What Is Qbittorrent & Is It Actually Safe To Use?

• qBittorrent is a free, open-source torrent client favored for its ad-free and secure nature, compared to proprietary clients like uTorrent and BitTorrent, which have faced controversies over bundled software and ads.
• Torrenting uses a P2P network model to share files directly between users without a central server, enabling more efficient and resilient file distribution.
• Torrenting safety concerns arise from public trackers exposing users to potential copyright issues, but using a VPN can help protect your identity while torrenting.

qBittorrent is a very popular, free, and open-source alternative to the likes of BitTorrent and uTorrent . This torrent client among other open-source options gained popularity especially when most of the torrenting community developed a negative outlook regarding proprietary torrent clients.

As the name suggests, qBittorrent is at its core, a torrent client. A very simple definition of a torrenting client is software enabling P2P (Peer-to-peer) sharing using the BitTorrent protocol. In fact, if you’re not up to speed with the concept of torrenting, here’s a general overview.

• Why qBittorrent? ↪ uTorrent’s Mining Scandal ↪ BitTorrent’s Ad Problem
• What is qBittorrent?
• Is qBittorrent Safe? ↪ Down the Privacy Rabbit Hole
• Conclusion

Why qBittorrent?

BitTorrent is the pioneer of torrenting, in fact, the word “ Torrent ” is derived from “ BitTorrent “. Another fun fact, torrenting revolves around the BitTorrent protocol, which as you guessed, is linked with the BitTorrent client. Then why are consumers willingly shifting to open-source alternatives like qBittorrent?

↪ uTorrent’s Mining Scandal

In 2015 , uTorrent received an update to version “ 3.4.2 ,” which infamously included bundled Bitcoin mining software. This small mistake took away the trust of many customers and warranted a shift to other options. Another factor is that uTorrent is closed source and shows ads unless you pay $4.95 yearly .

uTorrent Epic Scale Miner | Engadget.com via 99bitcoins

Even if installing the miner was consensual, who reads the EULA these days? People simply press “ Next ” and try to install the required program as soon as possible. If you’re downloading uTorrent, you expect the installer to only install uTorrent and not anything else.

↪ BitTorrent’s Ad Problem

BitTorrent and uTorrent are owned by the same company, Rainberry, Inc . As such, BitTorrent (the client) also comes jam-packed with ads and requires a subscription if you wish to remove them.

Example of Ads in uTorrent |ubergizmo

At this point, you’d question yourself, “ Why even bother? “. Both applications are proprietary and adware. What is so incentivizing that users would not jump ship and move to a trusted, open-source, and ad-free alternative?

What is qBittorrent?

qBittorent is an open-source and cross-platform torrenting client written for Windows , Linux , macOS, and various other Operating Systems. It was originally developed in March 2006 and is currently being maintained by various contributors globally through donations.

qBittorrent Logo | qBittorrent

Since the code is open source , you may compile the program yourself if you so desire. You can easily access and review the code if you have safety concerns. So, without bringing into question legality, qBittorrent is absolutely safe, if your downloaded files are virus-free.

Is qBittorrent Safe?

The real question should be, “ Is torrenting safe? “. In most third-world countries, the policies aren’t stringent enough that you’d have the cops knocking on your door minutes after you download a torrent. Let’s discuss why some people may get filed DMCA notices by their ISPs and could potentially be sued.

If you use a public tracker, which most of us do, there are tons of services and websites that log which IP is downloading which torrent. Don’t trust us? See for yourself . Your ISP will generally not care if you pirate something until they get served with a subpoena from the law office of the respective copyright holders.

When large multi-billion corporations pressurize ISPs, they are forced to either cut off your internet service or take the matter to court . In Singapore , Anime distributor Odex sent legal threats to users for downloading fansubbsed anime in 2007 . Court orders caused the disclosure of many identities with settlements coming in at a minimum of $2,000 (USD) per person.

Odex’s head office atInternational Plaza, where the out-of-court settlements to the company by alleged illegal downloaders were made |By Mailer diablo. – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

In the US, the US Copyright Group obtained the IP addresses of users downloading copyright-protected movies, mostly through the transparency of public trackers. Again, ISPs were forced to disclose identities, and settlements were offered in the range of $1000 – $3000 . In just 9 months, over 16200 people were served with legal notices.

Torrenting does come with a lot of risk, but there are certain ways you can get around these issues, for the most part.

↪ Down the Privacy Rabbit Hole

Using a VPN is a very simple way to mask your identity when torrenting. Since users are tracked and pinpointed via their IP address, with a VPN, public trackers are unable to reveal your real IP. That is unless authorities or your government forces the VPN providers to hand out personal information. Therefore, make sure you use a privacy-focused VPN.

For context, Mullvad was subject to a police search warrant, but they couldn’t find any data since Mullvad doesn’t log its users. The short answer is that unless you’re distributing stuff that could compromise national security, the FBI won’t use underhanded trickery to apprehend you.

Mullvad VPN |Mullvad

Most ISPs are still using IPv4 , which basically means that your IP is likely shared amongst many users. Thus, it becomes a chore, even for the ISP to precisely point out the specific internet connection. Alternatively, users also opt for seedboxes which are PCs set up somewhere else for seeding purposes.

While it is possible to track you down, if your seedbox is hosted in another country and your seedbox actually cares about your privacy, it simply wouldn’t be worth the extra cost for the authorities.

Conclusion

There are open-source alternatives to qBittorrent as well such as Deluge , Transmission, and whatnot. But qBittorrent is generally accepted as THE alternative, not something you’d find alternatives for. We have not explicitly stated that uTorrent and BitTorrent are unsafe, however, there are other better and hassle-free options.

Lastly, always use a VPN when torrenting. You may pair this with a VPS , seedbox, or a docker setup but they have diminishing returns. Torrenting is safe if you take the necessary precautions and keep away from malware-infested files.

How to Fix “Printer is in an error state” Issue?

The error “ WinRAR Error: Next Volume Is Required ” usually appears when you’re extracting a multi-part RAR archive and WinRAR can’t find (or can’t correctly identify) the next file in the sequence . This often happens when a volume is missing , stored in a different folder , or renamed in a way that breaks the archive’s expected order .

In this guide, we’ll go over the most reliable fixes confirmed by affected users, along with what each method is doing behind the scenes so you can choose the right one for your situation.

Important: To extract multi-volume archives, you should always start extraction from the first file in the set. This is usually file.part1.rar , or (in older sets) the main .rar file that comes before .r01 , .r02 , and so on.

1. Download and Place the Missing RAR File

WinRAR needs all parts of a multi-volume archive to complete extraction. This error usually appears when one of the volumes in a set like .part2.rar , .r01 , .r02 , .001 , and similar naming formats is missing . Downloading the missing volume and placing it in the same folder as the other parts allows WinRAR to continue extracting normally .

1. Look at the error message or review the list of archive parts in the folder.
2. Identify which volume is missing (for example, part2.rar , .r02 , .001 , etc.).
3. Go back to the website or source where you downloaded the archive.
4. Locate and download the exact missing file using the same naming format as the others.
5. Make sure the new file name matches the pattern of the rest. Example: If you have file.part1.rar and file.part3.rar , the missing one must be file.part2.rar .
6. Move the downloaded missing volume into the same folder as the other archive parts.
7. Confirm that all parts are in a single folder before extracting.
8. Right-click the first file in the series (usually part1 or the main .rar file) and select Extract Here or Extract to Folder .
9. WinRAR should now detect all volumes and continue extraction normally .

2. Manually Browse & Select the Next Volume

Use this method only if the next volume already exists , but WinRAR is failing to detect it automatically. This can happen due to incorrect naming , the file being in a different location , or a temporary file access issue. Manually browsing helps WinRAR locate the correct volume and resume extraction without interruption .

1. Right-click the first file in the series (usually .rar or part1.rar ) and select Extract Here or Extract to Folder .
2. When WinRAR cannot find the next volume, it will show the “ Next Volume Is Required ” message.
3. A small window will appear, allowing you to manually select the next volume .
4. Use the file explorer window to locate the folder where the other archive parts are saved.
5. Select the next part based on the naming order (example: select file.part2.rar after file.part1.rar ).
6. Make sure the selected file matches the naming format of the archive (no extra characters like (1) and no mismatched numbering).
7. WinRAR will resume extraction using the selected volume .
8. If additional volumes are missing or stored separately, WinRAR may prompt you again. Repeat the same process until extraction completes.

3. Rename the RAR files in Order

WinRAR relies on a proper naming sequence (such as file.part1.rar , file.part2.rar , file.part3.rar ) to extract multi-volume archives. If a file is named incorrectly, contains extra characters, or is out of order, WinRAR may fail to locate the next volume and show this error. Renaming the files correctly helps WinRAR follow the sequence and extract the archive without interruptions .

Note: Renaming only changes the file name , not the file contents. The goal is to restore the correct sequence so WinRAR can detect the next volume.

1. Go to the folder where all the RAR files are saved.
2. Make sure all parts of the archive are present and stored in the same folder .
3. Check how the parts are currently named . Common patterns include:

file.part1.rar, file.part2.rar, file.part3.rar
file.rar, file.r01, file.r02, file.r03

1. Look for files that don’t match the expected numbering pattern (for example, file.part01.rar , file.part1(1).rar , or unrelated names).
2. Rename each file so it follows the same order without extra characters or mismatched numbering. Example:

Incorrect: file.part1.rar, file.part3.rar, file.part2(1).rar
Correct: file.part1.rar, file.part2.rar, file.part3.rar

1. Make sure the text before the number is exactly the same for all files.
2. Only the last part number should change.
3. Right-click the first file in the series (usually part1.rar or the main .rar file) and select Extract Here .
4. WinRAR should now recognize the sequence and continue extraction normally .

If you still get the same prompt: the archive set is likely incomplete (a part was never downloaded or was removed), or one of the volumes is corrupt and must be re-downloaded from the original source.