Seedbox

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A seedbox is a high-bandwidth remote server for uploading and downloading of digital files from a P2P network. [1] [2] The bandwidth ranges generally from 100 Mbit/s to 20 Gbit/s. After the seedbox has acquired the files, people with access to the seedbox can download the file to their personal computers. [3]

Function

Seedboxes generally use the BitTorrent protocol, although they have also been used on the eDonkey2000 network. Seedboxes are usually connected to a high-speed network, often with a throughput of 100 Mbit/s or even 1 Gbit/s. Some providers are testing and offering 10 Gbit/s shared servers, while others are developing other systems that will allow users to scale their needs on the fly. Once the seedbox has a full copy of the files, they can be downloaded at high speeds to a user's personal computer via the HTTP, FTP, SFTP, or rsync protocols. This allows for anonymity and, usually, removes the need to worry about share ratio. More expensive seedboxes may support VNC or Remote Desktop Protocol, allowing many popular clients to be run remotely.[ citation needed ] Other seedboxes are special-purpose and run a variety of torrent-specific software including web interfaces of popular clients like Transmission, rTorrent, Deluge, and μTorrent, as well as the TorrentFlux web interface clients. Mobile interface support is also offered by clients such as Transmission.

Seedboxes on high-speed networks are typically able to download large files within very quickly, provided that the swarm can actually handle such a high upload bandwidth. For example, a seedbox with a transfer rate of 300 Mbit/s can finish downloading a 1  GB file in under half a minute. That same 1 GB file can be uploaded to other users in the same amount of time, creating a 1:1 share ratio for that individual file. The ability to transfer files so quickly makes them very attractive to the P2P communities. Because of the mentioned high speeds, seedboxes tend to be popular when using private torrent trackers, where maintaining a share ratio above 1 can be very important. [4]

Seedboxes are also used to circumvent bandwidth throttling by Internet service providers or to evade laws such as the HADOPI law in France. [5] [6]

Related Research Articles

Uploading refers to transmitting data from one computer system to another through means of a network. Common methods of uploading include: uploading via web browsers, FTP clients], and terminals (SCP/SFTP). Uploading can be used in the context of clients that send files to a central server. While uploading can also be defined in the context of sending files between distributed clients, such as with a peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing protocol like BitTorrent, the term file sharing is more often used in this case. Moving files within a computer system, as opposed to over a network, is called file copying.

eDonkey2000

eDonkey2000 was (is) a peer-to-peer file sharing application developed by US company MetaMachine, using the Multisource File Transfer Protocol. It supported both the eDonkey2000 network and the Overnet network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WinMX</span> Freeware peer-to-peer file sharing program

WinMX is a freeware peer-to-peer file sharing program authored in 2000 by Kevin Hearn in Windsor, Ontario (Canada). According to one study, it was the number one source for online music in 2005 with an estimated 2.1 million users. Frontcode Technologies itself abandoned development of WinMX in September 2005, but developers brought the service back online within a few days by releasing patches. WinMX continues to be used by a community of enthusiasts.

BitTorrent, also referred to as simply torrent, is a communication protocol for peer-to-peer file sharing (P2P), which enables users to distribute data and electronic files over the Internet in a decentralized manner. The protocol is developed and maintained by Rainberry, Inc., and was first released in 2001.

Rogers Hi-Speed Internet is a broadband Internet service provider in Canada, owned by Rogers Communications. Rogers previously operated under the brand names Rogers@Home, Rogers Yahoo! Hi-Speed Internet, WAVE, and Road Runner in Newfoundland. It is currently the second largest Internet provider in Canada, after Bell Internet by customer count.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BitComet</span> BitTorrent, FTP and HTTP client

BitComet is a cross-protocol BitTorrent, HTTP and FTP client written in C++ for Microsoft Windows and available in 52 different languages. Its first public release was version 0.28. The current BitComet logo has been used since version 0.50.

Bandwidth throttling consists in the limitation of the communication speed, of the ingoing (received) or outgoing (sent) data in a network node or in a network device.

BitTorrent is a proprietary adware BitTorrent client developed by Bram Cohen and Rainberry, Inc. used for uploading and downloading files via the BitTorrent protocol. BitTorrent was the first client written for the protocol. It is often nicknamed Mainline by developers denoting its official origins. Since version 6.0 the BitTorrent client has been a rebranded version of μTorrent. As a result, it is no longer open source. It is currently available for Microsoft Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS and Android. There are currently two versions of the software, "BitTorrent Classic" which inherits the historical version numbering, and "BitTorrent Web", which uses its own version numbering.

In computing and specifically in Internet slang, a leech is one who benefits, usually deliberately, from others' information or effort but does not offer anything in return, or makes only token offerings in an attempt to avoid being called a leech. In economics, this type of behavior is called "free riding" and is associated with the free rider problem. The term originated in the bulletin board system era, when it referred to users that would download files and upload nothing in return.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transmission (BitTorrent client)</span> BitTorrent client

Transmission is a BitTorrent client which features a variety of user interfaces on top of a cross-platform back-end. Transmission is free software licensed under the terms of the GNU General Public License, with parts under the MIT License.

In telecommunications, cable Internet access, shortened to cable Internet, is a form of broadband internet access which uses the same infrastructure as cable television. Like digital subscriber line and fiber to the premises services, cable Internet access provides network edge connectivity from the Internet service provider to an end user. It is integrated into the cable television infrastructure analogously to DSL which uses the existing telephone network. Cable TV networks and telecommunications networks are the two predominant forms of residential Internet access. Recently, both have seen increased competition from fiber deployments, wireless, mobile networks and satellite internet access.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pando (application)</span>

Pando was an application which was mainly aimed at sending files which would normally be too large to send via more "conventional" means. It used both peer-to-peer and client-server architectures and was released for Windows and Mac OS X operating systems.

eMule Free peer-to-peer file sharing application for Microsoft Windows.

eMule is a free peer-to-peer file sharing application for Microsoft Windows. Started in May 2002 as an alternative to eDonkey2000, eMule now connects to both the eDonkey network and the Kad network. The distinguishing features of eMule are the direct exchange of sources between client nodes, fast recovery of corrupted downloads, and the use of a credit system to reward frequent uploaders. Furthermore, eMule transmits data in zlib-compressed form to save bandwidth.

This is a glossary of jargon related to peer-to-peer file sharing via the BitTorrent protocol.

Hart v. Comcast was a suit filed by Jon Hart, a citizen of California against Comcast in Alameda County. Comcast is a provider of internet access and services. The suit alleged that Comcast was illegally interfering with certain types of internet traffic, such as BitTorrent. The suit alleged that Comcast is guilty of false advertising for advertising high speed services yet deliberately using technology to interfere with access speeds. The suit also claimed Comcast's actions violated established Federal Communications Commission policies on Net Neutrality. The case has since been settled out of court.

libtorrent

libtorrent is an open-source implementation of the BitTorrent protocol. It is written in and has its main library interface in C++. Its most notable features are support for Mainline DHT, IPv6, HTTP seeds and μTorrent's peer exchange. libtorrent uses Boost, specifically Boost.Asio to gain its platform independence. It is known to build on Windows and most Unix-like operating systems.

In the BitTorrent file distribution system, a torrent file or meta-info file is a computer file that contains metadata about files and folders to be distributed, and usually also a list of the network locations of trackers, which are computers that help participants in the system find each other and form efficient distribution groups called swarms. Torrent files are normally named with the extension .torrent.

Torrent poisoning is intentionally sharing corrupt data or data with misleading file names using the BitTorrent protocol. This practice of uploading fake torrents is sometimes carried out by anti-infringement organisations as an attempt to prevent the peer-to-peer (P2P) sharing of copyrighted content, and to gather the IP addresses of downloaders.

Traffic classification is an automated process which categorises computer network traffic according to various parameters into a number of traffic classes. Each resulting traffic class can be treated differently in order to differentiate the service implied for the data generator or consumer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seeding (computing)</span>

In computing, and specifically peer-to-peer file sharing, seeding is the uploading of already downloaded content for others to download from. A peer, a computer that is connected to the network, becomes a seed when having acquired the entire set of data, it begins to offer its upload bandwidth to other peers attempting to download the file. This data consists of small parts so that seeds can effectively share their content with other peers, handing out the missing pieces. A peer deliberately chooses to become a seed by leaving the upload task active once the content has downloaded. The motivation to seed is mainly to keep the file being shared in circulation and a desire to not act as a parasite. The opposite of a seed is a leech, a peer that downloads more than they upload.

References

  1. ↑ Butler, Sydney (10 January 2018). "Torrenting? You Need to Get a Seedbox Right Now!". TechNadu. Archived from the original on 12 March 2021. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  2. ↑ Kishore, Aseem (7 November 2018). "Use a Seedbox and WinSCP for Fast, Private Torrents". Help Desk Geek. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  3. ↑ "What is a Seedbox?". Seedbox Guide. Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  4. ↑ Andy (4 March 2018). "Torrent Seedbox Veterans Bow Out of Changing Market". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on 27 September 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  5. ↑ Advantages on owning a Seedbox, SeedBoxList, 14 March 2012, archived from the original on 24 March 2015, retrieved 24 April 2017
  6. ↑ "What to look for when choosing a seedbox". SeedBoxCenter. 13 August 2013. Archived from the original on 16 January 2020. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
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