Torrent

A torrent is a file sent via the BitTorrent protocol. It can be just about any type of file, such as a movie, song, game, or application. During the transmission, the file is incomplete and therefore is referred to as a torrent. Torrent downloads that have been paused or stopped cannot be opened as regular files, since they do not contain all the necessary data. However, they can often be resumed using a BitTorrent client, as long as the file is available from another server.

Torrents are different from regular downloads in that they are usually downloaded from more than one server at a time. The BitTorrent protocol uses multiple computers to transfer a single file, thereby reducing the bandwidth required by each server. When a torrent download is started, the BitTorrent system locates multiple computers with the file and downloads different parts of the file from each computer. Likewise, when sending a torrent, the server may send the file to multiple computers before it reaches the recipient. The result is a lower average bandwidth usage, which speeds up file transfers.

File Extension: .TORRENT

Published: 2008