Difference between revisions of "RTorrent"
(→Send Text Message Upon Torrent Completion Using GMail: Simplify section title) |
(→Make "active" tab show only active torrents: Simplify section title, formatting) |
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All Live Nudibranches: Done | All Live Nudibranches: Done | ||
− | === | + | === Displaying active torrents === |
− | |||
The rtorrent doesn't list the active tab properly by default, add this line to your {{ic|.rtorrent.rc}} to show only active torrents | The rtorrent doesn't list the active tab properly by default, add this line to your {{ic|.rtorrent.rc}} to show only active torrents | ||
schedule = filter_active,30,30,"view_filter = active,\"or={d.get_up_rate=,d.get_down_rate=}\"" | schedule = filter_active,30,30,"view_filter = active,\"or={d.get_up_rate=,d.get_down_rate=}\"" | ||
− | + | Then press {{keypress|9}} in your rTorrent client to see the changes in action. | |
== Troubleshooting == | == Troubleshooting == |
Revision as of 20:27, 2 December 2011
rTorrent is a quick and efficient BitTorrent client that uses the libtorrent library. It is written in C++ and uses the ncurses programming library, which means it uses a text user interface. When combined with GNU Screen and Secure Shell, it becomes a convenient remote Bitorrent client.
Contents
Installation
Install the rtorrent package that is available in the community repository:
# pacman -S rtorrent
Alternatively, install rtorrent-svnAUR or rtorrent-extendedAUR from the AUR.
Configuration
Before running rTorrent, download the default configuration file from the rTorrent project page and copy it to Template:Filename (see: Direct download).
Peer and connection thresholds
The values for the following options are dependent on the system's hardware and Internet connection speed. To find the optimal values read: Optimize Your BitTorrent Download Speed
min_peers = 40 max_peers = 52 min_peers_seed = 10 max_peers_seed = 52 max_uploads = 8 download_rate = 200 upload_rate = 28
Create and manage files
The directory
option will determine where your torrent data will be saved. Be sure to enter the absolute path, as rTorrent may not follow relative paths:
directory = /home/[user]/torrents/
The session
option allows rTorrent to save the progess of your torrents. It is recommended to create a directory called .session
(e.g. $ mkdir ~/.session
).
session = /home/[user]/.session/
The schedule
option has rTorrent watch a particular directory for new torrent files. Saving a torrent file to this directory will automatically start the download. Remember to create the directory that will be watched (e.g. $ mkdir ~/watch
). Also, be careful when using this option as rTorrent will move the torrent file to your session folder and rename it to its hash value.
schedule = watch_directory,5,5,load_start=/home/[user]/watch/*.torrent schedule = untied_directory,5,5,stop_untied= schedule = tied_directory,5,5,start_tied=
The following schedule
option is intended to stop rTorrent from downloading data when disk space is low.
schedule = low_diskspace,5,60,close_low_diskspace=100M
Port configuration
The port_range
option sets which port(s) to use for listening. It is recommended to use a port that is higher than 49152 (see: List of port numbers). Although, rTorrent allows a range of ports, a single port is recommended.
port_range = 49164-49164
Additionally, make sure port forwarding is enabled for the proper port(s) (see: Port Forward Guides).
Additional settings
The check_hash
option executes a hash check when a torrent download is complete or rTorrent is started. When starting, it checks for errors in your completed files.
check_hash = yes
The encryption
option enables or disables encryption. It is very important to enable this option, not only for yourself, but also for your peers in the torrent swarm. Some users need to obscure their bandwidth usage from their ISP. And it does not hurt to enable it even if you do not need the added security.
encryption = allow_incoming,try_outgoing,enable_retry
This final dht
option enables DHT support. DHT is common among public trackers and will allow the client to acquire more peers.
dht = auto dht_port = 6881 peer_exchange = yes
Key bindings
Cmd | Action |
---|---|
Ctrl-q | Quit application |
Left | Returns to the previous screen |
Right | Goes to the next screen |
Backspace | Adds the specified *.torrent |
rTorrent relies exclusively on keyboard shortcuts for user input. A quick reference is available in the table on the right. A complete guide is available on the rTorrent wiki (see: rTorrent User Guide).
Redundant mapping
Template:Keypress is often used for terminal control to stop screen output while Template:Keypress is used to start it. These mappings may interfere with rTorrent. Check to see if these terminal options are bound to a mapping:
$ stty -a
... swtch = <undef>; start = ^Q; stop = ^S; susp = ^Z; rprnt = ^R; werase = ^W; lnext = ^V; ...
To remove the mappings, change the terminal characteristics to undefine the aforementioned special characters (i.e. stop
and start
):
# stty stop undef # stty start undef
To remove these mappings automatically at startup you may add the two preceding commands to your Template:Filename file.
Additional Tips
Seperate session with Screen
GNU Screen is a wrapper that allows separation between the text program and the shell from which it was launched.
Screen flow-control interferes with the Template:Keypress mapping (see: Redundant mapping). To disable it add the following to Template:Filename:
defflow off
To automatically start rTorrent within Screen, add the following to the Template:Filename configuration file:
screen -t rtorrent rtorrent
Run as a daemon
Alternatively, Screen and rTorrent can be run together as a daemon (see also: Arch Linux Forums thread, Gentoo Discussion Forums thread).
To use this script with Tmux replace line 9 with su rtorrent -c 'tmux -d -s rtorrent rtorrent' &> /dev/null
(see: rTorrent daemon with tmux).
With root permissions create the following file:
/etc/rc.d/rtorrent
#!/bin/bash . /etc/rc.conf . /etc/rc.d/functions case "$1" in start) stat_busy "Starting rtorrent" su user -c 'screen -d -m -S rtorrent rtorrent' &> /dev/null if [ $? -gt 0 ]; then stat_fail else add_daemon rtorrent stat_done fi ;; stop) stat_busy "Stopping rtorrent" killall -w -s 2 /usr/bin/rtorrent &> /dev/null if [ $? -gt 0 ]; then stat_fail else rm_daemon rtorrent stat_done fi ;; restart) $0 stop sleep 1 $0 start ;; *) echo "usage: $0 {start
Make the file executable:
sudo chmod +x /etc/rc.d/rtorrent
Creating a Template:Filename file with relative paths in a user's home directory will break the rc.d script. To run multiple instances of rTorrent with relative paths under different users replace line 9 in Template:Filename with the following:
su username -c 'cd /home/username && screen -d -m -S rtorrent rtorrent' &> /dev/null
Alternatively, you can set absolute paths in the configuration file.
To run the daemon user multiple users create one rc.d script for each user. Then replace line 9 in Template:Filename with the following:
su username -c 'killall -w -s 2 /usr/bin/rtorrent' &> /dev/null
To connect to the daemon process on a remote machine use SSH:
ssh -t rtorrent@192.168.1.10 'screen -r'
For more information about daemon scripts see: Writing rc.d scripts
Alternate scripts can be found on the Gentoo Wiki Archives, Joyent CodeSnippets and ByteTouch.
Pre-allocation
The rTorrent package in the community repository lacks pre-allocation. Compiling rTorrent with pre-allocation allows files to be allocated before downloading the torrent. The major benefit is that it limits and avoids fragmentation of the filesystem. However, this introduces a delay during the pre-allocation if the filesystem does not support the fallocate syscall natively.
Therefore this switch is recommended for xfs, ext4 and btrfs filesystems, which have native fallocate syscall support. They will see no delay during preallocation and no fragmented filesystem. Pre-allocation on others filesystems will cause a delay but will not fragment the files.
To make pre-allocation available, recompile libtorrent from the ABS tree with the following new switch:
./configure --prefix=/usr --disable-debug --with-posix-fallocate
To enable it, add the following to your Template:Filename:
# Preallocate files; reduces defragmentation on filesystems. system.file_allocate.set = yes
Manage completed files
It is possible to have rtorrent sort completed torrent data to specific folders based on which 'watch' folder you drop the *.torrent into while continuing to seed. Many examples show how to do this with torrents downloaded by rtorrent. The problem is when you try to drop in 100% done torrent data and then have rtorrent check the data and resume. It will not be sorted.
As a solution, use the following example in your ~/.rtorrent.rc. Make sure to change the paths.
You can add additional watch folders and rules should you like to sort your torrents into special folders.
For example, if you would like the torrents to download in:
/home/user/torrents/incomplete
and then sort the torrent data based on which folder you dropped the *.torrent into:
/home/user/torrents/watch => /home/user/torrents/complete /home/user/torrents/watch/iso => /home/user/torrents/complete/iso /home/user/torrents/watch/music => /home/user/torrents/complete/music
You can have the following in your .rtorrent.rc:
Also see pyroscope especially the rtcontrol examples. There is an AUR package.
Notificaion with Google Mail
Cell phone providers allow you to "email" your phone:
Verizon: 10digitphonenumber@vtext.com AT&T: 10digitphonenumber@txt.att.net Former AT&T customers: 10digitphonenumber@mmode.com Sprint: 10digitphonenumber@messaging.sprintpcs.com T-Mobile: 10digitphonenumber@tmomail.net Nextel: 10digitphonenumber@messaging.nextel.com Cingular: 10digitphonenumber@cingularme.com Virgin Mobile: 10digitphonenumber@vmobl.com Alltel: 10digitphonenumber@alltelmessage.com OR 10digitphonenumber@message.alltel.com CellularOne: 10digitphonenumber@mobile.celloneusa.com Omnipoint: 10digitphonenumber@omnipointpcs.com Qwest: 10digitphonenumber@qwestmp.com Telus: 10digitphonenumber@msg.telus.com Rogers Wireless: 10digitphonenumber@pcs.rogers.com Fido: 10digitphonenumber@fido.ca Bell Mobility: 10digitphonenumber@txt.bell.ca Koodo Mobile: 10digitphonenumber@msg.koodomobile.com MTS: 10digitphonenumber@text.mtsmobility.com President's Choice: 10digitphonenumber@txt.bell.ca Sasktel: 10digitphonenumber@sms.sasktel.com Solo: 10digitphonenumber@txt.bell.ca
- Install Heirloom's mailx program:
pacman -S mailx-heirloom
- Clear the
/etc/mail.rc
file and enter:
/etc/nail.rc
.set sendmail="/usr/bin/mailx" set smtp=smtp.gmail.com:587 set smtp-use-starttls set ssl-verify=ignore set ssl-auth=login set smtp-auth-user=USERNAME@gmail.com set smtp-auth-password=PASSWORD
Now to send the text, we must pipe a message to the mailx program.
- Make a bash script (/path/to/mail.sh):
echo "$@: Done" | mailx 5551234567@vtext.com
Where the $@ is a variable holding all the arguments passed to our script.
- And finally, add the important ~/.rtorrent.rc line:
system.method.set_key = event.download.finished,notify_me,"execute=/path/to/mail.sh,$d.get_name="
Breaking it down:
notify_me
is the command id, which may be used by other commands, it can be just about anything you like, so long as it is unique.
execute=
is the rtorrent command, in this case to execute a shell command.
/path/to/mail.sh
is the name of our script (or whatever command you want to execute) followed by a comma separated list of all the switches/arguments to be passed.
$d.get_name=
'd' is an alias to whatever download triggered the command, get_name is a function which returns the name of our download, and the '$' tells rTorrent to replace the command with its output before it calls execute.
The end result? When that torrent, 'All Live Nudibranches', that we started before leaving for work finishes, we will be texted:
All Live Nudibranches: Done
Displaying active torrents
The rtorrent doesn't list the active tab properly by default, add this line to your .rtorrent.rc
to show only active torrents
schedule = filter_active,30,30,"view_filter = active,\"or={d.get_up_rate=,d.get_down_rate=}\""
Then press Template:Keypress in your rTorrent client to see the changes in action.
Troubleshooting
CA certificates
To use rTorrent with a tracker that uses HTTPS, do the following as root:
cd /etc/ssl/certs wget --no-check-certificate https://www.geotrust.com/resources/root_certificates/certificates/Equifax_Secure_Global_eBusiness_CA-1.cer mv Equifax_Secure_Global_eBusiness_CA-1.cer Equifax_Secure_Global_eBusiness_CA-1.pem c_rehash
And from now on run rTorrent with:
rtorrent -o http_capath=/etc/ssl/certs
If you use GNU Screen, update the Template:Filename configuration file to reflect this change:
screen -t rtorrent rtorrent -o http_capath=/etc/ssl/certs
In rTorrent 0.8.9, set network.http.ssl_verify_peer.set=0
to fix the problem.[1]
For more information see: rTorrent Error & CA Certificate and rTorrent Certificates Problem
Web interface
There are numerous web interfaces and front ends for rTorrent including:
- WTorrent is a web interface to rtorrent programmed in php using Smarty templates and XMLRPC for PHP library.
- nTorrent is a graphical user interface client to rtorrent (a cli torrent client) written in Java.
- rTWi is a simple rTorrent web interface written in PHP.
- Rtgui is a web based front end for rTorrent written in PHP and uses XML-RPC to communicate with the rTorrent client.
- rutorrent and Forum - A web-based front-end with an interface very similar to uTorrent which supports many plugins and advanced features (see also: Guide for rTorrent + ruTorrent Installation).
XMLRPC interface
If you want to use rtorrent with some web interfaces (e.g. rutorrent) you need to add the following line to the configuration file:
scgi_port = localhost:5000
For more information see: Using XMLRPC with rtorrent
See also
- Screen Tips
- Comparison of BitTorrent clients on Wikipedia
- rTorrent Community Wiki - A public place for information on rTorrent and any project related to rTorrent, regarding setup, configuration, operations, and development.
- PyroScope - A collection of command line tools for rTorrent. It provides commands for creating and modifying torrent files, moving data on completion without having multiple watch folders, and mass-controlling download items via rTorrent's XML-RPC interface: searching, start/stop, deleting items with or without their data, etc. It also offers a documented Python API.
- How-to Install rTorrent and Hellanzb on Centos5 64-bit VPS
- Installation Guide for rTorrent and Pryoscope on Debian - A collection of tools for the BitTorrent protocol and especially the rTorrent client
- mktorrent - A command line application to generate torrent files, which is available as mktorrent in the community repository
Forum threads
- 2009-03-11 - Arch Linux - HOWTO: rtorrent stats in conky
References
- Building rtorrent on Debian Squeeze by Jason Wryan