Frequently asked questionsLink to this section

TL;DRLink to this section

You can follow Squeekchain without a wallet or a Miner NFT.
Squeek Miner NFTs earn SQK; owners can fund SqueekFi projects with a share of their rewards. The NFTs don't mine Ethereum or control the device.
Work records, available rewards, and wallet payments update in separate steps.

Do I need an NFT to follow the system?Link to this section

No. Public status and measurement data are available without NFT ownership, a wallet, or an API key. A Miner is for participating in the reward system, not for access to the public data.

Does the hamster mine Ethereum?Link to this section

No. Ethereum stores Squeekchain's work records, but wheel activity doesn't produce Ethereum blocks. A Squeek block is a separate measure of completed work within this system.

What is hamster proof of work?Link to this section

It's Squeekchain's name for the record of accepted wheel-magnet passages. Each accepted passage adds one work unit. The term doesn't mean that the sensor proves which animal moved the wheel or why.

What does a Squeek Miner do?Link to this section

A Squeek Miner NFT earns SQK linked to recorded wheel activity, and its owner can direct a share of those rewards to fund SqueekFi projects. When its mining power is active and eligible, that power determines its share of available rewards relative to other Miners. It doesn't measure wheel activity or give you control over the Hamster Miner.

Do I need to stake my Miner?Link to this section

No. Your Miner stays in your wallet. You don't need a staking deposit or an NFT or SQK spending approval to claim available rewards.

What determines my Miner's rewards?Link to this section

Rewards depend on completed work, active mining power, the reward rate, and the remaining SQK supply. Your share also depends on the power of other eligible Miners. How rewards work explains the calculation.

What happens if I sell or transfer my Miner?Link to this section

Its unclaimed rewards go to the new owner along with the NFT. You can't claim those rewards after transferring it, while SQK you've already claimed stays in your wallet. The transfer doesn't reset the Miner's level, activation schedule, or merge cooldown.

What happens when I merge two Miners?Link to this section

Two eligible same-level Miners become one higher-level Miner. One keeps its identity and image; the other is permanently burned. Their unclaimed rewards combine in the survivor, and its extra mining power starts earning later. Read Merging Miner NFTs before deciding which NFT to keep.

Does every wheel turn create SQK?Link to this section

No. Accepted passages build up work, and enough settled work completes Squeek blocks. A later reward update funds SQK under the reward rules. A wheel turn, an Ethereum record, and an available reward are not the same thing.

Does Core settlement mint SQK?Link to this section

No. Recording work on Ethereum doesn't mint SQK. A separate reward update funds it, and an owner's claim moves available SQK to their wallet. How it works explains the sequence.

Can a claim cost a fee without paying me anything?Link to this section

Yes. Very small rewards can round down to a zero payment, and a failed transaction may still cost a network fee. A displayed amount is a quote, not a completed payment; see Claiming rewards.

Why is the settled total behind the live total?Link to this section

Work may still be in an open round or waiting for delivery, checks, submission, or Ethereum confirmations. Available rewards can lag again while settled work waits for a reward update. There is no promised maximum delay; Why the numbers don't always match explains what each total means.

What happens if the video stops?Link to this section

A camera or playback failure alone doesn't stop wheel counting. Video can also continue while measurement has failed, so neither is proof that the other is working.

What happens if the network stops?Link to this section

The device can keep counting while its sensor, clock, and storage work, saving records to send later. A measurement fault is different from a network outage and can stop counting.

Does the system prove a particular hamster ran?Link to this section

No. It records accepted magnet passages, not animal identity, direction, intent, or health. A protected signing key helps establish which key signed a record; it doesn't prove the physical cause of the reading. See What the system proves.

Does a video frame count as work?Link to this section

No. Cameras are separate from the wheel sensor. Video can't add work or fill gaps in the measurement record.

Why does a field show unavailable instead of zero?Link to this section

Unavailable means the evidence needed to show that value is missing. Zero means there is evidence for a zero result. A missing measurement or a failed display is not proof that the wheel was idle.

Is a Squeek block an Ethereum block?Link to this section

No. A Squeek block completes when enough accepted work has been recorded onchain. Ethereum blocks contain transactions and give those transactions confirmations. The two block counts measure different things.

Is an Oracle-accepted round already onchain?Link to this section

No. Passing the record checks is one step; authorization, submission, successful execution, and public confirmation still follow. How work reaches Ethereum explains those stages.

Why can a zero-work round delay progress?Link to this section

The submission service waits for a positive-work round before sending preceding zero-work rounds. It doesn't send a batch made only of zeros. Those zero rounds aren't necessarily missing; see How work reaches Ethereum for the detailed submission rules.

Can the indexer stop measurement or settlement?Link to this section

No. The indexer prepares chain data for public views. If it fails, otherwise healthy measurement and settlement can continue, even though the website can't show their latest state.

Records verified work and tracks settled rounds and Squeek blocks on Ethereum. Calculates rewards from settled work, holds funded SQK, and pays eligible NFT owners. The Miner ERC-721 contract. Tracks NFT ownership and coordinates minting and merges with Mining. Applies Core or Mining upgrades authorized by its governing Timelock. Generates Miner NFT artwork from fixed onchain visual data. Queues governance operations and enforces a delay before they can be executed. The SQK ERC-20 contract. Enforces the lifetime supply cap; only Mining can mint SQK. Checks that visual data conforms to the required DotGrid format. When new mining power starts earning. Minting and merging schedule it for a later round, and a checkpoint must process the change. A reward update that processes settled work and scheduled mining-power changes. It can make rewards available but doesn't pay them to an owner's wallet. The Miner NFT permanently burned in a merge. Its unclaimed rewards move to the survivor, but its image is not combined or kept. SQK issued under the mining reward rules. You can direct a share of your Miner's rewards to fund SqueekFi projects. The physical mining device that records accepted wheel-magnet passages as work. It is separate from the virtual Miner NFTs. Squeekchain's record of accepted wheel-magnet passages. It doesn't prove animal identity and isn't how Ethereum reaches consensus. Combining two eligible same-level Miners you own into one higher-level Miner. One NFT is permanently burned; the survivor keeps both Miners' unclaimed rewards. The completed Squeek blocks a Miner must wait through before merging. It measures completed work, not elapsed time or Ethereum blocks; transfers don't reset it. The power used to calculate a Miner's share of rewards when eligible and active. A larger share of total power can mean a larger share of rewards. A ten-minute period used to group measured work. The device saves a completed round's work total when measurement remained uninterrupted. The transferable token used for mining rewards. It has a lifetime supply cap and is separate from the Miner NFT and the device's work count. A completed amount of settled work. Enough recorded work completes one Squeek block; it is not an Ethereum block. Squeek Miner NFTs earn SQK linked to recorded wheel activity. Owners can direct a share of those rewards to fund SqueekFi projects. Squeekchain's ecosystem for hamster-powered onchain finance. Miner owners can choose to fund projects with a share of their SQK rewards. The Miner NFT you keep in a merge. It gains a level, keeps its ID and image, and receives both Miners' unclaimed rewards. A Miner's recorded reward balance that hasn't been paid to a wallet. It stays with the NFT when ownership changes. One wheel-magnet passage that met the device's counting rules and was saved. It records work, not an amount of SQK.