It is not uncommon for a situation when, when downloading files via torrent clients (uTorrent and others), the Internet disappears. Most often this happens when the computer from which the torrents are being downloaded is connected to the Internet through a router. The connection can be either over a wireless Wi-Fi network or over a network cable. And as practice shows, most often the Internet is simply turned off. More precisely, access to the Internet is lost, but the connection to the router remains. And the situation is saved only by restarting the router, after which the Internet works again until a certain moment. If you do not disable torrent downloads and close uTorrent.
True, there are individual cases when the Internet disappears, which is connected directly to the computer. And the computer itself can freeze, or even reboot. But this is already a topic for another article. In this case, it does not matter at all what operating system is installed on your computer. I have seen comments when launching a torrent client caused internet disconnection in both Windows 10 and Windows 7. It is clear that the eight and even XP can also suffer.
In this article, we will try to find out what could be the reason for such interruptions in the connection, why this happens exactly when downloading files, and what can be done. I'll show you how to set up uTorrent to try and get rid of this problem.
Weak Wi-Fi router - the reason for the unstable work of the torrent client
In almost all cases, it is the router that is to blame. More precisely, a weak router. If you have a connection through a budget router for 15-20 dollars, then there is a very high probability that this router simply cannot cope with the load that the torrent client creates and freezes. Only a reboot can bring him to his senses. Then, for a while it keeps downloading files again and "crashes" again.
I have seen cases when, even without active downloads in uTorrent, the Internet was constantly lost. There were several files in the distribution. After uTorrent was closed completely, the Internet began to work more or less stably. You need to understand that the router hangs as a last resort. If it even keeps the torrent client running, then the connection speed is likely to be very slow. Ping will drop dramatically. And if at this time other devices begin to use the connection at the same time, then this only aggravates the situation, and the hardware of the router simply cannot stand it.
The whole problem is that the router cannot cope with such a flow of requests. It just doesn't have enough power. Weak processor, little RAM, and as usual - raw software (firmware). Many, faced with such a problem, often reflash their routers with alternative firmware such as OpenWRT, DD-WRT. But it rarely helps. On native firmware, the router can work even more stably.
Also, the reason for such an unstable operation of the router at moments of increased load may be a problem on the board itself, or in the power supply. If the power supply is already a little "worn out", then it does not supply the required voltage, and the router itself suffers from this. I wrote about this in the article, the router constantly reboots, or you have to reboot.
If you have a 100 Mbit / s tariff plan and you want to download torrents at a good speed without any problems, then it is better to immediately buy a normal router. At least 50 dollars. You can look at the article with tips for choosing a router. Otherwise, you will not see these 100 Mbps for which you pay to the provider. By cable, maybe, but not by Wi-Fi. An expensive Wi-Fi router is also unlikely to squeeze out 100 Mbit / s, especially in the 2.4GHz range, but the speed will definitely be higher.
Configuring uTorrent for stable operation via a Wi-Fi router
Launch uTorrent and go to the program settings.
Go to the "BitTorrent" tab and make the following settings:
- Enable DHT network - uncheck.
- Enable DHT for new torrents - uncheck the box.
- Control speed [uTP] - also uncheck the box.
Click "Apply" and "Ok".
After this setting, try to put some file for download, and see if the Internet is lost. If the problem is not resolved, then you can still try experimenting with the speed settings and the maximum number of connections.
In the settings, on the "Speed" tab, try to limit the maximum reception and upload speed. You can put the same values as mine in the screenshot below.
You can also change the number of simultaneous connections. Set, for example, 100 and reduce the maximum number of peers by one torrent.
You need to experiment with these values. Reduce them and watch the result.
If the problem persists
In this case, if possible, connect your computer to the router not via Wi-Fi, but via a network cable. If this does not help, then try connecting the Internet directly to your computer, without a router. This should definitely fix the problem. But the Internet on other devices will certainly not work.
If the direct download is stable, nothing is interrupted, then you need to think about buying a new and more powerful router. This option will most likely definitely solve the problem with an unstable connection at the time of downloading torrents. And besides, the speed of the connection itself will be higher if your tariff plan allows.
You can still update your router's firmware. If the manufacturer's website has a new version for your model.
