Running a Node
Running a Bitcoin node allows you to independently verify every transaction and block against the protocol rules, so that you don't have to trust any third party. It also gives you more privacy, since you're not using a third party to relay your transaction.
Running a Bitcoin node also helps the network to stay decentralised; the more individuals running nodes, the more decentralised the network becomes.
Running a node is relatively cheap
Running a Bitcoin node, unlike mining, is designed to be cheap. It doesn't require high-performance hardware or a fast internet connection. Just about any computer could do it today with an average internet connection.
In fact, I personally used an old Mac Mini that I had bought for $150 to run a full Bitcoin node for years, and it worked perfectly.
Where to start?
There are two main Bitcoin software implementations today : Bitcoin Core and Bitcoin Knots.
You can see different Bitcoin software implementations like which browser you prefer to use for navigating the internet.
They both connect to the same network but do it slightly differently.
In the case of Bitcoin Core and Knots, they are debating a change to OP_RETURN data limits in Bitcoin Core v30 (increased default size), with Knots keeping the prior conservative limit.
You're free to use whichever one you want, but if you’re not sure which one to pick or simply want to stay out of this debate, I recommend downloading Bitcoin Core v29.2. It uses the prior conservative limits, remains fully compatible, and is stable.
To do so, click on the Bitcoin Core logo below, select "Version history" ➡ "Bitcoin Core 29.2".
Once you start the application, it will verify and download the entire blockchain (unless you prune your node, in which case it will still verify the entire blockchain but not keep it on your computer entirely). This usually takes two to three days.
Note that if you don't prune your node, you will need at least 900GB of storage.
Below is the link to each application’s official website:
More recently, a new Bitcoin implementation is being built, Bitcoin Commons. Their goal is to provide a new implementation built from scratch (not keeping the code from Bitcoin Core). If you want to learn more about them, here's a link to their website:
To help you through this process if you want to do it on your own, Bitcoin.org has done a fully detailed tutorial here:
Contact us
If you need assistance with running a Bitcoin node, don't hesitate to contact us. If the issue you're running into can be resolved with just an email, we won't charge anything.
For more involved troubleshooting (e.g. screen-sharing or ongoing support), we'll discuss pricing before starting.
How to connect your node to Sparrow?
Once your node is fully synced and running, open Sparrow and head into "Settings”, then open the Server section.
Select "Bitcoin Core" and test your connection.
Once you have tested the connection and it's successful, close the tab. On the main page, at the bottom right corner, you should see a toggle switch. Make sure it's on and the colour is green when you start Sparrow. That's how you know Sparrow is connected to your node.
If you're running a pruned node and the blocks around your wallet's birthdate have been pruned, Sparrow won't be able to rescan and find your historical transactions. Either run a full node, or increase your pruning size so it retains blocks back to your wallet's birthdate.
More node setup options
There are devices that can be dedicated for tasks such as running a Bitcoin node if you don't want to do it yourself on an old computer. Those options will cost you more but be more user-friendly.
Here are a few:
