The Secret to Fast Torrent Downloading
The Secret to Fast Torrent Downloading
by FrosT
Introduction
After a recent format of my computer I installed UTorrent a Bit-Torrent software package that is very light weight and works extremely well. I found out that my download speeds were extremely slow. 10KB/sec on average! Well I love to seed after I have downloaded the whole package and this has worked well for me in the past. Now that the computer was formatted and all my settings were wiped out my speeds were crap. I will describe the steps I took to go from a speed of 10KB/sec to a speed of 300KB/sec on average. Remember this is all speculation from what I noticed; I do not have any proof that any statements said here will make your speed increase. It worked for me and logically from that I will make the statements. First things first, make sure your network settings and ports etc are all correct, I will not re-invent the wheel here and tell you how to do that. Google provides lot's of great tutorials on how to setup different Bit-Torrent clients.
Seed, Seed, Seed
The key to getting awesome download speeds is seeding. From the looks of it UTorrent may have an internal credit system. I could be wrong, but from my extensive downloading research it seems as though there is a Credit system internally built into UTorrent. What is a Credit system you ask? Well a Credit system means that there is a record being kept at how much you download to how much you upload. A general rule is for every megabyte you download, you should at least upload 1.5 megabytes. This will get you a ratio of 1.5 which is ideal for most downloader's and uploaders.
Having a good ratio helps boost your speeds dramatically. Remember after a torrent has finished please seed till at least a 1.5 ratio. This will help out the whole Bit-Torrent community. Do not be a jerk.
Downloading the File First, Seeding Later
Back to my scenario, I love to download the file first and seed later. I used to set my upload speeds to 2KB/sec so I could accomplish this. I have a cable connection of 3MBps down and 40KB/sec up. The more upload speed I use the slower I can download. This is probably the case for most people. How do you get around this little mishap? Here is how, when you first start the torrent, make sure your upload speed is above 20KB/sec. Let this setting stay for at least an hour. Once your ratio has reached something above a 1.0, lower your upload to speed to 8KB/sec or above. I recommend 10KB/sec. This will show UTorrent and the tracker that you are a good seeder and from that they will send more bandwidth your way. Give it another hour and check on the torrent, your speeds should have dramatically increased. If not chances are the torrent is either not a very popular torrent, I am completely wrong or my testing was just a spoof.
Seeding Later
Remember to seed after the torrent file has finished. Seeding is how Bit-Torrents are kept alive. You were able to download the torrent because someone else was seeding it for you. Remember that! It is not just a take, but a give take community. You give back 1.5 times what you take. My suggestion is after you downloaded 3 torrent files, open those torrent files up for a single night at your highest upload rate. Once you hit a 1.5 ratio or above stop the torrents and you are finished. Than repeat the process for your next 3 torrent downloads. This way you can have the full file quickly and give back to the community at the same time when your internet connection is generally idle.
Ending Notes
Be a good seeder and leecher. Do not just take. Give back to the torrent community what they give to you. Without that Bit-Torrent will not survive and end up in the gutter. Seeding is the key to using Bit-Torrents. Hopefully the steps outlined here to improve your torrent downloading speed will inspire you to seed more and be known to trackers as a great seeder and be able to get any file you want in no time. I just downloaded a 4.7 GB movie file in less than 12 hours on a Cable connection. That is proof enough for me that this works.
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