torrent success ?

Thread Starter

Mathematics!

Joined Jul 21, 2008
1,036
I have successfully setup my torrent server.

Only a few questions I want to fully understand.

My friend went to my torrent link on my webpage it worked for him.
He said the .torrent link opened up his bittorrent program.
Then he had to wait a few minutes before the torrent started downloading.

My question is their away to set the wait time before the download begins?

And another question is I portforwarded the tracker port I was using just in case I had to. I am wondering now if the tracker port has to be portforwarded to the public for the torrent file to start downloading because if not then I won't bother forwarding it in the router. But I am assuming it must for outside the lan computers to beable to use my torrent.

I believe port forwarding is only needed when people are trying to connect to me initially (if I am behind a router) . Not the other way around.
However when a bittorrant client opens up my torrent for the first time does the torrent file tell the program to go to the tracker and then the tracker does timesliceing/ round robin download transfers for the peers.

If so then the port that the tracker is running on must be public.


Also when I create a torrent file it has the torrent file listed under the seed in my client. If I deleted this torrent file in my client then would all the peers or people that are downloading the torrent data not beable to anymore.

Does the main guy that created the torrent file always have to keep that file under his seed for it to be availible for everybody. (unless ofcourse once somebody downloaded it 100% they could reseed it from their site. )

I am just curious about this question since alot of sites let you upload your torrent files but in those site's do you also upload the data with those site ?
Unless of course you had a tracker on your own computer that the uploaded torrent file pointed back to. But then these 3rd party sites would only have .torrant files and links to them .... then the bulk of the download would be give back to the original guys computer which I don't thing would be a good
idea in most cases

Maybe these 3rd party site just let you upload the .iso , files , folders ,...etc
And they have a program running to create the torrent for your uploads and point it to one of their trackers. Maybe not.

Anybody know and care to elaborate on how torrent trackers work....

Thanks

Anyway it all works.
 
Last edited:

retched

Joined Dec 5, 2009
5,207
There is usually about a 5 to 30 sec average start time.

I have waited a day before they started. The torrend tracker tries to find as many seeds to take from before starting. this is the wait.

I believe you can adjust the priority to HIGH to start downloading as soon as there is 1 seed (which would be you)

Then after your friend downloads it, he will be a 2nd seed. (As long as he has his BitTorrent program open.
 

Thread Starter

Mathematics!

Joined Jul 21, 2008
1,036
so , if I have my own torrent server and I am the only one that creates the torrent files on my site. I will have to always have my torrent client running for people to download my files?

If that's the case I am just curious how a 3rd party site like isohunt allows you to share files. Do you just upload your files and they create the tracker,seed it , create the torrent file , and add a link on their site.

Or do you hold the files on your computer (seems if you did that it would be to much for a ton of people to download at once from your machine?


Anyway do you need to port forward the tracker port if you are behind a router and want people that come to your website to outside the lan to beable to download the torrent?

Also I am wondering what the tracker is doing is it just a program keeping track of downloading bittorrent clients for torrent files that point to this tracker. And it keeps track of clients or is their more to the tracker.

Thanks
 

Markd77

Joined Sep 7, 2009
2,806
I imagine it works a little like this:
The file is split into 8 parts (just a guess)
Person A downloads part 1 from you.
Person B downloads part 1 from Person A at the same time as downloading part 2 from you.
Person A can now download part 2 from person B
Person C can now download from 3 sources, etc, etc.
Your tracker is storing IPs of people who have downloaded part of the file.
 

Thread Starter

Mathematics!

Joined Jul 21, 2008
1,036
OK , that makes since.

So the original .torrent file contains the source tracker address and the source tracker keeps track of the peoples ip address's that are downloading (i.e the peers)

So the bittorrent client programs must connect to the tracker and get the info of who has what parts already downloaded or at least who is able to download from who (peers)

If that is how it works.

Then if somebody is using bittorrent client behind a router to download torrent files/folders ,etc etc
won't he have to enable port forwarding to allow other people to take advanage of being able to download from him?

And I know you can set the source tracker to run on any port but their must be a fix port for users/peers to connect to each other to get the files.
These files must be forwarded in the router I would assume if people are going to make inbound connections to you (provided you are behind a router...etc)

Seems like if you are only able to download and not allow people to connect to you to get pieces you would be a leecher
not a peer :)
 

retched

Joined Dec 5, 2009
5,207
Yes, the bittorrent program must hit the tracker and announce its availability and the torrent parts it has available.

The tracker keeps track of all the IPs and torrent parts.
 
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