# QRandomX mining

> How QRL Legacy is mined — the QRandomX algorithm, why it favours CPUs, and what mining secures.

[QRL Legacy](/learn/glossary#qrl-legacy) is a [Proof-of-Work](/learn/consensus-pow-vs-pos) chain, which means it's **mined**. The specific algorithm it mines with is called **QRandomX**, and its design says a lot about the chain's priorities.

## What mining secures

In Proof-of-Work, miners compete to solve a deliberately hard puzzle. Solving it requires huge numbers of attempts, which costs electricity. The winner adds the next block and collects the [block reward](/learn/block-rewards-and-emission). The collective cost of all that work is what makes rewriting history prohibitively expensive — that cost *is* the chain's security.

## QRandomX: CPU-friendly by design

QRL Legacy's algorithm, **[QRandomX](/learn/glossary#qrandomx)**, is a QRL variant of **RandomX** — the same family of algorithm used by Monero. Its defining goal is **ASIC resistance**.

- An **ASIC** is specialised hardware built to mine one algorithm extremely fast. ASICs tend to concentrate mining in the hands of whoever can afford the most specialised chips.
- **RandomX-style** algorithms are designed to run best on **general-purpose CPUs** — the processors in ordinary computers — by relying on operations that custom chips can't dramatically out-perform.

The intent is **decentralisation through accessibility**: if a normal CPU is competitive, more people can mine, and no single hardware manufacturer dominates.

## Why ASIC resistance matters

A chain mined mostly by a few ASIC farms is more centralised and easier to coerce. By choosing a CPU-friendly algorithm, QRL Legacy aimed to keep its mining base broad. ASIC resistance is never absolute — it's an ongoing design effort — but the goal shapes the choice of QRandomX over a simpler, ASIC-friendly hash puzzle.

## Why QRL 2.0 has none of this

[QRL 2.0](/learn/glossary#qrl2) is [Proof-of-Stake](/learn/proof-of-stake-on-qrl2): it's secured by [validators](/learn/validators-and-staking) staking coins, not by miners burning electricity. So QRL 2.0 doesn't mine at all and doesn't use QRandomX. The shift from CPU mining to staking is part of the broader move toward lower energy use — while keeping QRL's quantum-resistant signatures on both chains.

## Where to go next

- [Block rewards and emission](/learn/block-rewards-and-emission) — what miners are paid.
- [Proof-of-Work vs Proof-of-Stake](/learn/consensus-pow-vs-pos) — mining vs staking.
- [QRL tokenomics and supply](/learn/qrl-tokenomics-and-supply) — where mined coins fit in.