> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.mineglyph.xyz/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.mineglyph.xyz/protocol/fees-and-cooldown.md).

# Registration fee & claim cooldown

Two mechanisms protect the network: a one-time fee to start mining (anti-sybil) and a cooldown between claims (anti-drain, smoother emission).

## Registration fee

Starting to mine — the transition from *not mining* to *mining* — charges a **one-time fee in ETH**, forwarded to a protocol fee receiver.

* **Amount:** approximately **$1** (default `0.00056 ETH`), adjustable by the protocol owner as the ETH price moves.
* **When:** only on the inactive → active transition. Updating an already-active hashrate charges **nothing**. Deregistering (hashrate 0) charges nothing. Re-registering after quitting charges the fee again.
* **Paid in ETH, not GLYPH.** This is protocol revenue and does not affect GLYPH supply or the 0% team allocation.

**Why a fee instead of holding tokens?** A per-wallet cost makes sybil farming expensive in a direct, honest way: registering a thousand wallets costs a thousand fees. Combined with log-scaled metrics and the hashrate floor, it makes gaming the emission uneconomical.

## Claim cooldown

Rewards accrue every second, but you can only **claim** on a cooldown.

* **Duration:** **1 hour** (default).
* **First claim:** unlocks 1 hour after you start mining.
* **Between claims:** each claim starts a fresh 1-hour wait.

### You never lose rewards to the cooldown

Accrual does not pause during the wait. What you earn is booked to an internal balance and simply waits with you. When the cooldown passes, claiming mints the full accumulated amount. The cooldown batches withdrawals — it does not reduce them.

### Why it exists

* **Anti-drain / anti-bot.** It removes any incentive to spam tiny claims and makes automated extraction pointless.
* **Smoother emission and gas.** Fewer, larger claims mean less on-chain noise and lower total gas for miners.
* **Enforced on-chain.** Minting happens only in `claim()`. Even updating your hashrate cannot force an early payout — earnings are settled to your internal balance without minting, so the cooldown can't be bypassed.

## Quick reference

| Action                  | Fee              | Cooldown | Mints GLYPH?              |
| ----------------------- | ---------------- | -------- | ------------------------- |
| Connect wallet          | —                | —        | no (not a transaction)    |
| Start mining            | one-time ETH fee | —        | no                        |
| Accrue rewards          | —                | —        | no (off-chain accounting) |
| Update hashrate         | none             | —        | no (settles to balance)   |
| Claim                   | gas only         | 1 hour   | **yes**                   |
| Deregister (hashrate 0) | none             | —        | no                        |


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.mineglyph.xyz/protocol/fees-and-cooldown.md?ask=<question>&goal=<endgoal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal.

The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.