OK everyone, its time to hash the Dash using your trusty CPU cores to find X11 solutions on the Windows platform! Please note that the prevalence of GPU and ASIC miners mean that this is highly unlikely to be profitable! Since this is the case, the software in this guide has not been updated in several years, and is intended for experimental purposes only.
This is a fairly simple procedure and examples will be given in order to achieve the fastest possible hash rate for your CPU, but remember that more optimized 
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Mining software
You will need software, a good starting place is this:
https://github.com/elmad/darkcoin-cpuminer-1.3-avx-aes
This software depends on your CPU supporting the AES-NI and AVX instruction sets. You can use CPU-Z to check if this is the case for your CPU:
CPU-Z showing details for an Intel i7 Haswell CPU
If your CPU does not support AES-NI and AVX, then you can try more generalized software which does not require specific instruction sets, such as these:
https://github.com/ig0tik3d/darkcoin-cpuminer-1.2c
https://github.com/tpruvot/cpuminer-multi
Our goal here is to choose mining software that supports the maximum possible instruction sets available on your CPU, and then try to increase the hash speed.
Once you have made your choice, click Releases and download and extract the zip file. The folder should look something like this:
The different *.exe files indicate which specific processor optimizations they support.
Mining pools
You must join a team of people known as a pool in order to find and solve blocks. A common choice of pool runs the P2Pool software, and you can find a list of Dash P2Pools here.
http://www.p2poolmining.us/p2poolnodes/
Other pools include:
Choose your pool based on the ping latency, uptime, fee, users, etc. Please support P2Pool nodes if possible, since they keep mining decentralized and protect the network from 51% attacks!
You will also need to create a Dash address to receive your payout. To do this in Dash Core wallet, see here.
Configuration
Keep all your mining files in a single folder. In this example we will work from the Desktop. The node selected for this example is from the p2poolming.us list and is located in China:
http://118.184.180.43:7903/static/
Where:
minerd = the executable miner daemon file you choose to use
a = algorithm, which is X11 for Dash
o = URL of your mining pool, including the protocol and port
u = username, usually the Dash receiving address of your wallet or worker
p = password, can often be set to x
t = number of threads used
pause = keeps the window open in the case of errors
For the CPU in the example above, the command may be:
minerd-avx-aes-sse2-sss3.exe -a X11 -o stratum+tcp://118.184.180.43:7903 -u XwZRjo1f6gmq3LCv7X1Hi5h3NkvDMHvu8G -p x -t 8
pause
Click File, then Save As. Change Save as type to All Files, then type the file name as startminer.bat and save it in the same folder as the unzipped minerd files.
Testing
You are now ready to start! Keep an eye on your CPU usage in Task Manager (right click the taskbar to open this) and be careful that the CPU temperature does not exceed your maximum rating (around 64°C).
If you have temperature or desktop stability problems, reduce t to ~2 threads and try that first. If t is left out, the machine will default to the maximum number of threads.
After running the miner for a while, take a look at the hash speed and payouts in your mining pool. You can identify your miner by the wallet address on the page.
Example of CPU mining using DarkCoin CPUMiner 1.3 on Intel Core i7
Example of CPU mining using CPUMiner-multi 1.3.1 on Intel Pentium E
Tips
Reduce the number of threads for added desktop usability and heat reduction.
If the CPU temperature is too high, consider fitting a new fan and check that the heat sink thermal paste on the CPU is adequate.
Tweak the processor clock speed for added performance using a motherboard controller like AI Suite for Asus motherboards. Reduction of CPU core voltage will result in lower temperature but increased instability.
Try to select a pool that is nearby to reduce network latency. If the node appears slow, switch to another location.