Torrenting is the most preferable way to download files for a lot of people. You will be able to download movies, songs, or books that wouldn’t be ordinarily available to you with the help of these rental platforms.
qBittorrent is becoming the number one torrenting preference for users very quickly. You will be able to see its increasing popularity with the help of its simple interface, built-in search engine, and absence of ads. Moreover, it is very light, which signifies that it does not use the system of your device very much. But it does not hide your IP address or traffic, just like other torrent clients do. It is your responsibility. You have to use a good VPN so that you can stay safe when you use this torrenting platform.
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Downloading with torrent
So you have come to know that downloading torrents without any protection is very risky. Popular trackers and clients do not protect your IP address. That is why you might be a victim to hackers, or you might expose yourself to copyright trolls, or even worse than that. You may even be put in jail for this. That is why, while you are using torrents, you have to hide your IP address anyhow. One of the best ways to do this is by using an excellent VPN, like ExpressVPN, for torrenting.
How will you set up ExpressVPN with qBittorrent?
Before you know the process of configuring qBittorrent to work with ExpressVPN, we are trying to do a primer on setting up ExpressVPN.
Sign up for ExpressVPN and select a plan
As soon as you plan to choose free VPN options, you have to keep in mind that most bar torrents from their network. You will be able to use the torrents only if you subscribe to the paid option. Otherwise, most of these free VPNs only keep logs. That is why, if you want to keep yourself anonymous, you will see that this is not an option at all. You will find that no price is higher than the safety of your valuable personal details.
Download and install ExpressVPN
This step is completely straightforward. You have to go to the official page or your app store and look for the VPN so that you can download and install it.
Set up the ExpressVPN service and connect to a server
It is very easy to set up ExpressVPN. You have to just follow the guidelines for your device and connect to one of its many server locations. As soon as you are connected to a server, you will remain anonymous.
How will you configure qBittorrent?
If you want to configure qBittorrent so that you can work with ExpressVPN, it will be quite tricky for you. You have to follow the instructions that are given below if you want to make the process easier.
Turn on the anonymous mode
If you want to prevent people from viewing your metadata, that is, your torrent clients and listening port, you have to turn on the anonymous mode. To turn it on, you have to go to Tools, then click on Options, then BitTorrent, and then check the box on Enable anonymous mode. This is a completely optional setting. But we all know that prevention is better than cure. That is why, if you want an extra layer of safety, there is nothing wrong with this.
Activate qBittorrent’s built-in encryption
There is special built-in encryption in qBitTorrent that enables you to connect to only one encryption-capable peer. This encryption will cut down on your available peers for downloads, and that is why your downloads may slow down or be prevented. If you can avoid this, configure it to allow encryption for maximum peer availability. To allow this, you have to go to the tools, then go to options, and then you need to go to BitTorrent encryption mode.” As soon as you are there, you have to click on “Allow encryption.”
You have to set your global number of connections and the maximum number of connections per torrent. You are recommended to choose 1250 and 250 respectively.
Test your VPN setup
It is the most vital step of the entire process. You have to check whether your real IP address has been hidden. You have to check your IP address at the beginning of the setup by using IPvanish’s check IP tool.
As soon as your setup is done, you have to check again with the help of the online tools to make sure that your setup process was successful or not.
As soon as you have done this, you will be able to use qBittorrent without any worries.
How will you set up fail-safes?
While you are downloading a file, sometimes it happens that your VPN may disconnect suddenly, leaving you unprotected. If you want to prevent this, you have to choose one of the following two ways:
1) Enable the kill-switch option
One of the most useful features of ExpressVPN is the Kill Switch. This will protect you by blocking your device from getting access to the internet automatically as soon as your VPN disconnects. You can tweak the kill switch feature by binding it to your VPN interface if you want it to affect only torrent downloads.
For this, you have to go to Tools, then click on Preferences, and then go to “Advanced.” From there, you need to go to “Network Interface” and select the name of your VPN adapter. If you’re using OpenVPN, it will be labeled TAP or TUN.
2. Port forwarding
If you want to prevent yourself from being exposed to accidental disconnection, there is another way, which is qBittorrent port forwarding. With its help, you will be able to improve your download speeds and diminish the chances of disruptions happening during the download sessions. If you want to do this, you have to do the following:
- Enable VPN port forwarding
- Open qBittorrent and go to “Tools,” then “Preferences,” and “Connections.” Under connections, change the listening port used for incoming connections. It could be a number you choose or a randomly assigned one.
- Disable UPnP or NAT-PMP features.
All the above features are very helpful for bypassing local firewalls, but they do not work for remote NAT firewalls. They even cause more harm by routing your connection through your router rather than your VPN interface.
Besides the above-mentioned fail-safes, you have to take proper protection to save your device from DNS leaks, which are software issues, and allow your ISP to track your internet activities even when you use a VPN. You can do a simple test to check whether any leaks have occurred. If there is a leak, you have to follow the steps mentioned below to resolve your issue:
- First, you have to open the Network and Sharing Center. Then you have to click on “Change Adapter Settings.”
- Then you have to click on your main connection and select properties.
- Then you have to locate “Internet Protocol 4 (TCP/IPv4)”, highlight it, and click on “Properties.”
- Then you have to click on “Use the following DNS server addresses” and enter the relevant addresses. When you’re done, click “OK” and restart the connection. You have to keep in mind the existing DNS server addresses if you ever want to restore your system to its previous settings.
Why Should You Use ExpressVPN on qBitTorrent?
You should use express VPN torrenting on qBittorrent for the following reasons:
Support for torrenting
There are more than 3000 servers that support any P2P file-sharing activity in all the Express VPNs. This signifies that you will be able to choose any server without having any worries about whether it supports torrenting or not. ExpressVPN is supposed to be the best VPN you can use for torrenting. If you use it, you will be able to increase your download speed in case your ISP throttles your speed. Moreover, there are no bandwidth limits. That is why you will be able to enjoy unlimited torrenting with a fast connection speed. The one drawback of the applications of ExpressVPN is that they do not support port forwarding. The test is why you will find qBitTorrent has slow upload speeds. But if you have a router that runs ExpressVPN,.
router firmware, you will be able to set up port forwarding very easily.
All-Round Security
A very secure protocol like OpenVPN and the popular AES-256 encryption cipher is used by ExpressVPN so that you can keep your data safe. There is no record of infiltration for AES-256. No one could even break it. Where torrent clients like qBittorrent have options to enable encryption, they do not encrypt the files as a VPN does. It will be best for you to use the torrent client’s encryption option combined with a VPN service. Kill Switch, DNS/IPv6/WebRTC leak protection, Split Tunneling, perfect forward secrecy, and Onion over VPN are the other additional security features in expression.
Privacy
Express VPN is a privacy-friendly VPN service that is headquartered in the privacy-friendly British Virgin Islands. Not only that, it does not even keep any logs of your connection activities. You will be very happy to know that two different auditing companies (PwC and Cure53) have audited ExpressVPN in the past and verified that your data is safe with it. There are only a few VPN services that can be compared with ExpressVPN if you consider it in terms of privacy.
Reliable Customer Support
If you are using a VPN service it is quite natural that you want to be sure that whenever you face an issue, there is always a service point from where you can get help. ExpressVPN has different points like that, including a 24/7 support system. You can talk to the agents on a live chat at any time of the day and you will get their response immediately.
FAQs
Is qBittorrent safe without a VPN?
On the other hand, if you use a VPN, your network will be encrypted, your IP address changed, and you will be safe from online threats. It will also give you outstanding privacy and anonymity while downloading files from qBittorrent.
Why is qBittorrent not downloading with a VPN?
Why is ExpressVPN best for qBittorrent?
Whether you’re using qBittorrent with public wifi or a private network, ExpressVPN will protect you from all forms of cyberattacks.
It also has a strict zero-log policy to ensure your privacy and anonymity. You can download files safely when you use ExpressVPN.
Wrapping Up
We have tried to give you a complete guide on the importance of protecting your IP address when visiting torrent sites. We also tried to explain why ExpressVPN is a better choice in comparison with free VPN services and showed you how it works. Finally, we explained in detail how to set up ExpressVPN and configure qBittorrent for anonymous downloads.
If you follow the steps mentioned in the setup process above, you will be able to stay protected from even the most determined hackers, trolls, and unforeseen legal issues.
