How To Set Up Your Own Home Seedbox (in Windows)

June 01, 2008 by sharky

Got an old clunker of a computer that’s just collecting dust? Why not turn it into your own BitTorrent seedbox! In this tutorial we’ll explain how you can transform an old shitbox into a seedbox. For those of you who know nothing about Linux (*.Nix), then this is a great solution to optimize that second unused PC. You’ll require nothing more than an old computer, a router/hub (and cables), and software to connect it to your main system. After the whole thing is configured, you won’t even need a monitor/keyboard/mouse on the old system.

Getting Started / You Will Need:

• MS Windows (XP or Vista) is required on both machines.

• UltraVNC — Download UltraVNC from here. Other install packages can be found on their uVNC homepage - scroll down to the bottom to browse the releases. UltraVNC needs to be installed on both machines.

• µTorrent — installed on the seedbox-to-be (spare computer).

Pre-Installation:

Hook up both computers via network cables to each other, through a router or hub. You’ll need a spare network card (or on-board motherboard NIC connection) for both. For this tutorial, you may be required to set up ‘Windows Networking’ to get the two computers connected to each other, although we did not require having to do this during our test run.

*** Step 1 - Seedbox Installation ***

1.1 — Install UltraVNC on your soon-to-be seedbox (the spare computer). During installation, after a few clicks, you’ll get to a screen that asks "Which components should be installed?". You’ll want to select the "Full installation" or "Server Only". Ensure that the "Mirror Driver" is selected, as shown below.

1.2 — On the next screen, be sure to select "Register UltraVNC Server as a system service":

1.3 — Start the VNC service (if not already started) through the Start Button > All Programs > UltraVNC > Ultra VNC Server. You should see the program icon appear in the taskbar - double-click it to bring up the options. You’ll need to:

• • Enter a VNC Password under "Authentication". (this will be required for login on the main computer).
• • Select "Query on incoming connections" to ACCEPT.
• • Make a note of the port number (it’s 5900 by default). If you wish to change this, you can do so here.

— Don’t forget to click the "Apply" button to save your changes.

*** Step 2 - Install UltraVNC on the Main Computer ***

You’ll also need to install UltraVNC on the main computer, but this time during installation, select "Viewer Only":

This will allow you to view and manage your seedbox; however, it will require a little more tweaking.

If you use a router you may need to give your seedbox a static IP address. If you just use a small hub for connecting the two computers, you’ll likely be able to input the IP address (as it’s found). So, on the seedbox, visit whatsmyipaddress.com and make a note of the IP address.

Now, on the main computer, run the "UltraVNC Viewer" (from the Start Button…). Enter in the IP address of the seedbox, followed by a colon ( : ) and then the port number (i.e - 5900). Click Connect:

If this worked correctly, you’ll be presented with a VNC Authentication popup screen, where you’ll need to enter the password that you supplied in UltraVNC on the seedbox (in Step 1.3):

Once logged in, VNC should now launch and show you the exact screen that is being displayed on the seedbox. You now have total control of the seedbox through this window - this is the desktop:

**If you are experiencing "lag" time on the connection (which you probably will), you’ll need to change your screen resolution on the seedbox (which we recommend you do anyways). Do this by right-clicking on the Desktop, and select Properties. Set your monitor to the lowest resolution and colour quality as possible - do this right through the VNC window if preferred (or go over to the seedbox and do it from there).

Also note: If you have a firewall, be certain to allow port 5900.

How to Send / Receive Files:

In VNC Viewer, click on the "File Transfer" button. From here you’ll be able to send your completed torrents from your seedbox to your main computer.

If you run into ’sharing’ problems, you may also need to share your µTorrent’s ‘Download’ folder to the network. To find this folder on the seedbox, click Start > Run… and type %AppData%\uTorrent. Now, right-click the folder, and select Properties. Click the Sharing tab, and follow the instructions. (By default, you will NOT likely have to do this if you used the same settings from the above screenshot in Step 1.3).

*** Step 3 - Configure uTorrent on the Seedbox ***

Now that you’re able to control and manage your seedbox from your main computer, the next step is to install µTorrent on the seedbox - if you intend to use private trackers, don’t use the beta version (use the current v1.7.7). Now, you have two choices here - you can simply run and control it via the VNC ‘Viewer’ window, or you can utilize µTorrent’s Web UI feature, and connect to your seedbox directly from a browser. It doesn’t matter which approach you use, however, we recommend using Web UI through a browser, as it eliminates the "lag". Here’s a great tutorial on how to manage and run Web UI for µTorrent.

After everything is set up, feel free to remove the mouse, keyboard and monitor from the old computer - you’re left with just a box - a seedbox!

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