QBittorrent vs Webtorrent-desktop

Pros

• Open-source and free: qBittorrent is a free, open-source BitTorrent client, allowing users to benefit from community contributions and transparency.

• Cross-platform compatibility: Available for Windows, macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD, making it accessible to a wide range of users.

• Feature-rich: Offers a comprehensive set of features including sequential downloading, torrent creation, and RSS feed support.

• User-friendly interface: Provides an intuitive and clean interface, making it easy for both beginners and advanced users to navigate and use.

Cons

• Limited mobile support: Unlike some competitors, qBittorrent lacks official mobile apps for iOS and Android platforms.

• Occasional stability issues: Some users report crashes or freezes, particularly with large numbers of torrents or on certain system configurations.

• Less frequent updates: Development cycles can be slower compared to some other BitTorrent clients, potentially leading to delayed feature implementations or bug fixes.

• Limited cloud integration: Lacks built-in support for cloud storage services, which some users may find inconvenient for remote access or backup purposes.

Pros

• Cross-platform compatibility: Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux, providing a consistent experience across different operating systems.
• Open-source: The project is open-source, allowing for community contributions and transparency in development.
• User-friendly interface: Offers a simple and intuitive interface for streaming and downloading torrents.
• Streaming capability: Allows users to stream media files while they are still downloading, providing instant playback.

Cons

• Limited active development: The project has seen reduced activity in recent years, which may impact future updates and bug fixes.
• Resource intensive: Can be demanding on system resources, especially when handling multiple torrents or large files.
• Potential legal concerns: As with any torrent client, users need to be cautious about copyright infringement and adhere to local laws.
• Limited advanced features: Compared to some other torrent clients, it may lack certain advanced features for power users.

Torrent Addition

This snippet demonstrates how to add a torrent to qBittorrent using the WebUI API:

import requests

url = "http://localhost:8080/api/v2/torrents/add"
files = {'torrents': open('example.torrent', 'rb')}
data = {
    'savepath': '/downloads',
    'category': 'movies',
    'paused': 'false'
}
response = requests.post(url, files=files, data=data)

Torrent Management

Here's an example of how to pause, resume, and delete torrents using the API:

import qbittorrentapi

qbt_client = qbittorrentapi.Client(host='localhost:8080')
qbt_client.auth_log_in()

torrent_hash = 'example_hash'
qbt_client.torrents_pause(torrent_hashes=torrent_hash)
qbt_client.torrents_resume(torrent_hashes=torrent_hash)
qbt_client.torrents_delete(delete_files=True, torrent_hashes=torrent_hash)

RSS Feed Management

This snippet shows how to add and manage RSS feeds in qBittorrent:

from qbittorrent import Client

qb = Client('http://127.0.0.1:8080/')
qb.login('admin', 'adminadmin')

qb.add_feed('http://example.com/rss_feed')
qb.set_feed_rule('Example Rule', 'example', 'movies', '/downloads/movies')
feeds = qb.feeds()
print(feeds)

Torrent Streaming

This snippet demonstrates how to create a WebTorrent client and stream a torrent:

const WebTorrent = require('webtorrent')
const client = new WebTorrent()

client.add('magnet:?xt=urn:btih:...', function (torrent) {
  const file = torrent.files.find(function (file) {
    return file.name.endsWith('.mp4')
  })
  file.renderTo('video#player')
})

Adding Torrents to the Client

Here's how to add torrents to the WebTorrent Desktop client:

const electron = require('electron')
const ipc = electron.ipcRenderer

function addTorrent (torrentId) {
  ipc.send('wt-start-torrenting', torrentId)
}

addTorrent('magnet:?xt=urn:btih:...')
addTorrent('https://example.com/movie.torrent')

Installation

Windows

1. Download the installer from the official qBittorrent website.
2. Run the installer and follow the on-screen instructions.

macOS

1. Install Homebrew if you haven't already:

   /bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"
   

2. Install qBittorrent using Homebrew:

   brew install qbittorrent
   

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)

1. Add the qBittorrent PPA:

   sudo add-apt-repository ppa:qbittorrent-team/qbittorrent-stable
   

2. Update package list and install qBittorrent:

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt install qbittorrent
   

Basic Usage

1. Launch qBittorrent from your applications menu or command line.

2. Add a torrent:

   • Click on the "+" button in the toolbar
   • Select "Add Torrent Link" or "Add Torrent File"
   • Enter the magnet link or select the .torrent file

3. Configure download settings:

   • Right-click on the added torrent
   • Select "Set Location" to choose where to save the downloaded files

4. Start the download:

   • The torrent will start automatically if "Start torrent" was checked when adding
   • Otherwise, right-click on the torrent and select "Resume"

5. Monitor progress:

   • The main window displays download progress, speed, and other details
   • Use the tabs at the bottom to view more information about the torrent

Advanced Configuration

To access advanced settings:

1. Go to Tools > Options (or Preferences on macOS)
2. Explore the various tabs to customize qBittorrent's behavior, including:
   • Downloads: Set default save path, seeding limits, etc.
   • Connection: Configure network settings and port forwarding
   • BitTorrent: Adjust protocol-specific options
   • RSS: Set up automatic downloads based on RSS feeds

Installation

1. Ensure you have Node.js installed on your system.

2. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/webtorrent/webtorrent-desktop.git

3. Navigate to the project directory:

cd webtorrent-desktop

4. Install dependencies:

npm install

Basic Usage

Running the Application

To start WebTorrent Desktop, run the following command:

npm start

Adding a Torrent

1. Click the "+" button in the top-left corner of the application.
2. Enter a magnet link or select a .torrent file from your computer.
3. WebTorrent Desktop will begin downloading the torrent.

Streaming a Video

To stream a video file from a torrent:

1. Select the torrent from the list.
2. Click on the video file you want to stream.
3. The built-in video player will open and start playing the file.

Development

To run the application in development mode with hot reloading:

npm run dev

This will start the application and automatically reload it when you make changes to the source code.