qBittorrent v4.2.0 not running with Private Internet Access (PIA) v1.6 - Suggestions?

Windows specific questions, problems.
Post Reply
arkgram

qBittorrent v4.2.0 not running with Private Internet Access (PIA) v1.6 - Suggestions?

Post by arkgram »

Hi,

Are any forum members successfully running qBittorrent v4.2.0 with Private Internet Access (PIA) v1.6 (build 03756)?

I was able to run qBittorrent with PIA September 2019 when I renewed my PIA subscription. Since then no matter what qBittorrent settings I use, I have no incoming qBittorrent connection.

I have Googled the problem, without finding a satisfactory solutions. I am not ready to abandon PIA. I also do not want to use ‘legacy’ versions of PIA. Other suggested paths are beyond my technical competence and knowledge.

I would be grateful for any suggestions forum members could make. My thanks in advance.

My qBittorrent settings are:

Connections Options
1. Enabled protocol - TCP
2. Port used for incoming connections – from reviewing various websites and speaking to PIA I have tried using ports 62348, No matter what port I specify in qBittorrent, all the port checking software I use to check if these ports are open when I run qBittorrent, fail to find these ports i.e. they are closed.
For details of the ports qBittorrent uses when it runs see section, ‘Ports used by qBittorrent when running’, below.
3. Global maximum number of connections – 500
4. Maximum number of connections per torrent – 100
5. Proxy server – I used a proxy server until PIA suggested I did not need to.
Speed Options
1. No global rate limits are set
2. Alternative rate limits – both upload and download are set to 10 KBS/s
3. Rate limit settings – “apply rate limit to uTP protocol” is checked
4. Privacy – enable DHT is checked
5. Torrent queuing – maximum active downloads and uploads are set to ‘3’. Maximum active torrents is set to ‘5’
Bit Torrent, RSS, and Web UI - all these options have been left at their default values
Advanced Options
1. Process memory priority – below normal
2. Network interface – ‘Ethernet 2’ which I understand is how qBittorrent refers to PIA. I have also used ‘Ethernet’ and ‘Any Interface’ to no effect. Device Manager lists my PIA network adapter as ‘Private Internet Access Network Adapter’.
3. Optional IP addresses to bind to – all addresses
4. libtorrent Section – default values except that I may have set, ‘uTP-TCP mixed mode algorithm’ to ‘Prefer TCP’ and set ‘Embedded Tracker Port to, ‘9000’. I would have done this based on website recommendations I read some years ago.

PIA Settings
Privacy Preferences
1. VPN Killswitch – I have tried running qBittorrent with the Killswitch set to both ‘Auto’ and ‘Always’. Neither makes a difference. For privacy reasons I do not want to run qBittorrent with the PIA Killswitch set to ‘Off’.
2. PIA MACE – ‘On’
Network Preferences
1. Network Servers – PIA DNS
2. Allow Port Forwarding – checked. I have run qBittorrent with and without PIA port forwarding. Neither setting makes a difference. When I run qBittorrent I prefer to connect to the Switzerland server. I have tried other servers in other countries all to no effect. I have also set my incoming qBittorrent port to the PIA Switzerland port, again to no effect.
3. Allow Lan Traffic - checked
Connection Preferences I have left these at their default values:
1. Connection Type – TCP
2. Remote Port – Default
3. Local Port – Auto
4. Proxy – None
5. Data Encryption – AES 128 (GCM)
6. Data Authentication – unchecked
7. Handshake – RSA 2048
8. Configuration Method – DHCP

I have also tried running qBittorrent with PIA disabled, but with no success.

Security Suite Settings (Bitdefender) - Ethernet network adapter 2 is set to ‘dynamic’. On the advice of Bitdefender qBittorrent firewall rules were set to:

Network Protocol Traffic Ports IP
Any Any Both Any Any
Any 6.TCP Both Any Any
Any 17.TCP Both Any Any

PC – Dell Workstation
O/S – Windows 10 Professional
Internet Connection – Ethernet cable
Router – D-Link DIR-868L (I have tried running qBittorrent with PIA on three different routers all without success, so I doubt I have a router problem)
Modem – Optimum/Cablevision ARRIS TM822G. My IP provider assures me it blocks no ports or IP addresses. My modem predates my, so. I doubt I have a modem problem.

Ports used by qBittorrent when running

I used Nirsoft Current Ports to view qBittorrent port statuses. For one download Nirsoft listed, ports 1031 and 1032 as local ports with a status of ‘Established’. Both ports used TCP and a local IP address of 127.0.0.1. Port 1031 used port 1032 for its remote port and 127.0.0.1 as its remote address. Port 1032 uses 1031 for its remote port and, again 127.0.0.1 as its remote address.

Otherwise, qBittorrent was using ports 59429, 59431, 62384, 59428 and 59420 with UDP as local ports with the first four of these ports using 192.168.1.6 as their local address. The last two ports use an fe80 address. UDP was used despite my specifying TCP in qBittorrent itself.

The next time I ran qBittorrent for the same download the ‘established’ ports were 5423 and 5424 with port 5424 being the remote port for port 5423. Port5423 was the remote port for port 5423. qBittorrent was also using ports 64610, 64611, 64612 and 64613 as local ports, but not as remote ports. My specified incoming port, port 62384 was listed as a local port, but not as a remote port.
arkgram

Re: qBittorrent v4.2.0 not running with Private Internet Access (PIA) v1.6 - Suggestions?

Post by arkgram »

arkgram wrote: Wed Dec 18, 2019 11:33 pm Hi,

Are any forum members successfully running qBittorrent v4.2.0 with Private Internet Access (PIA) v1.6 (build 03756)?

I was able to run qBittorrent with PIA September 2019 when I renewed my PIA subscription. Since then no matter what qBittorrent settings I use, I have no incoming qBittorrent connection.

I have Googled the problem, without finding a satisfactory solutions. I am not ready to abandon PIA. I also do not want to use ‘legacy’ versions of PIA. Other suggested paths are beyond my technical competence and knowledge.

I would be grateful for any suggestions forum members could make. My thanks in advance.

My qBittorrent settings are:

Connections Options
1. Enabled protocol - TCP
2. Port used for incoming connections – from reviewing various websites and speaking to PIA I have tried using ports 62348 and 8999, and various ports between 6800 through 6999 and between 49152-65534. I also used the PIA port I was connected to, 38753 (Switzerland). No matter what port I specify in qBittorrent, all the port checking software I use to check if these ports are open when I run qBittorrent, fail to find these ports i.e. they are closed.
For details of the ports qBittorrent uses when it runs see section, ‘Ports used by qBittorrent when running’, below.
3. Global maximum number of connections – 500
4. Maximum number of connections per torrent – 100
5. Proxy server – I used a proxy server until PIA suggested I did not need to.
Speed Options
1. No global rate limits are set
2. Alternative rate limits – both upload and download are set to 10 KBS/s
3. Rate limit settings – “apply rate limit to uTP protocol” is checked
4. Privacy – enable DHT is checked
5. Torrent queuing – maximum active downloads and uploads are set to ‘3’. Maximum active torrents is set to ‘5’
Bit Torrent, RSS, and Web UI - all these options have been left at their default values
Advanced Options
1. Process memory priority – below normal
2. Network interface – ‘Ethernet 2’ which I understand is how qBittorrent refers to PIA. I have also used ‘Ethernet’ and ‘Any Interface’ to no effect. Device Manager lists my PIA network adapter as ‘Private Internet Access Network Adapter’.
3. Optional IP addresses to bind to – all addresses
4. libtorrent Section – default values except that I may have set, ‘uTP-TCP mixed mode algorithm’ to ‘Prefer TCP’ and set ‘Embedded Tracker Port to, ‘9000’. I would have done this based on website recommendations I read some years ago.

PIA Settings
Privacy Preferences
1. VPN Killswitch – I have tried running qBittorrent with the Killswitch set to both ‘Auto’ and ‘Always’. Neither makes a difference. For privacy reasons I do not want to run qBittorrent with the PIA Killswitch set to ‘Off’.
2. PIA MACE – ‘On’
Network Preferences
1. Network Servers – PIA DNS
2. Allow Port Forwarding – checked. I have run qBittorrent with and without PIA port forwarding. Neither setting makes a difference. When I run qBittorrent I prefer to connect to the Switzerland server. I have tried other servers in other countries all to no effect. I have also set my incoming qBittorrent port to the PIA Switzerland port, again to no effect.
3. Allow Lan Traffic - checked
Connection Preferences I have left these at their default values:
1. Connection Type – TCP
2. Remote Port – Default
3. Local Port – Auto
4. Proxy – None
5. Data Encryption – AES 128 (GCM)
6. Data Authentication – unchecked
7. Handshake – RSA 2048
8. Configuration Method – DHCP

I have also tried running qBittorrent with PIA disabled, but with no success.

Security Suite Settings (Bitdefender) - Ethernet network adapter 2 is set to ‘dynamic’. On the advice of Bitdefender qBittorrent firewall rules were set to:

Network Protocol Traffic Ports IP
Any Any Both Any Any
Any 6.TCP Both Any Any
Any 17.TCP Both Any Any

PC – Dell Workstation
O/S – Windows 10 Professional
Internet Connection – Ethernet cable
Router – D-Link DIR-868L (I have tried running qBittorrent with PIA on three different routers all without success, so I doubt I have a router problem)
Modem – Optimum/Cablevision ARRIS TM822G. My IP provider assures me it blocks no ports or IP addresses. My modem predates my, so. I doubt I have a modem problem.

Ports used by qBittorrent when running

I used Nirsoft Current Ports to view qBittorrent port statuses. For one download Nirsoft listed, ports 1031 and 1032 as local ports with a status of ‘Established’. Both ports used TCP and a local IP address of 127.0.0.1. Port 1031 used port 1032 for its remote port and 127.0.0.1 as its remote address. Port 1032 uses 1031 for its remote port and, again 127.0.0.1 as its remote address.

Otherwise, qBittorrent was using ports 59429, 59431, 62384, 59428 and 59420 with UDP as local ports with the first four of these ports using 192.168.1.6 as their local address. The last two ports use an fe80 address. UDP was used despite my specifying TCP in qBittorrent itself.

The next time I ran qBittorrent for the same download the ‘established’ ports were 5423 and 5424 with port 5424 being the remote port for port 5423. Port5423 was the remote port for port 5423. qBittorrent was also using ports 64610, 64611, 64612 and 64613 as local ports, but not as remote ports. My specified incoming port, port 62384 was listed as a local port, but not as a remote port.
User avatar
Peter
Administrator
Administrator
Posts: 2693
Joined: Wed Jul 07, 2010 6:14 pm

Re: qBittorrent v4.2.0 not running with Private Internet Access (PIA) v1.6 - Suggestions?

Post by Peter »

point 0: Just remove all your settings and reset qBittorrent. I read your post and you messed up a LOT of things along the way...
I was able to run qBittorrent with PIA September 2019 when I renewed my PIA subscription.
Big mistake, PIA has been bought up by a third-party, everyone is jumping ship.
Port used
Just forward 1 port in PIA and use that in qBittorrent. Make sure you use the right port on each startup.
1. Enabled protocol - TCP
Use default setting.
default values except that I may have set, ‘uTP-TCP mixed mode algorithm’ to ‘Prefer TCP’ and set ‘Embedded Tracker Port to, ‘9000’. I would have done this based on website recommendations I read some years ago.
see point 0
Security Suite Settings (Bitdefender)
This is the biggest problem. Bitdefender is utter crap/trash.
1) You don't need a firewall on a desktop PC. You can just disable it. It's useless/pointless.
2) Windows Defender in Windows 10 is more than adequate. It's great actually.
3) If you don't trust it, get NOD32 or Avast. Avast is even free.
arkgram

Re: qBittorrent v4.2.0 not running with Private Internet Access (PIA) v1.6 - Suggestions?

Post by arkgram »

Hi,

Thanks so much for the advice. It worked a charm.

A few questions, if I may.

Which VPN service would you recommend instead of Private Internet Access (PIA) now that PIA has merged with Kape?

I am not very familiar with port forwarding. I assume port forwarding in qBittorrent is activated by entering the port that PIA displays when connected to a server (such as Switzerland which uses port 20835) that allows port forwarding, into the ‘Port used for incoming connections’ box. Do I need to make any other changes to qBittorrent for port forwarding to be enabled?

Also, should I use the PIA Socks5 proxy with qBittorrent?

And should I bind qBittorrent to PIA so that if PIA closes or crashes, qBittorrent will also close its Internet connections? I assume I would do this in Advanced Settings using the Network Interface setting.

Finally, are there any reliable guides to speeding up qBittorrent by tweaking its settings? I have come across such guides but I am not sure if they would work or still apply to the current qBittorrent release.

Thanks again for your help in getting qBittorrent up and running. I very much appreciate it.

Sincerely,

arkgram
User avatar
Peter
Administrator
Administrator
Posts: 2693
Joined: Wed Jul 07, 2010 6:14 pm

Re: qBittorrent v4.2.0 not running with Private Internet Access (PIA) v1.6 - Suggestions?

Post by Peter »

Which VPN service would you recommend instead of Private Internet Access (PIA) now that PIA has merged with Kape?
I tried quite a few of them, but I won't shill either - it's your money / vote.
- ExpressVPN: Advanced application, fast speeds. No SOCKS5 or port forward. Managed to hit ~200+mbps, tried a few servers random. Advanced app = It can like exclude apps from the VPN and such. MAYBE others do it too, but yea I was impressed.
- Mullvad: Horrible support, mediocre speeds. Has port forward. NO SOCKS5. Managed to hit ~30mbps, tried ~6 servers.
- Torguard: Super ancient website and client. Hell the Android client feels like it was written in assembly (joke). Has fast speeds, SOCKS5, but everything costs premium.
- Windscribe: Went with them. Speeds are good but totally not awesome or super fast. Has SOCKS5, has port forward***. You NEED to buy a dedicated IP as well for a location, to be able to port forward. It's kinda useful, but also kinda annoying as you cannot hop between servers if your location gets very busy. It's a bad trade-off.
- NordVPN: I'd never try them, never used them, never will. If they have money to purchase every single Youtube channel, you are fishy. Period.
- IPVanish: Was okay, not bad, but there is no socks5/port forward.
Do I need to make any other changes to qBittorrent for port forwarding to be enabled?
Nope.
Also, should I use the PIA Socks5 proxy with qBittorrent?
If you can use a VPN with port forward, don't.
SOCKS5 will render you passive (hard time seeding). But, if you use that, you can play games and do whatever meanwhile because your traffic will flow freely otherwise.
And should I bind qBittorrent to PIA so that if PIA closes or crashes, qBittorrent will also close its Internet connections?
You can set the VPN killswitch option in the VPN client... or yea, bind it but....

HONESTLY, the amount of money you put into a VPN is enough to rent a seedbox from let's say Ultraseedbox. You have Plex there, you can mount the filesystem via Winsshfs - meaning it appears like a network drive. It's just soooo much comfier. And then you don't have to worry about anything, there is no messy setup, there is nothing. You just have to transfer whatever you actually want to like install (games, apps) and such. That's about it.

So overall, from my experience, I'd just 100% get just a seedbox, or a cheap dedi (example: oneprovider.com). It's just ... the same amount of money... Only get a VPN if you are around unsecure WIFI a lot and you can't use your mobile data. Then I guess you need a VPN. But I'd get the cheapest. OR, set up my own.
For example, you can just install Windows on OneProvider machine, then install SoftEther VPN. And it's a GUI VPN server software.
Just an example.

Ps.: I cannot stress this enough. We are not sponsored by any providers, VPNs or anything. Zero association. I just post my personal experience and such.
Post Reply