FAQ.BitTorrent

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How do I connect to BitTorrent?
Where do I find files?
How do I share a BitTorrent file after it has been downloaded, or reseed?
What does "Choked" mean?
What does "Uninterested" mean?
What does "Tracker Down" mean?
Does BitTorrent work with firewalled users?
How do I have .torrent files open up with Shareaza?
How do I stop .torrent files from opening up with Shareaza
My BitTorrent downloads are slow or don't work at all
Help! I have some other problem with BitTorrent!

How can I download only selected files from torrent?

You can do this only with 2.4.0.4 and later versions. Just go to download properties and set priority for unneeded files to None. Other priorities in 2.4.0.4 r8216 are not supported yet.

How do I connect to BitTorrent?

You do not connect to BitTorrent the same way as other P2P networks. When you download a .torrent file from a Web site, Shareaza will read the information contained in the .torrent file and connect to a mini-network of hosts and central tracker (if used). BitTorrent provides no means of searching for .torrents.

Where do I find files?

You can find .torrent files on web sites. You can try a search engine such as Google and search for torrent.

How do I share a BitTorrent file after it has been downloaded, or reseed?

Leave the download in the downloads window to continue sharing it. When you clear it from the window, Shareaza will stop sharing the file. You can reshare the BitTorrent file by going to Shareaza's Library window and changing to Folder View. Go to the Torrents directory that Shareaza has created and double-click the file you wish to reshare. When the dialog box appears, choose to "seed". If Shareaza fails to reseed the file, make sure the files downloaded through BitTorrent are in Shareaza's library, and also try moving the .torrent file to the parent directory of the files you are trying to seed. See the BitTorrent wiki page for other errors that may come up while trying to reseed.

What does "Choked" mean?

Choked means that the user is already uploading to four (default) other users.

What does "Uninterested" mean?

Uninterested means that they do not currently have parts of the file you need or you do not currently have parts of the file they need.

What does "Tracker Down" mean?

Tracker Down occurs when the tracker for the BitTorrent file is overloaded or shut down. It is possible that the tracker is temporarily down and may come back online. Do not cancel the download if you are unsure of the tracker's status. Many trackers are overloaded, and it might be hard for the client to connect to them straight away.

Does BitTorrent work with firewalled users?

Yes, BitTorrent will work even if you are firewalled. The download speeds may be slower because you will not be able to connect to any other firewalled users. It also limits your ability to seed to all users. Try configuring your firewall (:biggrin:).

How do I have .torrent files open up with Shareaza?

Go to

Tools > Shareaza Settings... > General > Web

and check the .torrent association box. Hit apply.

How do I stop .torrent files from opening up with Shareaza

Go to

Tools > Shareaza Settings... > General > Web

and uncheck the .torrent association box. Hit apply. Run your BitTorrent program's setup and tell it to take over torrent links. There will be conflicts in .torrent handling if you do not remove Shareaza from handling .torrents first.

If after doing the above Shareaza still is grabbing torrent links, you can edit the .TORRENT file type directly to open with whatever program you desire. Go to the

Folder Options

control panel or start menu entry, and within the file types tab, choose to edit the .TORRENT file type. Go to the open command, and edit it to select whatever program you wish to be the default handler of torrents. Also edit the DDE application for the open command , or turn off DDE. <<NOTE>>: Some users have experienced Shareaza refusing to "uncheck" BitTorrent link handling in the Shareaza settings. The change will not 'take'. In this case, uninstall Shareaza and then run your other BitTorrent application and set it to take BitTorrent links. Verify in the Folder Options that the TORRENT file type's DDE application is not Shareaza, and the default application to open TORRENT links is the one you want. You can try reinstalling Shareaza and remembering not to check BitTorrent link handling when the QuickStart Wizard is first run.

My BitTorrent downloads are slow or don't work at all

BitTorrent works best if you can accept incoming connection attempts [read why here]. (People may try to initiate a connection to you, rather than you to them.) If you have a firewall, you should set it up so that incoming tcp connection attempts on the port Shareaza uses are not blocked while Shareaza is running. If you have a router you should forward incoming connection attempts on the Shareaza port to the local ip of the computer Shareaza is installed on. (Note: BitTorrent doesn't use UDP, only TCP, although other protocols Shareaza supports use UDP, so when you configure your firewall you should also allow incoming UDP messages on the Shareaza port. Similarly when you configure your router, make a rule (in addition to a rule forwarding tcp messages) forwarding incoming UDP on the Shareaza port to the local ip of the computer Shareaza is installed on. For help on port forwarding see PortForward.com. Consider giving your local computer that Shareaza is installed on a static IP address. Refer to the Portforward.com site for details on giving a computer a static IP.) The Shareaza port is the port you have chosen (in the Shareaza Settings-->Internet-->Connection: Port) for Shareaza to listen for connections on. You advertize this port, along with your ip, to the tracker. The tracker passes this information along to other users so that they know which port they should try when they attempt to initiate a connection to you. Other BitTorrent clients use different ports to accept connections on -- this doesn't concern Shareaza's BitTorrent implementation: you do not need to forward any other port for Shareaza to use.

Help! I have some other problem with BitTorrent

Try the troubleshooting or BitTorrent section.