & offline. You can't keep it offline as much possible, for keep offline a machine/device you should follow these rules:

- Don't connect to an internet connection,
- Disable the "network card",
- Keep the device in a secure place.

[dothebeats]

Hello!
Actually what is a cold storage (in bitcoins)?
I didn't get it..
Cold storage doesn't have private keys or what? If it have a private key then cold storage can also be hacked by some malware, keyloggers, etc., right?
An online wallet can be used as a cold storage?
Or
i should have any special equipments for cold storage?
Cold storage is something like bit mixer/laundry?
Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

There already exists numerous answers to your questions. For you to not get confused, just keep in mind the terms offline and online. A hot wallet is a wallet that is always connected to the internet. The purpose of having a hot wallet is to move funds from one place to another quickly. Most of the time, these hot wallets contain a very little amount of bitcoins because it is more prone to hacking than the offline wallets. On the other hand, offline wallets, or "cold storage" are wallets that aren't connected to the internet and most of the time contains big amounts of bitcoins.

[tyz]

The best cold storage is to print your private keys on a paper (don't mention on it that it is Bitcoin-related), copy it several times and store these papers on several locations. To be safe, make a USB copy additionally. Finally, delete the private keys from your laptop, if you use it to get into the internet

[redsn0w]

The best cold storage is to print your private keys on a paper (don't mention on it that it is Bitcoin-related), copy it several times and store these papers on several locations. To be safe, make a USB copy additionally. Finally, delete the private keys from your laptop, if you use it to get into the internet

It seems a lot of you don't understand that a cold wallet/storage private key should never be used or exposed online. If it is exposed online than it loss the cold property and it "is not more secure". For generate a real cold address you should choose a "secure" machine with windows (maybe better linux) and "use" bitAddress or client/wallet (downloaded from another machine, and transferred through USB or other storage supports) to generate your offline address. The final thing to do is send your bitcoin to that address and protect your laptop with several "copy" of your private key (into a sheet of paper, cd, floppy, sd,etc...); a real private key of a "cold" wallet address should never be exposed online.

[Muhammed Zakir]

The best cold storage is to print your private keys on a paper (don't mention on it that it is Bitcoin-related), copy it several times and store these papers on several locations. To be safe, make a USB copy additionally. Finally, delete the private keys from your laptop, if you use it to get into the internet

Paper wallets aren't good as cold storage is because you will have to expose the private key to a hot wallet when sending Bitcoins. You can also use a PC which is not and never will be connected to internet. But if there is already 2 PC/mobiles, I don't see the reason for using a paper wallet.

 However, if you are HODLing Bitcoins for a long time, paper wallet is good if you take enough precautions for preventing it from getting damaged.

If you are using a paper wallet, Mycelium is recommended for spending Bitcoins from it.

Edit:

=snip=
Finally, delete the private keys from your laptop, if you use it to get into the internet

It seems a lot of you don't understand that a cold wallet/storage private key should never be used or exposed online. If it is exposed online than it loss the cold property and it "is not more secure". For generate a real cold address you should choose a "secure" machine with windows (maybe better linux) and "use" bitAddress or client/wallet (downloaded from another machine, and transferred through USB or other storage supports) to generate your offline address. The final thing to do is send your bitcoin to that address and protect your laptop with several "copy" of your private key (into a sheet of paper, cd, floppy, sd,etc...); a real private key of a "cold" wallet address should never be exposed online.

He probably meant that if you are using that computer for using internet, delete private keys. But deleting isn't enough as you can recover deleted files too.

To your post: A live usb never connected to internet will be enough if you know how to keep it from physical/internal damages.

[BitcoinNewbie15]

This thread helps out a lot! I also wondered exactly what cold storage was. This thread helped me learn a lot. I may put some BTC in cold storage

[coinableS]

The best cold storage is to print your private keys on a paper (don't mention on it that it is Bitcoin-related), copy it several times and store these papers on several locations. To be safe, make a USB copy additionally. Finally, delete the private keys from your laptop, if you use it to get into the internet

It seems a lot of you don't understand that a cold wallet/storage private key should never be used or exposed online. If it is exposed online than it loss the cold property and it "is not more secure". For generate a real cold address you should choose a "secure" machine with windows (maybe better linux) and "use" bitAddress or client/wallet (downloaded from another machine, and transferred through USB or other storage supports) to generate your offline address. The final thing to do is send your bitcoin to that address and protect your laptop with several "copy" of your private key (into a sheet of paper, cd, floppy, sd,etc...); a real private key of a "cold" wallet address should never be exposed online.

Exactly. I'm surprised how many people think they have "cold storage" just because it isn't readily connected to the internet.

Never let your private key touch an internet connected machine. If you spend from your cold wallet, it's no longer cold and you should move your remaining coins to a new cold address. Personally, I generate my cold addresses with dice, and then convert that base 6 key offline so I can get the public address. The private key is never saved or printed or connected to the internet, I have my private key written in my 99 dice rolls.

[Rude Boy]

Hello!
Thanks all for your answers and another question was arose

The best cold storage is to print your private keys on a paper (don't mention on it that it is Bitcoin-related), copy it several times and store these papers on several locations. To be safe, make a USB copy additionally. Finally, delete the private keys from your laptop, if you use it to get into the internet

It seems a lot of you don't understand that a cold wallet/storage private key should never be used or exposed online . If it is exposed online than it loss the cold property and it "is not more secure". For generate a real cold address you should choose a "secure" machine with windows (maybe better linux) and "use" bitAddress or client/wallet (downloaded from another machine, and transferred through USB or other storage supports) to generate your offline address. The final thing to do is send your bitcoin to that address and protect your laptop with several "copy" of your private key (into a sheet of paper, cd, floppy, sd,etc...); a real private key of a "cold" wallet address should never be exposed online.

Exactly. I'm surprised how many people think they have "cold storage" just because it isn't readily connected to the internet.

Never let your private key touch an internet connected machine. If you spend from your cold wallet, it's no longer cold and you should move your remaining coins to a new cold address. Personally, I generate my cold addresses with dice, and then convert that base 6 key offline so I can get the public address. The private key is never saved or printed or connected to the internet, I have my private key written in my 99 dice rolls.

If a wallet which is never connected to internet, then how that offline wallet contains BTC?

Cold storage transactions are off blockchain?

~Rude Boy

No, it isn't. All transactions will be on-chain.

See above, How to transfer BTC to an offline wallet which is never connected to internet (here don't bother about hard wallets). If yes, then this transaction is off-chain transaction right?

~Rude Boy