Thread: [How To] Pick A Seedbox That Meets Your Needs

Many people seem to be wondering what type of seedbox is best for them. Thjis tutorial will attempt to explain some of the different approaches so you can make the best choice for your specific needs. Here is a link with some of the major seedbox offerings: Review and Comparison of TorrentFlux Hosting Services | THE source for BitTorrent & P2P Tips, Tricks and Info. | FileShareFreak - http://filesharefreak.com/2008/05/04...ting-services/


There is no one perfect solution that fits everybody. You have to looks at your needs, look at the available options and find the best match at the best price. I will say that there are some offerings from some providers that just do not seem to make any sense because there are much better alternatives in that class of offering (so buyer beware!!). There are also firms that have great packages but lousy support which is where the seedbox review thread is very helpful!

Here are the options in a nutshell

* seedbox account
o all software is already set up for you (just start using it!!)
o lowest cost if you are willing to have a smaller environment
o lower cost environments are shared with many other users (so performance can be questionable)
o many accounts have a lot of limitations on them (# active torrents, disk, monthly transfer, even speed caps!!)
o this is where I recommend people start with seedboxes to see how they fit their needs (low cost and no fuss)
* VPS (Virtual Private Server)
o this is a portion of a physical server that is partitioned off to run as its own server environment (separate OS that cannot be affected by the code running in other VPS)
o since the VPS shares the physical resources of the server, its performance can be affected by the activities taking place on other VPSs on that physcial server
o some VPS come pre-configured as seedboxes (just start using), others require you to do all the configuration
o there can be major performance differences between VPSs so review the specs carefully (esp memory, number of VPSs on the physical and specs of the physical)
o most of these environments will allow you to setup sub-accounts so you can share some of the costs with others
o there are usually very few limitations with these environments (just disk and maybe some limit on monthly transfer)
o many hosting comapnies do not allow BT on their devices so DO NOT ASSUME you can run torrents on any VPS (unless you do not mind losing your account without warning)
* Dedicated Server (Physical)
o this is the holy grail of seedboxes!!
o you have your own physical server to do with as you like and it is not shared with anyone (unless you chose to share it...)
o this tends to be the most expensive option as well (shocking!!!)
o to understand what you are getting, you need to review the server specs very closely
o these devices come with very few limititations (just those of the HW specs)
o some boxes are available with 1GB network connections
+ great for bragging rights but please realize that there arent many GB boxes out there to communicate with so you may have a hard time using all that bandwidth
+ your HDD may have a hard time keeping up as well
+ your provider may have a hard time maintaining a quality network pipe as they role out 1GB devices
o these are usually raw boxes that you need to configure for yourself (may have OS pre-installed)
o unless you are a very serious torrenter, you wil likely have a hard time using all the capabilities of a dedicaed server by yourself
o many hosting companies do not allow BT on their devices so DO NOT ASSUME you can run torrents on any server (unless you do not mind losing your account without warning)

Once you find an option that fits your needs it is hard to give your seed box up! Good luck in picking the right solution