Problems with latest BC version!

[Raccoon]

I was using an older version of BC (not sure now, but mostly .63) without any apparent problems. Decided to upgrade (to version .70) last week and been having all sort of problems -

The 1st is that I cant get the DHT icon to go green no matter what I do. And I tried everthing I could find on the BC site/forums. It was always green when I was using the older version. In exasperation I installed uTorrent and DHT is connected in that too, without any further ado! But now the problem is that even after uninstalling BitComet, the port that it was using (randomly entered - 64602) shows as closed only and not stealthed.

The prob with the un-stealthed port was there even when I had the latest BC still installed - even after closing the application the port remained in the closed and not stealthed state! I have never observed this with any application - eMule, Limewire, older BC, etc. The ports used ports always seem to revert to their original stealthed postion after the application is closed.

Needless to say I had tried selecting/deselecting/reloading after changing the selection for both DHT & port, in the options, within BC ...as adviced in another thread.

I tried using the port above (64602) for Limewire etc, temporarily. It seems to work fine, but no matter what I do, the THIS port will NOT go back to the stealthed position after the application is closed.

Cant help but conclude that the new version of BC seems buggy... Could someone tell me how I can get this port stealted, please???

I'm using the SP2 firewall & Huawei ADSL modem/router ...currently with UPnP enabled.

[bitdave]

Go into the SP2 firewall and delete the exceptions that were from the old version of Bitcomet, in fact delete all the Bitcomet exceptions and let the new version create some new ones the next time you run it.

Did you use the UPnP option of Bitcomet to forward the port in the router or did you manually enter portforwarding in the router? -maybe look in the router and see if there are any leftover portforwarding rules.

[Raccoon]

Well, I'v already tried ALL that ...some things more than once! Nothing is working! The port will NOT go in the stealthed state. :(

Moreover, the DHT issue is there too ...so I'm currently on uTorrent.

Did you use the UPnP option of Bitcomet to forward the port in the router or did you manually enter portforwarding in the router?

When I was using the older version of BC, my router had UPnP off (default). I only allowed the SP2 firewall to allow BC traffic. That worked fine... and even the DHT was connected & I was sometimes even getting the peak speed for my connection.

With the latest BC, nothing will make these 2 problems go away - UPnP on or off...

I have never manually forwarded ports in the modem/router.

The modem does not have any leftover BC rules. Checked that sometime ago. In any case, the modem in itself does not lend my comp to be in the stealthed mode. Its because of the SP2 firewall ...if I disable it, then ports show up as Closed & not Stealthed. Maybe thats because the "Discard WAN side ping" option is disabled by default ...not sure. Have never tried enabling it ...maybe you could please comment on that. The modem's inbuilt firewall is disabled too (default).

Would really appreciate if you could tell me weather it is safe to keep the UPnP option "on" in the modem ...and also keep the XP UPnP Services active. Sites like grc.com say it is a big security hole... and is not needed. :unsure:

[bitdave]

I have never been a fan of UPnP and have always had the SSDP and UPnP services disabled in XP, I also have UPnP disabled in my router. It's supposed to help noobs set up portforwarding but I dont need help with that.

In the Windows Firewall in the Advanced tab under ICMP settings only the first option "Allow incoming echo requests" should be checked. Also in your router you should not be discarding WAN ping requests, although it makes you more secure it is unnecessary since your router still drops malicious pings. Just make that your router has remote management off and/or is protected by a strong password.

I would suggest that you re-enable the Firewall in your router and learn how to portforward it manually. Figure out what model it is then head over to portforward.com to get directions on how to do this. After you do this then disable UPnP in the router, windows, and in Bitcomet.(Unless you like using UPnP or have other programs that you need it for)

Also make sure that your windows is fully patched and if you would like to know more about the problems with UPnP see Here

Edited September 2, 2006 by bitdave (see edit history)

[Raccoon]

Scary...

Well, to be precice, I had disabled the following services long ago -

i) Universal Plug and Play Device Host Service

ii) SSDP Discovery Service

The modem had UPnp disabled by defualt too.

However, since I was looking around for solutions to the BC (v.70) problem, I came across this advice on the net to enable the above services and UPnP in the modem. But it has not helped in connecting DHT, anyway. Now the observation is that either ways (enabled or disabled) no application (including the older BC version) other than the latest BC has a problem with it (as long as i allow the application thru the SP2 firewall)! :huh: Anyway, I will deactivate the services again now...

In the Windows Firewall in the Advanced tab under ICMP settings only the first option "Allow incoming echo requests" should be checked.

But dosen't this render my comp to be "visible" on the net??? :o Anyway, how would this help?

I would suggest that you re-enable the Firewall in your router and learn how to portforward it manually. Figure out what model it is then head over to portforward.com to get directions on how to do this. After you do this then disable UPnP in the router, windows, and in Bitcomet.(Unless you like using UPnP or have other programs that you need it for)

The modem is a Huawei SmartAX MT882. I found the port fwd instrucitons on portforward.com. However, even with the UPnP off, I'v never had an issue with any application except BC .70. So would there be any benifit in port forwarding in the modem? Also, Im rather sceptical about the modem's firewall. The manual isn't very clear but it mentions protections against known attacks like IP Spoofing, Tear Drop, Smurf & Fraggle, Land Attack & Ping of death ...and DoS protection. Sounds like a pretty basic fw to me. Attaching the setup page below. Would really appreciate if you could comment. :)

Lastly, the original problem of DHT and the BC port not going into stealth mode remains. No solutions for that? :(

Really appreciate your advice... :)

[bitdave]

It would be best to use your routers firewall. Hardware/firmware firewalls are generally much better than software firewalls.

Just being visible on the net isnt that bad. Once the hacker sees that your connected they still would have to find an exploit to attack you with. And your routers firewall and/or the SP2 firewall should take care of that. Just make sure that you have updated windows recently. I have always had that option, Allow incoming Echo request, checked because I use Windows File and Printer Sharing. My computer has never been compromised though I see in the router log a few Teardrop and PingOfDeath hits, which is normal internet chatter so-to-speack. Also at my school there seems to be a lot of people trying to connect to my Shares but I have restricted the scope of Windows File and Printer Sharing to my Home LAN only so no worries. If you dont use Windows File and Printer Sharing then I guess you should leave it unchecked.

My suggestion is that you enable your routers firewall, Attack protection and DOS protection(Im not sure about that blacklist option), leave UPnP off and then manually portforward it for Bitcomet v0.70.(dont upgrade to v0.71) Also in your router dont Discard WAN pings, your router will still protect you just fine from malicious pings or any other attack(assuming you enable the firewall). Clear out any previous Exceptions in the SP2 firewall and then in Bitcomet have the ICF/ICS option checked and also have the "Remove port on NAT/firewall" checked.

Please advise on how everything goes or if you have any other questions please ask.