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WinMX Tweaks & Tips for 56K
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Despite reports of its death, WinMX is not dead! The WinMX Peer Network (WPN) servers, as they used to be, may have closed due to threats of litigation by the RIAA, but they have since relocated! There is a little work involved before one can connect to the "new" WPN, but it's not so hard to do. Just follow the instructions as noted below. However, one may prefer to stick to the "tried and true" OpenNap servers, as WinMX is and always has been an OpenNap client. And as before, all settings, comments and recommendations posted on this site are intended for 56K dial up users of WinMX.
Copy the text between the lines from this page. In Windows XP, go to C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\drivers\etc (assuming that Windows is installed on your C drive). Inside the "etc" folder, find the "hosts" file. Backup your existing hosts file. (This is extremely important because the hosts file is sometimes used by several legitimate programs to block ads, banners, web bugs, cookies and hijackers.) If it is ticked "read-only," untick it, then open it using Notepad. Paste the copied text under the current text of your existing hosts file (under "127.0.0.1 localhost" while leaving one line of empty spacing) and save. Open WinMX and try to connect, keeping in mind that one may have to wait a bit longer for a connection to take place. *****Special notes***** In Windows 2000, the filepath is usually: C:\WinNT\System32\Drivers\Etc In Windows 98 or ME, the filepath is usually: C:\Windows If the original hosts file was "read-only," make the new file read-only also. Since 56K users of WinMX are restricted to secondary connections, there's no need to install the new "dll fix" that's readily available. It does exactly what the hosts file does, except with the added function of blocking certain "bad" IP addresses. As a secondary, blocking of those IP's is not necessary. Users with primary connections to WinMX do need to block those IP's however, but this can also be done by adding those IP's to a blocklist in their firewall or running an IP blocker/pseudo-firewall such as Peer Guardian 2 or Sherwood. This site was created specifically for new 56K dial up users of WinMX. Broadband (Cable, DSL, etc.) users may find it informative, but should not make the changes noted below to the outgoing bandwidth throttle nor to the queuing limits. Since a broadband connection is faster, any adjustments should be higher than stated below. WinMX is a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) file-sharing program where users can share files of any type. There are no costs involved. Users can connect to each other by a private network, the WPN (WinMX Peer Network) and/or OpenNap servers. Users share files by connecting to the network(s) and downloading directly from each other. By following the instructions posted below, your WinMX experience should be a more enjoyable one. TWEAKSAdjusting the Outgoing Bandwidth ThrottleIf you do not limit your outgoing bandwidth, your downloads will slow drastically when you are uploading and downloading at the same time.Click Bandwidth. Click Adjust Incoming and Outgoing Bandwidth Throttles. Leave your Incoming Bandwidth as is (no check mark). Set your Outgoing Bandwidth to 2500 bytes and check the box to the immediate left. When both uploading and downloading at the same time you may try increasing this limit in 250 byte increments, but once you notice your download speed drop, change the limit back to the previous setting. However, a setting of 2500 bytes should be fine for most 56K modem users. Click Close. (Note 1: If your upload is moving slowly even with the limit in place, you may start another upload by right-clicking another file in queue and selecting Start Transfer.) (Note 2: Avoid using your bandwidth for anything else while downloading, such as web surfing or using other programs that need bandwidth, as this will also cause your downloads to decelerate.)
Click Queuing. Set Max total downloads to 1. Set Max total downloads per user to 1. Set Max total uploads to 1. Set Max total uploads per user to 1. Click Close. (Note 3: See Note 1 above. In addition, doing so will temporarily fill another upload queue slot. No need to change the upload queue limit as it will stay at 1, but it will be listed as -1 of 1.) (Note 4: If your download is moving slowly, you can temporarily open another download slot in your WinMX settings. Remember to change it back to 1 after completion.) (Note 5: Max total downloads can bypass the queue limit. Remotely queued downloads may start anytime they reach "0" position in queue.)
Click Settings. Click Search. Under Default Download Parameters... Set Auto Find Sources to 10m. Set Auto Enter Queue to 50. If your files have settings of 10m and 50, WinMX will automatically search for sources every 10 minutes and you will enter a source's queue if he/she has from 0 to 49 users ahead of you.
In WinMX, click the Shared Files button at the top left. Click the Share Folder button on that page. Browse to find the folder you want to share. Highlight the folder and click OK. Repeat as necessary to share more folders or share a root folder (such as My Music) and all sub-folders under it will also be shared. Never use the Scan For Media button as this can share junk files that no one will want.
In Windows, locate My Music and open it. At the top of the page, click File. From the drop-down menu select New, then click Folder. Your new folder should be highlighted. Type WinMX Incoming in the highlighted area. Close My Music. In WinMX, click Settings. Click File Transfers. At the top right on that page click Change. Click the + mark by My Documents to expand the folder. Click the + mark by My Music. Click WinMX Incoming. Click OK. Click Close. (Note 6: It's best to do this with WinMX not running. If you have any incomplete files in your old incoming folder, you will have to move them to your new "WinMX Incoming" folder in order to complete them. Follow the instructions in the next topic below to move them. Once WinMX is running, hit the Load Incomplete button on the Transfers page. After reloading, assign new AFS and AEQ values for the files by right-clicking them and making your selections.) Moving a File to Another FolderWhen a download is finished (and after checking the file for quality) you will want to move it from your incoming folder to a shared folder. (Remember to also scan these files with your antivirus program before sharing them.)Right-click the completed file in your incoming files folder. Select Cut. In Windows, locate your shared folder and open it. At the top of the page click Edit. Select Paste. In WinMX, click the Refresh button on the Shared Files page. Your new file will now be shared. Remember to follow the same procedure when you have completed files in your incoming folder. You can also create new folders inside of My Music to store completed files. Just remember to share those folders as noted under "Sharing Files" above. (Note 7: The "drag and drop" method also works to move your completed files, but as this method can be difficult to explain to novices, I chose not to describe it here. Highlighting the file, choosing Move This File at the far left [in Windows] and browsing to find the folder in which to move the file also works.) File Transfers "Time Out"If you find that your transfers "time out," you may have a problem with your firewall.There are two things that you can do: 1.) Configure your firewall to use port 6699 for TCP and port 6257 for UDP (although it may be in your best interest to use any two random port numbers between 5001 and 65535, just in case your ISP decides to block the default ports - also make sure WinMX is set up to use those same random ports). 2.) Make a "passive" secondary connection, which will bypass port settings. To do this, go to Settings/Internet Connection, set Incoming TCP Connections to "Unable to accept incoming TCP connections," and set In/Out UDP Packets to "Unable to send or receive UDP datagrams on any port." Whenever you make changes to port settings, you must restart WinMX for those changes to take effect. (Note 8: If you don't know how to forward ports in your firewall, check its website.) (Note 9: If only your uploads time out and you are using Windows XP as your operating system, disable the built-in XP firewall. If you don't know how to do this, click here. A link to a much better firewall and configuration instructions for it is on my links page. It is in your best interest to have a firewall enabled at all times, as not using one may put your computer at risk.) (Note 10: If you are on a computer that is using a networked university connection, it is entirely possible that the university is blocking ports. In such a case, you may never be able to transfer files via WinMX.) If you need help understanding anything that is not covered here, please visit the WinMX newsgroup - alt.music.mp3.winmx. You can often find answers in the posts by searching. If not, don't be afraid to post a question but do not ask for an email response. Please check back often to see if someone has posted a reply. You could also email me here, but you may have to wait awhile for a reply. Also be sure to check out the tips page, FAQ page, CDex page, albums page and the links page for more helpful information. Good luck! I hope I've helped you in some way. Copyright © 2002-07 - "Six" Site last updated on 01/15/2007 |
