Bitcoin Core
Bitcoin Core is the primary software client for running a Bitcoin full node, validating transactions, and contributing to the network’s proof-of-work consensus.
What is Bitcoin Core?
Bitcoin Core is the reference implementation of the Bitcoin protocol, a free and open-source software developed by a global community of contributors, initially released by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009 as Bitcoin-Qt. It serves as the backbone for running a full Bitcoin node, enabling users to validate transactions, enforce consensus rules, and maintain a complete copy of the bitcoin blockchain.
Bitcoin Core supports the network’s decentralization, with ~15,000 reachable nodes worldwide verifying the ~860,000 blocks and ~19.75 million BTC in circulation.
The software handles critical functions like transaction verification, block propagation, and mining coordination for Proof of Work, ensuring Bitcoin’s security within its ~1000 EH/s hash rate network. It also includes a wallet for managing Bitcoin transactions, supporting features like SegWit and Taproot.
Bitcoin Core evolves slowly to prioritize stability, with version 27.0 released in 2024 introducing improved privacy and performance feature.
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