can I use a work computer?

[andydabeast]

is it ok for me to use a work computer to cpu mine in the background? and I can't find flags for xeon e5... anyone know? Thanks

[RaTTuS]

if your company says yes then it's Ok,
however - cpu mining is still dead and you wont make any money off it

[speeder]

If you company think it is fine to waste waste electricity and maybe burn out a processor or two... Sure!


Seriously, mining draws LOTS of power, and CPUs are too inefficient for mining, you will end with a loss (ie: use more power than the BTC is worth), also using LOTS of power also means LOTS of heat, and this will at least shorten the CPU life, or it might outright damage it if not cooled properly.

So... no, don't do it, if the company allows, it means they are stupid (and you should quit too).

If you do it without permission, you are stealing from the company (using the electricity that they pay for personal gain) and risking damaging company property.

[Gabi]

CPU mining is dead 

[MysteryMiner]

As technician I can say if 100% load can kill CPU by overheat then the heatsink is installed improperly. Probably semen was used instead of thermal grease.

The problem is that CPU mining is not going to be profitable. Even with free electricity it is going to give maximum few cents a day.

[Kempelen]

As technician I can say if 100% load can kill CPU by overheat then the heatsink is installed improperly. Probably semen was used instead of thermal grease.

Dude

[MysteryMiner]

What? If the problem is not profit or equipment failure but legal questions, then just secretly install headless miner and funnel the payouts to anonymous bitcoin address. If done properly no one will know for sure how the work computer(s) got the infection in first place.

[Nolo]

is it ok for me to use a work computer to cpu mine in the background? and I can't find flags for xeon e5... anyone know? Thanks

Since this was asked in the legal section, I'll jump in and offer an answer.  The answer is no, not without the consent of the appropriate authority at the business. 

It is not your hardware and it is not your electricity.  You would be stealing electricity for personal gain, and damaging the business's property.  You could face criminal charges for theft (possibly vandalism if the hardware was damaged, depending on how the statute in your state is worded), as well as be liable for civil damages for the torts of conversion and trespass to property.

You would also likely get fired. 

Not a good risk / reward ratio.   

[reefless]

You can use it, but your work computer won't generate that much bitcoin for you. I think it's a waste of electricity, and will make your computer quite lag.

[niko]

Yes, if you work at a bitcoin mining company.

[opticbit]

Check with the company first..

some network admin had all the computers looking for aliens (SETI@home) a few years ago.  when the company (university i think) found out He was fired and taken to court for $100k or some large amount. some of it for legitimate electrical costs, some for "lost cpu time" or something, they would have been idle anyway.  I think they settled.

LiteCoin mining is more profitable with cpu.

[Welsh]

Ask your employer first. They may not know what bitcoin is. So I would email them with all details and resources.

If the computer has a decent GPU then I would certainly go ahead and email him, although try to convince him that it would benefit the company and how it would benefit the company. The average employers isn't concerned if it would better your life, but whether it would benefit his company.

[davidspitzer]

is it ok for me to use a work computer to cpu mine in the background? and I can't find flags for xeon e5... anyone know? Thanks

Some quick math based on average hash rates from posted lists -my math may be fuzzy but it should be in the ballpark as exchange rates flux

i5 litecoin mining - avg 40 k/hs x 100 machines = 4000 kh/s
i5 Bitcoin Mining - 17 m/s x 100 machines = 1700 mh/s


Litecoin - if you had a 100 pc's with I5 processors all running 24/7 (they would be unusable also while mining litecoin) you would clear a Little over $0.90 in Litecoin value a day

Bitcoin -If you had a 100 Pc's with I5 Processors all running 24/7 (marginally usable as the CPU would be pegged) you would clear a little over $13.00 in BTC in value a day


so if you scaled that back to 10 machines you would be getting


$0.09 in Litecoin value a day
or
$1.30 in bitcoiin value a day

plus those machines would need to be dedicated to the task and for all intents and purposes unusable



I would say not worth the time, effort and risk