Main Window: Torrent Jobs List

µTorrent User Manual

The torrent jobs list is the main interface item in µTorrent. It is where your torrent jobs are displayed, along with plenty of information for each of them. Sorting by more than one column is possible in this list. You can do so by sorting by one column, then hold Shift on your keyboard while selecting the secondary column by which µTorrent should sort the list by. If an RSS item is double-clicked, it gets added to the download queue. The following is a description of each column:

  • Name displays the name of the torrent job. The initial name used for each torrent job is the name of the file being transferred (if the torrent contents consist of a single file), or the directory being transferred (if the torrent contents consist of multiple files). A torrent job can be renamed in the list by slow double-clicking on the torrent job, or by pressing F2 on the keyboard while the torrent job is selected. To cancel the renaming, you should press Esc on the keyboard. To confirm the change, you should press Enter on the keyboard, or use the mouse to click anywhere else on the torrent jobs list. Renaming the torrent job will not rename the file or directory being transferred.
    • Downloading means the torrent job is downloading without issue
    • Queued Download means the torrent job is a queued download
    • Downloading (Error) means the torrent job is downloading, but there is a tracker error
    • Seeding means the torrent job is seeding without issue
    • Queued Seed means the torrent job is a queued seed
    • Seeding (Error) means the torrent job is seeding, but there is a tracker error
    • Paused means the torrent job is paused
    • Stopped means the torrent job is stopped, but hasn't finished downloading
    • Finished means the torrent job is stopped, and has finished downloading
    • Error means the torrent job has a critical error (check the Status column)
    • RSS means the item is an RSS feed item that has not been added to the torrent jobs queue
    • RSS (New) means the release is less than 24 hours old
    • RSS (Added) means the torrent job has already been added and moved to the history for the RSS item
  • # displays the torrent job's place in the download queue. When a torrent job stops or finishes, the next lowest numbered torrent job that is queued for download will start automatically. Torrent jobs that have not reached the seeding goal will have a * (asterisk) instead of an integer. Torrent jobs that have reached the seeding goal will have a blank in this column. Forced torrent jobs do not follow the queue order, although they will be assigned queue numbers like regular torrent jobs. Note that if you want the arrow buttons to move the torrent jobs up and down in the list visually, you must sort the torrent jobs list by this column.
  • Added displays the date and time that the torrent job was added to the torrent jobs list.
  • Availability displays the number of copies of the torrent contents that are distributed in the swarm.
  • Bandwidth Allocation displays the bandwidth allocation given to the torrent job (High, Normal, or Low). Right-clicking a torrent job on this column will bring up the Bandwidth Allocation context sub-menu.
  • Codec displays the codec that the video was encoded in assuming it is a video and is an RSS item.
  • Completed displays the total amount of data you have in the torrent contents that passed the hash checks, as well as any incomplete pieces currently in progress.
  • Completed On displays the date and time that the torrent job finished downloading. If the torrent job has yet to be completed, this column will be blank.
  • Debug displays information that might be useful in debugging problems.
  • Disk Job displays information on any torrent jobs that are having disk I/O issues.
  • Done displays the approximate percent of the torrent job that µTorrent has completed. Its value is calculated by dividing the number under the Completed column by the number under the Selected Size column. If gui.graphic_progress is enabled, µTorrent will draw a progress bar behind the percentage. If gui.piecebar_progress is enabled, µTorrent will draw a piece progress bar instead.
  • Down Limit displays the maximum download rate limit set on the individual torrent job. If no limit is set, this column will be blank. Right-clicking a torrent job on this column will bring up the Set Download Limit context sub-menu.
  • Down Speed displays the current speed at which data is being downloaded for the individual torrent job. If the download rate is negligible, this column will be blank.
  • Downloaded displays the total amount of data you have downloaded, including those that were wasted or failed the hash checks.
  • Elapsed displays the total amount of time that µTorrent has had the torrent job started for since it was added.
  • Episode displays the episode number of the torrent job, if applicable.
  • ETA displays the estimated amount of time needed for µTorrent to finish downloading the torrent job. If the torrent job is in seeding mode, then this column displays the estimated time it will take for µTorrent to reach the seeding goal. If the torrent job is stopped or has reached its seeding goal, this column will be blank. If the torrent job is transferring too slowly, this column will display the symbol. Note that this column takes selective file downloading into account, so only the data you select to be downloaded will be counted in the time calculation.
  • Format displays the video quality of the torrent job, assuming it is a video and is an RSS item.
  • Health displays 0-5 bars that indicate the availability of the torrent using: this formula - log2(Availability).  I.e. distributed copies being 1 = 1 bar, 2 = 2 bars , 4 = 3 bars, 8 = 4 bars and 16 = 5 bars.
  • Label displays the label set for the torrent job. Right-clicking a torrent job on this column will bring up the Label context sub-menu.
  • Last Active displays the amount of time that has elapsed since µTorrent last finished transferring a chunk of data for the torrent job. When the torrent job is downloading, this time will be reset only upon the download completion of a piece. When the torrent job is seeding, this time will be reset only upon the upload completion of a 16 KiB block of data. This number is updated only when the torrent job is started. It should be understood that for stopped torrent jobs, the number is relative to the time at which the torrent job was actually stopped.
  • Peers displays the number of peers you are connected to, and the number of peers in the swarm within the parentheses. The number of peers in the swarm is an estimate based on the maximum number of peers found either between the amounts reported by any tracker, or the number of peers µTorrent has encountered within its peer cache. If the torrent job is stopped, and bt.scrape_stopped is enabled, µTorrent will show the maximum number of peers in the swarm as reported by the tracker scrapes.
  • Playback - the multi-purpose stream/play/status button and display lets you start streaming (of your  choice of media file), play the stream  when ready and in between - shows the estimated time till this stream is ready to play.
  • Ratio displays the ratio of uploaded data to downloaded data. Its value is calculated by dividing the number under the Uploaded column by the number under the Downloaded column. If the torrent job was added when the file was already complete (seeding the file upon adding), then the ratio will start from 0, and will be calculated based on the ratio of the uploaded data to the torrent content size.
  • Rating displays the average scores given by all users to this torrent
  • Remaining displays the amount of data left for µTorrent to download before it finishes downloading the torrent job. Note that this column takes selective file downloading into account, so only the data you select to be downloaded will be counted. If no data is left to be downloaded, this column will be blank.
  • Seeds displays the number of seeds you are connected to, and the number of seeds in the swarm within the parentheses. The number of seeds in the swarm is an estimate based on the maximum number of seeds found either between the amounts reported by any tracker, or the number of seeds µTorrent has encountered within its peer cache. If the torrent job is stopped, and bt.scrape_stopped is enabled, µTorrent will show the maximum number of seeds in the swarm as reported by the tracker scrapes.
  • Seeds/Peers displays the ratio of seeds to peers. Its value is by dividing the number in the parentheses under the Seeds column by the number in the parentheses under the Peers column.
  • Selected Size shows only the size of the torrent contents you have selected for µTorrent to download. The size of all pieces belonging to skipped files that also pass the checks will also be taken into account and added in this column.
  • Size shows the complete size of the torrent contents, regardless of whether you are using selective file downloading on that torrent job or not.
  • Source URL displays the URL that the source .torrent file is located at. The source URL is only applicable for RSS items and torrent jobs added from URL.
  • Status displays the current status of the torrent job. If an error occurs on this torrent job, depending on the error, it might be displayed on this column. Otherwise, the following are normally displayed:
    • Downloading means the torrent job is currently downloading.
    • Finished means the torrent job has been stopped after it reached seeding mode. If the torrent job reaches this without user intervention, then it means it reached the seeding goal.
    • Initial-Seeding means the torrent job is being seeded in Initial Seeding mode.
    • Paused means the torrent job is paused, but not stopped (still connected to peers).
    • Queued means the torrent job is waiting for another torrent job to finish downloading before starting.
    • Queued Seed means the torrent job is waiting for another torrent job to finish seeding before starting.
    • Seeding means the torrent job is finished downloading, and is currently in seeding mode.
    • Stopped means the torrent job is stopped (not transferring, and not connected to any peers).
    • [F] Downloading means the torrent job is forced started and downloading, so it is outside of the queue order.
    • [F] Initial-Seeding means the torrent job is forced started and seeding in Initial Seeding mode, so it is outside of the queue order. Forced initial-seeding torrent jobs do not obey the seeding goal.
    • [F] Seeding means the torrent job is forced started and seeding, so it is outside of the queue order. Forced seeding torrent jobs do not obey the seeding goal.
    • Previously Downloaded means the item is a part of an RSS feed, and was previously added to the torrent jobs list (it is listed in the RSS History tab).
    • Waiting for Metadata applies to magnet links and means that µTorrent is waiting to download the meta details about the files contained within the magnet link.
    • Connecting to Peers means the client is waiting to make a connection to at least one peer so it can begin downloading the file.
    • Checked % means the client is currently checking previously-downloaded data for the torrent job in question.
    • RSS means the item is a part of an RSS feed, and not yet added to the torrent queue.
    • Moving means the torrent job has completed, and the torrent file(s) are being moved to the alternate destination path. This status  will also show up when using the "Set Download Location" function.  
    • Flushing means the torrent is about to finish downloading and is writing the pieces, that are still in cache - to the disk.
  • Tracker displays the first working tracker's base URL.
  • Tracker Status displays the tracker's status.
  • Up Limit displays the maximum upload rate limit set on the individual torrent job. If no limit is set, this column will be blank. Right-clicking a torrent job on this column will bring up the Set Upload Limit context sub-menu.
  • Up Speed displays the current speed at which data is being uploaded for the individual torrent job. If the upload rate is negligible, this column will be blank.
  • Uploaded displays the total amount of data you have uploaded.

Context Menu

If you right-click on a torrent job, you'll see a context menu. They are described in the following list:

  • Torrent Options
    • Transfer will copy your converted media file(s) to your selected paired device
    • Open will attempt to open the torrent contents for the selected torrent job(s) with the associated application for the file type. This will only work for single-file torrent jobs.
    • Open Containing Folder opens the directory containing the torrent contents in an Explorer window. If the torrent job contents consist of a single file, that file will be highlighted. Otherwise, the torrent job's directory will be displayed instead.
    • Show Converted Files will open Windows Explorer in the location of the media files converted for your paired device
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    • Copy Magnet URI... copies a magnet URI link to the Windows clipboard for the selected torrent job(s), multiple URIs separated by newlines.
    • Open URL in Browser will open the linked URL(s) in your default web browser.
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    • Force Start takes the selected torrent job(s) out of queue order (makes it ignore queueing) and forces it to start immediately, even if the maximum number of active torrent jobs and/or downloads has been reached. Forced torrent jobs will not stop even if they reach the seeding goal. The scheduler is unable to stop forced torrent jobs.
    • Start will start the selected torrent job(s), or add it onto the queue if the number of active torrent jobs has reached the maximum set in the Preferences.
    • Pause will pause the selected torrent job(s), but won't actually stop it. This tells µTorrent to attempt to retain connections to peers without having to re-establish them like starting stopped torrent jobs would require. It is useful for when you need quick access to bandwidth. Realize that while µTorrent won't drop the connections on its own accord, the connection can still get dropped by the client on the other end of the connection.
    • Stop will stop the selected torrent job(s). All connections with peers are dropped.
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    • Move Up Queue will decrease the selected torrent's queue number, thus bringing it closer to the top of the queue (meaning it will become active sooner than those with higher queue numbers). Holding Shift while pressing this button will move the selected torrent job to the top of the queue. Note that this button will not visually move the torrent job up the list unless you sort the list by the "#" column. Pressing Ctrl+Alt+Up on the keyboard is equivalent to selecting this item when the torrent job is selected.
    • Move Down Queue will increase the selected torrent's queue number, thus bringing it further from the top of the queue (meaning it will become active later than those with lower queue numbers). Holding Shift while pressing this button will move the selected torrent job to the bottom of the queue. Note that this button will not visually move the torrent job down the list unless you sort the list by the "#" column. Pressing Ctrl+Alt+Down on the keyboard is equivalent to selecting this item when the torrent job is selected.
    • Labels allows you to set or reset labels for any selected torrent job. All labels will be listed at the this submenu, where you can also select-check (or un-check) any of them for this torrent.
      • New Label... will display a dialog asking you to enter the name of a new (temporary) label.
      • Set Primary will choose a label to be the first one displayed (primary) for this torrent.
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    • Bandwidth Allocation is an option that makes µTorrent allocate upload bandwidth to the selected torrent job(s) based on the option selected. This option works only if a global maximum upload rate is set, or the selected torrent job(s) each have an individual maximum upload rate set.
      • High will give the selected torrent job(s) more upload bandwidth relative to other torrent jobs of lower bandwidth allocation levels (Low or Normal).
      • Normal is the default bandwidth allocation given.
      • Low will give the selected torrent job(s) less upload bandwidth relative to other torrent jobs of higher bandwidth allocation levels (Normal or High).
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      • Set Download Limit allows you to control the maximum download rate for the selected torrent job(s). The values displayed depend on the speed popup list settings in the Preferences. If the speed popup list is not manually overridden, then the maximum value available for selection will depend on the global maximum download rate limit.
      • Set Upload Limit allows you to control the maximum upload rate for the selected torrent job(s). The values displayed depend on the speed popup list settings in the Preferences. If the speed popup list is not manually overridden, then the maximum value available for selection will depend on the global maximum upload rate limit.
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    • Remove removes the selected torrent job(s) from the list, but all related files are left intact on the disk.
    • Remove And
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    • Force Re-Check tells µTorrent to check the torrent contents of the selected torrent job(s) for missing files and pieces that fail the hash check. Even if multiple torrent jobs are selected to be re-checked, µTorrent will check them sequentially, one at a time (known as a round-robin method). Pausing a torrent job while it is being re-checked will pause the re-checking process for that torrent job, and will move onto the next torrent job to re-check if multiple torrent jobs are selected. Any incomplete pieces in the torrent contents will be removed during the re-checking process, so a drop in progress percentage would not be an unlikely occurrence.
    • Advanced
      • Reset Bans allows you to clear any bans µTorrent has placed on peers in the selected torrent job(s) for sending too many hashfailed pieces.
      • Clear Peer List allows you to clear all peers from the peer list for the selected torrent job(s).
      • Set Download Location... lets you set the location of the contents for the particular torrent if they are ever moved after the torrent job is added. The next time the torrent job is started, it will be hash checked to verify the data integrity.
      • Set Destination Name... lets you change the name of the directory into which the files will be downloaded.
      • Show Download Bar toggles the display of a floating download bar that shows quick statistics for the selected torrent job(s). The download bars are separate from the µTorrent interface, so they can be displayed while the main window is minimized or closed to tray.
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    • Update Tracker allows you to perform a manual announce on the selected torrent jobs' trackers. Only trackers whose minimum intervals have elapsed since the last manual update will be updated. This option is disabled if 60 seconds have not yet passed since the last time it was used, or if the elapsed time since the last update is less than the minimum interval for every selected torrent job's tracker(s). If the condition to be enabled has been satisfied by at least one of the selected torrent jobs, the option will be enabled, but when used, will be invoked only on those torrent jobs that have met the conditions for option to be enabled.
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    • Properties opens up the Torrent Properties dialog, where you can modify several of the torrent job's settings.
  • RSS Item Options
    • Open will attempt to open the .torrent file(s) associated with the selected item(s) to be added to the torrent jobs list. Double-clicking on the selected item achieves the same result.
    • Open URL in Browser will open the linked URL(s) in your default web browser. This is useful for RSS feeds that do not link directly to .torrent files, but instead, to a page that links to them.
    • Clear Feed History removes all entries in the RSS Downloader's History tab that came from the selected feed(s).
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    • Add to Favorites adds the selected items to the Favorites, attempting to create suitable rules for the selected items.