what's P2Pool?

P2Pool is a decentralized, trustless mining pool for Monero (XMR), enabling miners to participate without relying on a central operator. It operates via a peer-to-peer share chain where miners submit shares directly to the network, and payouts are distributed automatically on the Monero blockchain using a PPLNS (Pay Per Last N Shares) scheme with 0% fees. This combines the security of solo mining with frequent payouts, requiring miners to run a full Monero node (monerod) alongside P2Pool software. The protocol uses variants like standard, mini (shorter share chain for lower variance), and nano for even smaller setups. Payouts occur when the network finds blocks proportional to contributed shares within a payment window, with a minimum of ~0.00027 XMR. It promotes decentralization by avoiding custodial risks and censorship, strengthening Monero's proof-of-work security through distributed hash power.