How to Bittorrent Fahrenheit 9/11 on a Windows 2003 home network · 364 words posted 07/08/2004 10:15 PM
I plan to see “Fahrenheit 9/11,” but it’s a movie for which I am utterly unwilling to pay. Luckily, BoingBoing has posted a link to several torrents, along with download instructions.
For the uninitiated, BitTorrent is a free program for downloading very large files via distributed networks. Sort of like the old Napster on steroids. The only real catch is that BitTorrent enforces share and share alike rules: your torrents will download much more quickly if you allow incoming connections. This isn’t always easy for a non-technical user to configure if you’re on a home network behind a firewall.
My setup: a home network, connected to the Internet via cable modem, with a Windows 2003 server. BitTorrent is installed on a Windows laptop, which gets its connection to the internet via the Windows 2003 server. I use NAT to allocate the IP addresses of my client machines.
To download torrents quickly with this setup:
- Open “Routing and Remote Access” (All Programs > Administrative Tools > Routing and Remote Access).
- Expand your server node.
- Expand IP Routing.
- In the NAT/Basic Firewall node, find your connection to the internet. This is probably something like “Local Area Connection.”
- Right click on that connection and then select Properties.
- Select the “Services and Ports” tab.
- Add TCP services on port 6881. This part is critical for fast downloads: in the “private address” field, enter the IP address of the client machine on which you installed BitTorrent.
- Repeat the previous step for ports 6881-6889.
Obviously, this isn’t an ideal way to handle your port forwarding if you let your IP leases expire frequently, but if you’re on a home network you probably don’t.
Let me know if this works for you. Popcorn and soft drinks at my place tonight.
Links:
- BitTorrent. The Official BitTorrent home page.
- Brian’s BitTorrent FAQ and Guide. See especially the section entitled will it work behind a firewall/NAT? if your setup is different from the one I’ve described.
- James Lileks gives Michael Moore a big, chubby bear hug
Update: It looks like the torrent linked by BoingBoing was pirated Thai-style—someone sat in a theater and taped it. I’ll post a new torrent link if I come across a better copy.
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