Updated Getting started (markdown)

Getting-started.md

@@ -1 +1,52 @@
-# Requirements
+# Requirements
+
+## Hardware requirements.
+
+### CPU
+
+A x86_64 architecture CPU with a minimum of SSE2 support. This includes
+Intel Core2 and newer and AMD equivalents. In order to take advantage of AES_NI
+optimizations a CPU with AES_NI is required. This includes Intel Westmere
+and newer and AMD equivalents. Further optimizations are available on some
+algoritms for CPUs with AVX and AVX2, Sandybridge and Haswell respectively,
+as well as AVX512, SHA, and VAES avaible on Icelake.
+
+Older CPUs are supported by cpuminer-multi by TPruvot but at reduced
+performance.
+
+ARM, Aarch64, Raspberry Pi are not supported.
+
+### Memory
+
+Memory requirements are very dependant on the algorithm. Some algorithms require over 100 MB per thread.
+GPU mining will also raise memory requirements. It's not a performance issue, it works smoothly or it
+doesn't.
+
+## Software requirements
+
+### Operating system
+
+64 bit Linux OS. Ubuntu and Fedora based distributions, including Mint and
+Centos, are known to work and have all dependencies in their repositories.
+Others may work but may require more effort. Older versions such as Centos 6
+don't work due to missing features.
+64 bit Windows OS is supported with mingw_w64 and msys or pre-built binaries.
+
+FreeBSD and other BSDs may work, YMMV.
+
+MacOS, OSx, Android, Haiku and reactOS are not supported.
+
+### Virtualization and Emulation
+
+It is possible to run cpuminer-opt in a virtual machine but some CPU features may be missing emulation.
+CygWin has been known to work but has significantly lower performance than running a Windows binary natively.
+VMs and emulators are nit recommended.
+
+### Server
+
+A stratum server for shared mode pool mining. Some pools also offer solo mining.
+
+A full node wallet for the coin to be mined using getwork.
+
+GBT is YMMV.
+