My torrent stopped downloading

Torrenting has been under a lot of scrutiny around the world, but it has failed to change the status quo – it’s still one of the most popular methods for people around the globe to obtain their entertainment. I have been torrenting since I can remember, in my country torrent sites got banned years ago, even before other countries. But that didn’t stop me. However, users are reporting the error BitTorrent or uTorrent not downloading or connecting to peers, there can be several causes to this.

We will discuss all the cause and the appropriate fix for torrenting not working or downloading the files as fast as you would expect.

What Causes the BitTorrent or uTorrent Not Downloading/Connecting to Peers?

A number of reasons can cause the uTorrent not downloading problem, the primary being dead torrent or no seeds. If a torrent file is too old, the number of seeds can be low, meaning only a few people are uploading it. Hence, slow download or not at all. If you have too many torrents seeding that could also be a cause of the problem.

Other causes of this problem can be the Windows Firewall or the antivirus, ISP blocking the download and upload of torrent files, slow VPN connection, VPN incompatibility, or just general internet congestion.

You need to identify the exact cause of the problem, once you have identified the cause, the solution becomes easy. For the purpose of this post, I will share all the possible fix for the downloading or connecting to peer problem with the BitTorrent or uTorrent client.

Solutions to Fix BitTorrent or uTorrent Not Downloading

Fix 1: Stop All Seeding Torrents

The first fix you should try is stop all the seeding torrents and then, attempt the download. We are often lazy and once a torrent has been downloaded, we let it seed, but that seems to throttle the capacity of the uTorrent or BitTorrent client. So, stop all the seeding torrent and download the file. It should work. If not, try the next fix.

Fix 2: Download the File with Higher Seed Count

You probably know this if you have been torrenting for a long time. The higher the seed the better for downloading. If you try to download the file from a torrent with low seed, it will fail to connect peers and the download speed will suffer. Most of the websites you visit, will show you the number of seed for the torrent file like the above example. The above example is from the former website ExtraTorrent, now only accessible via proxies, but still very active and reliable.

As you can see the above example, it shows much more than seeds. You can also check the health of the torrent, which indicates people are seeing the torrent. On the other hand, if the health is orange or red, it indicates a torrent with low seeds with red being the worst torrent files.

Hence, download a file with high seed to resolve the not downloading problem with BitTorrent or uTorrent.

Fix 3: Pause and Start the Download

Pausing and restarting works best when you have the download stuck at 0% issue on uTorrent Android version or the desktop version. If you are having difficulty connecting to peers, a simple pause and start can kick start the process and your download would begin. If I had a penny for every time this worked and how often I use it.  

Fix 4: Set Exception for uTorrent on Windows Firewall or Antivirus

The Windows Firewall monitors the packetsof data coming in and going out of your computer. It may be terminating some processes of BitTorrent or uTorrent, so you should set an exclusion in the software for uTorrent, so it functions normally. Here is how you can do this.

1. Press Windows Key + I and select Update & Security
2. Click on Windows Security and select Firewall & network protection
3. Click on Allow an app through firewall
4. Click on Change settings
5. Locate BitTorrent or uTorrent and tick both Private and Public
6. Save the changes.

Antivirus Software

If you are using a third-party antivirus, you need to set an exception on the antivirus for uTorrent. Here are the steps for various antivirus programs.

Kaspersky Internet Security

• Home >> Settings >> Additional >> Threats and Exclusions >> Exclusions >> Specify Trusted Applications >> Add.

AVG

• Home >> Settings >> Components >> Web Shield >> Exceptions >> Set the exception.

Avast Antivirus

• Home >> Settings >> General >> Exclusions >> Set the exclusion.

Fix 5: Update Tracker in BitTorrent and uTorrent

The option to update the tracker is available in both the clients – BitTorrent and uTorrent. By simply clicking on this option, you can fix the BitTorrent or uTorrent not downloading/connecting to peers issue. To perform the process, simply right-click on the torrent file you want to download and select Update Tracker.

Once you click on Update Tracker, the client will immediately look for peers. If that does not work, close the torrent client and in the Windows search tab, type %APPDATA%. Open the file and locate the BitTorrent or uTorrent. Now, look for a file named resume.dat and delete the file.

Once done, try launching the client and check if the error still occurs.

Fix 6: Run Tests on the Torrent Client

This works for both BitTorrent and uTorrent client because essentially almost all the features and functions of both the clients are the same. When you have encountered a problem like stuck on connecting to peers it can point towards a misconfiguration in your network. The torrent clients give you an option to test your connection. After this test, the client installs the best settings for the system. Here is how you can perform the steps.  

1. Press Ctrl + G to open the BitTorrent Setup Guide (if this option does not work for you. Click on Options in the top left corner and select Setup Guide)
2. Now ensure Bandwidth and Network are both ticked, select the server you are using or the nearest option.
3. Click on Run tests.

After the test is complete, click on Save & Close to save the changes. Now, close the torrent client and relaunch it. Try downloading the torrent file.

Fix 7: Use a Torrent Friendly VPN

You may already be using a VPN to download the torrent files, it helps you bypass geo-location restrictions. Meaning, you can use torrent even when the client or the service is banned in your country. However, often the VPN can slow down causing the not downloading or connecting to peers issue with the torrent client. Ideally, you should be using a software that supports torrenting. They provide you specific servers where torrenting is not banned. Here are some of the VPNs you can choose from.

Check if BitTorrent or uTorrent not downloading/connecting to Peers problems is fixed.

Fix 8: Bypass ISP Blocks by Enabling Protocol Encryption

Your internet service provider may have put a block on torrent files, which is limiting the download speed. Although torrent clients do not encrypt data, it provides a similar feature specifically to bypass such ISP blocks. Here are the steps you can perform to ensure your torrent download speed is not throttled by the internet service provider.

1. Press Ctrl + P to open Preferences (If the option does not work for you, click the Option on the top left corner and select Preferences)
2. Now, click on BitTorrent from the vertical menu
3. Under Protocol Encryption, select Enable from the drop-down menu.
4. Save the changes and exit.

Now, try downloading and check if the torrent speed is still suffering or connecting to peers problem still occurs. If it does, try the next solution.

Fix 9: Check Bandwidth Allocation

Although the bandwidth allocation by default is set to unlimited, you may have altered it by mistake. If it’s set to 0, that is the problem as you have specified 0 download speed for the torrent file. Ideally select the maximum download speed such as 3000 kb/s or higher. Here is how you can check and set the limit.

1. Right-click on the torrent file > Bandwidth Allocation > Set Download Limit
2. Choose the value (Note: In the first try, the max available limit will be 1000 kb/s, so select it and repeat the process, now the limit available will be 5000 kb/s).

Fix 10: Change Incoming Ports

The final fix we are going to attempt is to change the incoming ports. If the port is not right, it may be the cause of the problem. In the torrent client, you have the option to set the incoming port. Here are the steps to follow.

1. Press Ctrl + P to open Preferences (If the option does not work for you, click the Option on the top left corner and select Preferences)
2. Now, click on Connection from the vertical menu
3. Ensure Enable UPnP port mapping and Enable NAT-PMP port mapping are checked
4. Increase or decrease the Listening Ports by 1
5. Save the changes and exit.

That’s all we have for this post, we hope the BitTorrent or uTorrent not downloading or connecting to Peers issue is fixed. Let us know in comments what worked and if you have a better solution.

I am an avid gamer who loves to write about games. When not writing, I like to cook and play first-person shooter video games.