# MDS nonces/s are not H/s, and they are not divided into mMDS

MDS monitoring shows the account rate with a decimal prefix and nonces/s. kMDS, mMDS, and gMDS are protocol coin steps. Balances stay base MDS integers. Hashrate is not converted into coins.

- Canonical: https://iotahome.site/en/learn/mds-nonces-hashrate-units
- Publisher: IOTA Watch
- Topics: Midstate
- Published: 2026-10-24
- Updated: 2026-10-24

## At a glance

Read nonces/s as a rate. Read a large unpaid integer with the protocol’s binary steps, and do not divide it again.

## Two unit systems

| What you see | Belongs to | Do not |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 301 nonces/s or 1.5 Knonces/s | Account or worker rate | Do not write H/s or divide by 1,048,576 |
| 1,024 MDS = 1 kMDS | Protocol denomination | Do not read it as 1.024 kilohash |
| 1,048,576 MDS = 1 mMDS | Protocol denomination | Do not read it as a million hashes per second |
| 1,073,741,824 MDS = 1 gMDS | Protocol denomination, and the documented initial block reward | Do not add it to hashrate |
| Unpaid integer on the page | Base MDS, unlocked plus locked | Do not add an mMDS label or convert to dollars |

On [MDS monitoring](https://iotahome.site/en/projects/mds) the unit after the rate is nonces/s, not H/s. Coin amounts are a different system. The protocol uses binary steps, and monitoring leaves amounts as base MDS integers. Dividing hashrate by 1,048,576 does not produce your balance.

## How to read the rate

The official miner status sample prints `Hashrate: 301.20 nonces/s`, and a network rate, in the sample `2854.10 nonces/s`. That screen belongs to the miner program. It is not the LuckyPool account page. This site shows the account rate and each worker’s own rate, both labeled nonces/s. The prefix is decimal: 1,000 is K and 1,000,000 is M. An account rate of 301 is shown as `301 nonces/s`. A rate of 1,500 is shown as `1.5 Knonces/s`. That is not the coin’s step of 1,024.

## Which steps the amounts use

The protocol page says amounts are forced to powers of two, so it does not use base-10 decimals. It uses storage-style binary prefixes: 1 MDS is the base unit, 1 kMDS = 1,024 MDS, 1 mMDS = 1,048,576 MDS, and 1 gMDS = 1,073,741,824 MDS. The same page says the initial block reward is 1 gMDS. Monitoring does not relabel unpaid as “1 mMDS”. It shows the base integer. Amounts stay base MDS integers, without an mMDS label.

## Which number answers which question

For “how fast is the machine”, read nonces/s. For “how many coins remain at the pool”, read unpaid and paid. Do not add the columns, and do not divide one by the other. A worker’s rate describes that row only. It is not converted into MDS.

## A set of figures marked as an illustration

The figures below are an illustration. If the account rate is 301, the page shows `301 nonces/s`. If another account rate is 1,500, the page shows `1.5 Knonces/s`. If unlocked is 1,024 and locked is 1,048,576, unpaid shows 1,049,600 MDS: 1 kMDS plus 1 mMDS in protocol steps. If paid is 1,073,741,824, it stays on its own line and equals 1 gMDS in the protocol. Do not divide `1.5 Knonces/s` by 1,024, and do not add 301 to 1,049,600.

## Limits

A hardware comparison on the protocol site is not this machine’s LuckyPool reading. A missing rate stays unknown. It is not written as 0 H/s. Coin steps continue in [locked, unlocked, and paid](https://iotahome.site/en/learn/mds-locked-unlocked-paid). The reading order is in [how to check MDS](https://iotahome.site/en/learn/midstate-mds-monitor-guide).

## Common questions

### Is the K in Knonces/s equal to 1,024?

No. Rate prefixes step by 1,000. 1,500 nonces/s is shown as 1.5 Knonces/s. For the coin, 1 kMDS is 1,024 MDS. Do not mix the two.

### Will the official 301.20 appear unchanged on the monitor?

Not necessarily. 301.20 nonces/s is a sample on the miner status screen. Monitoring shows the rate LuckyPool returns for the account, then labels it with a decimal prefix and nonces/s. The two are not one reading.

### Is the initial reward of 1 gMDS my unpaid balance?

No. That is the initial block reward on the protocol page. Your unpaid figure is unlocked plus locked for this address on LuckyPool. If it is absent, it stays unknown and is not filled in as 1 gMDS.

## Sources and implementation

- [Midstate · protocol, MSS and binary denominations](https://midstate.cash/)
- [Midstate · Stratum pool guide](https://github.com/ciphernom/midstate/blob/main/pools.md)
- [LuckyPool · Midstate](https://midstate.luckypool.io/)