Which node should I run right now?

I've taken a break from the online scene for a few months to make some personal changes. I still manage a couple of nodes, but I've been facing some issues lately and I'm thinking it's time to set up a new one. I've heard that the current version is outdated due to spam concerns. I was considering using knots, but I’ve come across some potential problems with that too. I want to run this node to support the Bitcoin vision I loved a few years back and also to facilitate payments for domain sales. I’m really looking to move away from that old Swift system tied to the fading US Dollar. So, what do you all think? How reliable is the latest Core for handling international payments?

Well If your goal is actually to support Bitcoin as designed and also to accept international payments reliably, Bitcoin Core (current release) is still the safest, most compatible, and least controversial choice and  It is not deprecated in my opinion. I know there are countless debates about knots and core but every real OG will always go with Core. Forget the arguments people make personally I see knots as too controversial for my liking plus if I had one last argument about that topic I'll say Satoshi left us with core so I'll go with core.

Yeah. Have you seen https://blog.lopp.net/knot-a-serious-project/, only section "Luke's Security Practices"? Bitcoin Core is still most popular option today. But if you need some automation and process many payment everyday, you may also want to install payment processor (such as OpenNode or BTCPay).

Bitcoin Core still works totally fine, and I haven't tried Knots. But if you're still have a nomadic lifestyle without permanent internet, Electrum is much easier. I run my public Electrum server using Fulcrum on top of Bitcoin Core.

Some full node guides with a second one for Electrum and Tor. Honestly I have never tried this but it can be helpful for your need. [GUIDE] The simplest Full Node guide ever. [Guide] FULL NODE OpenSUSE 15.3: bitcoind + electrs + c-lightning + RTL The road to node: Bitcoin Core extensions, Electrum personal server.

Which "current" one, Bitcoin Core? Because the only recently deprecated stuff regarding it is its legacy bdb wallet.dat file which can't be loaded to the latest versions w/o migrating it first (v30.0+) As far as deprecation is concerned, no Bitcoin client is being deprecated. If you've read it from a political-related topic, you'll only get filtered arguments from each side's perspective. So DYOR about it (keep it neutral when reading those topics)... it's good that you've asked here BTW.

Bitcoin core is the obvious choice but if you want to try something new and without drama I suggest looking into GoCoin. It is an old project that is still actively developed, and is an implementation of Bitcoin protocol in Go language: https://github.com/piotrnar/gocoin

FYI, this full node software load all UTXO with RAM. When i tried it in middle 2022, it use 14.9GB of RAM[1]. Jameson Lopp also tried benchmark it back in December 2025, but always run out of RAM with his 32GB RAM device[2]. [1] https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5417193.0 [2] https://blog.lopp.net/2025-bitcoin-node-performance-tests/

Yeah, that's one of the double edged sword the developer has used. The idea was to have everything in the memory for the maximum access speed. Even the readme says the minimum hardware requirement is at least 32 GB of RAM while suggesting more is better. https://github.com/piotrnar/gocoin?tab=readme-ov-file#hardware FWIW there is also a chart on the github page comparing the sync time and memory usage:

With memory prices where they are you need 1BTC to get more memory  Seriously however, I did try to run gocoin on older hardware with a lot of RAM since I do have a ton of old machines. Ate up 48 GB of RAM (DDR3 it's old HW) and seemed like it would keep taking more if I bothered to put more in. For now just running Core 30.2 on all my nodes. -Dave

Just run Bitcoin Core, I’ve never migrated to any of the others. Lots of people use Umbrel, we’ve seen a move of a not insignificant amount of people to using Knots but I stand by Bitcoin Core. Sometimes it’s just best to go with tried and trusted.

Since you've mentioned Umbrel, you must be talking about its "Bitcoin Node" app which is their official full node application, not the whole Umbrel OS or hardware, correct? If so, that's still Bitcoin Core behind with their custom GUI. In terms of policies, it follows the default set by the selected Bitcoin Core version if the user do not edit its config.

Umbrel is essentially a catalogue of pre-configured docker containers.  Their "Full Node" package is a combination of Bitcoin Core daemon as the backend, Romanz Electrs for the SPV server, and Mempool for the block explorer.  All run in docker containers and are pre-configured to communicate with each other as they are installed.  The Bitcoin daemon and Electrs are given a simple GUI to report status and display configuration options. This is in no way a dig on Umbrel, it's a great way for an average joe to run a full node on the cheap without needing any administration skills.  But it is not alternative to Bitcoin Core, it just another way of running Bitcoin Core.

I literally can't see a problem with Core. And the question about how good it is for accepting international payments, I'd say it's the whole purpose of Bitcoin. So that you don't get to pay 10% to intermediaries for an international money transfer.

Yeah if he limits payments to bc1******  bech32 and just does a new bc1***** each time he will be fine. At jet just back up the wallet.

An upgrade on my current status. I've just started a new node ( 30.2 ) to run under Ubuntu Studio. It's not a pruned node, so it looks as if will need 800+Gb of storage, and I've only got about 400. I don't have a second SSD slot in this computer, so I'm going to have to move the Bitcoin directory onto an external USB-C drive. I installed core using snap, and it has created a snap directory to contain the Bitcoin directory. I'll rename this in core, and I assume that it won;t create any problems. I want to use this node on 3 different computer ( not at the same trime of course ), and run it over public WiFi. I'm not bothered about anonymity, but I do have a few things that are important. - maintaining a backup, and I plan to do this with a second drive containing the blockchain and wallet details. - The ability to check received payment, and this can be done through a blockchain reader if the node has not been updated. - make payments with an updated wallet. - provide an accessible record for the inland revenue so that I can minimise my tax liabilitty.. So, I have a couple of questions. - Will I have any problems if I move a drive from one machine to another, and I ensure that core has the correct entry for the external drive? - What happens if I make a payment on drive A, and then use drive B on another computer? Obviously receipts will update as the blockchain synchronises, but will payments do the same, or will I have to copy the wallet files? I suspect that I will have to do this. I'm also assuming that all version of Core will have to be the same release.

Isn't a pruned node much easier for your purpose? You'll only need about 15 GB of disk space, and it still verifies every transaction you make. The only thing it can't do, is sync older wallets or load older keys. I don't really like that: it's so easy to accidentally disconnect it, which will corrupt your data. I've had disks disconnect with the slightest touch to the cable. If that's the case: what's stopping you from just using Electrum? It's so much easier and faster for your scenario. Do you need to backup the entire blockchain? Just your wallet is enough to redownload everything when needed. I prefer a few MB over 800 GB I'm not familiar with your tax system so I'm not sure what you need, but have you seen Blockchair.com's "PDF" feature? Search an address, click PDF, and it shows you everything there is to know about that address in a printable format. It should be okay. With Bitcoin Core, you can even run them both at the same time. But I wouldn't recommend it: every copy of your wallet on each different system adds to the risk of someone compromising your wallet. Transactions (incoming and outgoing) update while syncing, but labels are missing. Electrum has a LabelSync plugin, but I've never used it.

I hear what you are saying, but I have at least 8 drives with bits of Bitcoin on them, and I need to sort out the mess. I know one wallet has about $30 worth of Bitcoin on it, and I've forgotten the password. I'm a bit of a control freak, and that is why I want to run my own node. I do have a pruned node, and it has been an inconvenience. I've also got another problem. Morrisons cafe blocks the Bitcoin ports, so I have to tether my mobile if I want to run the node. This is all part of the fun of being a digital nomad.

You can change Bitcoin Core's port, but they'll probably block a lot more ports. Is your mobile provider okay with that much data?

Probably not. I just ran it for 5 mins to get a wallet address, and to test it. Asda is offering soup, bread and butter, and a coffee for £1 at the moment, and they have a couple of tables with power sockets, and the WiFi supports Bitcoin. I gather they are over £1billiion in debt at the moment, so that may not last.