HTTP/FTP WebSeeding Method for BitTorrent (original) (raw)

I propose a new key/value in the .torrent metadata file but not part of the "info" section.

'url-list' = either a single item or a list of normal URLs.

For example (on multiple lines for readability):
d
8:announce27:http://tracker.com/announce
13:creation datei1128487910e
8:url-list26:http://mirror.com/file.exe
4:info...

If the "url-list" URL ends in a slash, "/" the client should add the "name" from the torrent to make the full URL. This should make it easier on Torrent generators and let them treat this field same for single file and multi-file torrents.

I have seen that .torrent files from bittorrent.com did include a http seed in this way. And I've read that they added WebSeeding, apparently using this method!

For Multi-File torrents, this gets a bit more interesting. Normally, BitTorrent clients use the "name" from the .torrent info section to make a folder, then use the "path/file" items from the info section within that folder. For the case of Multi-File torrents, the 'url-list' should be a root folder where a client could add the same "name" and "path/file" to create the URL for the request.
...
8:url-list22:http://mirror.com/pub/
4:infod5:filesld6:lengthi949e4:pathl10:Readme.txte
e4:name7:michael

So a client would use all that to build a url: http://mirror.com/pub/michael/Readme.txt