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BitTorrent With a Router and Firewall

File-sharing programs have sparked interest in the Internet for a new wave of users. Beginning with Napster, the MP3 craze brought peer-to-peer file-sharing to the masses. Use of these file-sharing programs has exploded, and with that explosion comes an increase in the size of the files being shared.

Back at the peak of Napster's popularity (now a legitimate music download service), people were primarily sharing audio files on dial-up connections. At normal quality, an average audio file weighs in at about 5-MB. The data-transfer speeds of traditional peer-to-peer networking software (typically in the range of 2 - 50 Kb/s) were tolerable at best.

Today, people are sharing files on a whole new level. They are collaborating on sophisticated projects, exchanging copious amounts of research data, and even swapping entire operating systems containing well over a gigabyte worth of data. Traditional file-sharing networks no longer suffice.

Enter BitTorrent: a leap ahead in file-sharing technology. Using a special tracking program, called a torrent, BitTorrent is able to download files 10 - 50 times faster than previous peer-to-peer file-sharing programs.

Even more than a file-sharing program, BitTorrent is a revolutionary protocol for transferring files. Companies everywhere are finding out that providing downloads through BitTorrent is a win-win situation. You get to download the file faster, and the web site operator conserves bandwidth. BitTorrent is slowly becoming the preferred protocol for file distribution.

For example, I used BitTorrent to download Ubuntu Linux. Once the program located a few connections, I had a sustained download rate of almost 1 Mb/s. These types of blazingly-fast download rates aren't possible with any other file-sharing programs or protocols.

With the legal status of other file-sharing networks in question, BitTorrent is more important than ever. BitTorrent is completely legal and open source. Being open source not only allows for the creation of different clients, but it makes the protocol nearly impossible for ill-meaning groups to target. There would be no one to go after, except the community at large.

For a peek at BitTorrent in action, see the screen shots posted here.

In this guide, I will show you how to make BitTorrent work for you:

• Page 1 - This page, the tutorial introduction
• Page 2 - How to install and use BitTornado
• Page 3 - Configuring BitTornado and what to do if you are behind a firewall
• Page 4 - Using BitTorrent or BitTornado behind a router
• Page 5 - Common Problems downloading with BitTorrent
• Page 6 - Advanced BitTorrent Topics

If you need more information about specific features of BitTorrent, I've included a few links to other popular BitTorrent resources:

• BitTorrent Wiki
• Brian's BitTorrent FAQ
• BitTorrent and RSS (also known as Broadcatching)
• Official BitTorrent Homepage
• uTorrent Homepage

Here is a pre-configured search for: bittorrent guide how firewall router tutorial

You may also find my other guides useful:

• Eliminating Spyware
• Wireless Networking
• Introduction to Linux

Next =>[Magoo's Guide to BitTorrent - Page 2, Installing BitTornado]

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