Luis Smith Tech 03.17.2021 03:Mar AM EDT

Nvidia RTX 3060 Can Now Be Used for Ethereum Mining--New Driver to Unlock Mining Capacity Leaked

Nvidia RTX 3080 Can Now Be Used for Ethereum Mining--New Driver to Unlock Mining Capacity Leaked — According to reports, Nvidia accidentally released a new driver that unlocked the RTX 3060's mining capacity. Photo : Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

The Nvidia RTX 3060 is a mid-range model in the company's lineup of graphics card. The 60 series cards has always been the most targeted chipset as it gives users the most performance for the most value--making it a go-to CPU that everyone can afford. The chipset is capable in delivering high-performance gaming, as well as mining cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum.

Right before the company shipped out its new GeForce RTX 3060 graphics card last month, Nvidia made a big deal out of the fact that many people buy it because it is good for mining cryptocurrencies. With that said, Nvidia reduced the hash rate of Ethereum mining on its latest chipset. A special system was supposed to make the CPU undesirable for cryptominers, but surprisingly, the tech firm confirmed that it has accidentally unlocked those restrictions with a new driver.

NVIDIA Apologizes for GeForce RTX 3060 Mishap

According to The Verge, the mining limitation appears to have been implemented in the software, and Nvidia accidentally released a new driver that unlocked the 3060's mining capacity. The company told the publication that a developer driver inadvertently included code used for internal development that removes the hash rate limited on the RTX 3060 in some configurations.

Nvidia originally planned to restrict the RTX 3060 mining performance capabilities to divert cryptominers from purchasing the CPU and leaving room for gamers to snag a piece of the chipset. However, that is not the case anymore as there is no other way to get the driver back, meaning it can spread like wildfire.

Also Read: GeForce RTX 3080: It's Finally Here, but Are Your Pockets Ready?

The company was not expecting to release a driver that would accidentally unlock its own restrictions. The chipset maker's Head of Communications, Bryan Del Rizzo, stated last month on Twitter that there is a secure handshake between the driver, the CPU silicon, and the firmware that prevents removal of the hash rate limiter, and it was not just a driver thing.

Twitter Error

How to Bypass the Hash Rate Limiter on the Nvidia RTX 3060

XDA Developers reported that the mining restrictions on the Nvidia RTX 3060 were successfully removed, saying that cryptominers can now dig for more Ethereum at the card's full potential. The publication reported that Ethereum mining restrictions can be bypassed without modifying the driver or firmware.

It is possible to bypass the RTX 3060's hash rate limiter by simply using GeForce 470.05 beta driver that NVIDIA distributed to developers through the Windows Insider Program. As ComputerBase and forum posts by users on Guru3D and DC Inside point out, installing the beta driver automatically unlocks most RTX 3060 chipsets' mining performance.

Also, the news was initially broken by HardwareLuxx, who confirmed that the RTX 3060 was no longer getting throttled with the new driver. Unfortunately, this is a prime, real-world example of how software security and DRM-like systems are only as strong as their weakest link--in this case, Nvidia's dev team.