Bitcoin Core 0.18.0 guide covering mining, RPC exposure, systemd paths, PSBT and descriptor RPCs, removed APIs, wallet caveats and rollback testing.
This guide explains Bitcoin Core 0.18.0 release in plain English. It summarises the important changes, who they affect and what should be checked before an upgrade.
Bitcoin Core 0.18.0 release: Verify signed binaries, stop cleanly, back up wallets and configuration, record tip and indexes, then test peers, mining, RPC binding, wallets, PSBTs, descriptors and rollback on representative hosts.
A node operator is checking Bitcoin Core 0.18.0 release. Check space, ownership and the effective process command before migration. The supplied systemd unit moved data to /var/lib/bitcoind and command-line datadir overrides could outrank bitcoin.conf.
getblocktemplate now failed when the segwit rule was omitted, preventing miners from silently building lower-reward templates. Pool integrations had to declare support and verify live templates.
rpcallowip no longer implied listening on every interface; rpcbind selected listeners. Public RPC remained unsafe. Hash characters in rpcpassword became startup errors because they were ambiguous with comments.
The supplied systemd unit moved data to /var/lib/bitcoind and command-line datadir overrides could outrank bitcoin.conf. Check space, ownership and the effective process command before migration.
New analyzepsbt, joinpsbts, utxoupdatepsbt, deriveaddresses and getdescriptorinfo expanded offline workflows. Treat descriptors and enriched PSBTs as sensitive topology data.
The account API, signrawtransaction and addwitnessaddress were removed; generate was deprecated. Inventory every client and monitoring script for these calls before cutover.
The release warned that coin-control state could persist incorrectly when switching among multiple GUI wallets. Avoid that combination and test exact wallet routing in automation.
Verify signed binaries, stop cleanly, back up wallets and configuration, record tip and indexes, then test peers, mining, RPC binding, wallets, PSBTs, descriptors and rollback on representative hosts. Build a revision-pinned evidence pack on an isolated node, wallet or protocol harness. Record source commit, binary hash, network, chain identity, configuration and dependencies.
Bitcoin Core 0.18.0 release: Verify signed binaries, stop cleanly, back up wallets and configuration, record tip and indexes, then test peers, mining, RPC binding, wallets, PSBTs, descriptors and rollback on representative hosts.
getblocktemplate now failed when the segwit rule was omitted, preventing miners from silently building lower-reward templates.
rpcallowip no longer implied listening on every interface. Rpcbind selected listeners. Public RPC remained unsafe.
The supplied systemd unit moved data to /var/lib/bitcoind and command-line datadir overrides could outrank bitcoin.conf.
Bitcoin Core 0.18.0 was operationally broad: safer deployment required reviewing mining requests, network exposure, service paths, wallet routing and every client that depended on retired RPCs.
Check the current specification status and the documentation for the exact implementation you operate before moving production funds or changing a mining node.
Bitcoin Core 0.20.2 guide to discouragement, wallet notifications, PSBT UTXO compatibility, Bech32m, source builds and rollback.
Bitcoin Core 0.21.2 guide to address-relay limits, scan progress, wallet access, includeconf parsing, build compatibility and upgrade tests.
Bitcoin Core 0.21.1 guide covering Taproot Speedy Trial parameters, enforcement boundary, miner signalling, Bech32m address handling, wallet limits and rollout.
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