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KnifeMissile · 01-11-2005, 03:03 AM

Well, you seem to be desperately stuck so let me take a shot in the dark (keep in mind I don't really know much so I'll just take wild guesses as to what's going on).

First, try running Bit Torrent without your firewall. Does it still work? If not, then something is configured badly in your client or your ISP is doing something bad to you. The reality is that, while it's preferable to have port forwards for Bit Torrent, they are not necessary! Bit Torrent will work just fine even if you are behind a firewall and all you can do is connect out. This is because many people operate their computers without firewalls so, even if they can't connect to you, you can always connect to them. So, there really isn't any reason why Bit Torrent isn't working for you, even if you haven't configured your router properly.

Secondly, I suspect the application-triggered port forwarding is not helping you. I'm guessing that what that page does is it allows the computer you're connecting to at those outbound ports connect back to you on those inbound ports. I'm also guessing, by the ports you've entered, that you're anticipating the tracker connecting back to you at those inbound ports. I don't think this happens. Once you've connected to the tracker that's all the tracker needs to communicate with you and no port forwarding of any kind is needed. It's just as well, too, because what port you connect to the tracker with is not a constant but defined by the tracker file. So, you might as well take these port forwards out. Who knows, maybe having application-triggered and persistent port forwards on the same port is screwing it up.

I couldn't help but notice that the persistent port forwards forward ports to a static IP address. Make sure your computer actually has this address. If it is assigned using DHCP, it probably has the wrong address!

Lastly, I don't think Bit Torrent uses any other protocol than TCP, so you can probably make your machine a little more secure and remove those UDP port forwards.

Well, this is the best I can come up with. I hope it helps! I know how frustrating it can be to have computers that don't work properly...

01-11-2005, 03:03 AM	#6 (permalink)
KnifeMissile Location: Waterloo, Ontario	Well, you seem to be desperately stuck so let me take a shot in the dark (keep in mind I don't really know much so I'll just take wild guesses as to what's going on). First, try running Bit Torrent without your firewall. Does it still work? If not, then something is configured badly in your client or your ISP is doing something bad to you. The reality is that, while it's preferable to have port forwards for Bit Torrent, they are not necessary! Bit Torrent will work just fine even if you are behind a firewall and all you can do is connect out. This is because many people operate their computers without firewalls so, even if they can't connect to you, you can always connect to them. So, there really isn't any reason why Bit Torrent isn't working for you, even if you haven't configured your router properly. Secondly, I suspect the application-triggered port forwarding is not helping you. I'm guessing that what that page does is it allows the computer you're connecting to at those outbound ports connect back to you on those inbound ports. I'm also guessing, by the ports you've entered, that you're anticipating the tracker connecting back to you at those inbound ports. I don't think this happens. Once you've connected to the tracker that's all the tracker needs to communicate with you and no port forwarding of any kind is needed. It's just as well, too, because what port you connect to the tracker with is not a constant but defined by the tracker file. So, you might as well take these port forwards out. Who knows, maybe having application-triggered and persistent port forwards on the same port is screwing it up. I couldn't help but notice that the persistent port forwards forward ports to a static IP address. Make sure your computer actually has this address. If it is assigned using DHCP, it probably has the wrong address! Lastly, I don't think Bit Torrent uses any other protocol than TCP, so you can probably make your machine a little more secure and remove those UDP port forwards. Well, this is the best I can come up with. I hope it helps! I know how frustrating it can be to have computers that don't work properly...