Grabbing DCS torrent files

Those among us who help out by hosting DCS files on seedboxes don't have a regular means to get up-to-date torrent files.

So I searched around and found a Windows Powershell script for monitoring a folder for .torrent files as they are created. The script will detect when .torrent files are written and then copy them to a folder of your choosing. So here it is:

$folder = 'C:\Program Files\Eagle Dynamics\DCS World OpenBeta\_downloads'
$filter = '*.torrent'
$destination = 'C:\DCSTorrent'
$fsw = New-Object IO.FileSystemWatcher $folder, $filter -Property @{
IncludeSubdirectories = $true
NotifyFilter = [iO.NotifyFilters]'FileName, LastWrite'
}
$onCreated = Register-ObjectEvent $fsw Created -SourceIdentifier FileCreated -Action {
$path = $Event.SourceEventArgs.FullPath
$name = $Event.SourceEventArgs.Name
$changeType = $Event.SourceEventArgs.ChangeType
$timeStamp = $Event.TimeGenerated
Write-Host "The file '$name' was $changeType at $timeStamp"
Copy-Item $path -Destination $destination -Force -Verbose
}

The folder C:\Program Files\Eagle Dynamics\DCS World Openbeta\ is the default install folder for 2.5 open beta.

The subfolder _downloads is where DCS updater puts data while it is downloading it. When it starts the bittorrent client it creates a folder called .torrent and puts all torrent files in there. DCS updater usually deletes all content within the _downloads folder after it finishes, so the .torrent folder is usually not present. The script will error out if you specify a folder that doesn't exist.

You can specify your own custom destination by editing the $destination variable. Whichever folder you specify will be the destination for the .torrent files.

There's no need to alter anything other than $folder and $destination

Instructions:

Copy the contents of the script and paste it into a new text file (using notepad, notepad++, or sublime text) and save the file as DCS.ps1

Create a folder for the destination. If you didn't make any changes to the script, create a folder named DCSTorrent on your C: drive.

You can run the script from PowerShell ISE. Use the following command.

powershell -NoExit -executionpolicy bypass -File '.\DCS.ps1'

The script will remain active until you terminate it with the key combination CTRL + c

You can run the script in PowerShell, rather than PowerShell ISE. If you do, terminate the script by entering the following command.

Unregister-Event -SourceIdentifier FileCreated

Once the script is running, run the program Update DCS World OpenBeta.

As the torrent download starts, you will see messages appear in Powershell regarding which files are being processed. If all is working you will see .torrent files appear in your destination folder as well.

I'm a noob at powershell so if someone knows a better way to accomplish this I'd sure like to hear it.

Gonna give this a try and make use of my new cable ISP. Running 24/7 anyway, might as well serve the community with it.

Can I PM you for questions if they arise ?

Gonna give this a try and make use of my new cable ISP. Running 24/7 anyway, might as well serve the community with it.

 

Can I PM you for questions if they arise ?

Yes, absolutely.

If I'm taking too long to reply, send me a PM on Reddit. I have the same name there.

OK, got it working.

At first I thought it was ok to download another beta and have the installer copy the files from my current installs, well, that does not work.

I renamed my current installs for now and forced the installer to actually dl it all.

Once I have both versions downloaded I will look for a client to upload. Which one do you use ? The original bittorrent client or another one ? Havent done much with it lately.

edit:

it's running :) all good

Bit,

When a patch/fix/update is posted for 2.5 beta, does that effect 1.5.8? How stable is 1.5.8xx?

What does grabbing torrent files do for the updater that I am effected by?

Thanks

Laz

I havent run 1.5.x for months other than short testing. It's supposed to be "stable".

I dont understand what you mean with what does it do for your updater.

Seeding the files is nothing you need to do as a gamer/enduser or need to take care about.

This is just to distribute the installer files as an additional seed, the more seeders the faster and more reliable the network works. Since I run this rig 24/7 anyway I thought I give it a try.

The UL rate is somehwere around 25-50MBit, hardly ever under 20Mbit/sec...not bad.

Thanks.

 

Once I have both versions downloaded I will look for a client to upload. Which one do you use ? The original bittorrent client or another one ? Havent done much with it lately.

For a bittorrent client, I like Deluge.

Thanks, currently using the original BT client but it keeps spamming me with popups and slide-ins..cant put up with it.

Will give it a try.

90GB since yesterday, seems to have slowed down a bit on mondays..haha

Mind creating a video tutorial as i'm more of a visual learner? Thanks and really cool thing you've done here.

Mind creating a video tutorial as i'm more of a visual learner? Thanks and really cool thing you've done here.

I'll try to. I'll send a PM and update the first post if I succeed.

Hello,

there's another way to get to the torrent files.

We have a mailling list for those who want to seed. PM me with your email if you are interested.

 

Another option is to keep torrent files after the update and seed from them directly. But this should be set up before the update. If you are interested, I can post the details.

Unzip the attached file to the root of your DCS install folder.

It will create the autoupdate_dev.cfg file, with the contents:

{
"keep_torrents": true
}

This will tell the updater to keep all torrent-related files in the _downloads/ folder.

You can seed directly from there.

:doh:

Ohh haha, took me a while to figure it all out, tho I still have some questions.

What do we do with superseeded files ? Leave them for older builds/versions ?

I copied all torrents that the script gathered into BT-Client, downloaded them and keep seeding them in BT-Client...passed the 250GB landmark in 2 days...nice.

But what shall I do once a new update comes out ? Just add those new downloaded files to the ones I already seed ?

You can leave them up. Eventually they'll error out as they get removed from the tracker after a period of time. Torrents that error out you can safely delete.

Hello,

 

there's another way to get to the torrent files.

This is excellent info.

I'm already a member of the seedbox mailing list. The issue with the seedbox mailing list is that it's manually updated by c0ff and it's not a part of his regular tasks, so he doesn't update it regularly.

The second bit is incredibly useful. Thanks for pointing it out.

I was reading through this thread as i have been trying to find how to keep and seed the torrent files. It seems during an update, the the one from today the updater will pull about 71 torrent files, but the contents are only the diffs needed for the update.

How is it best done for those of us that want to try and share our bandwidth and seed the files?

i could in theory perform a new install and grab the torrent files from that, but it seems that they are all replaced with deltas? im just not sure how to maintain the seeding and ensure i get all of the correct files?

Is there any additional direction besides the way noted to retain the _Downloads folder and its contents (.torrents and the files)?

I was reading through this thread as i have been trying to find how to keep and seed the torrent files. It seems during an update, the the one from today the updater will pull about 71 torrent files, but the contents are only the diffs needed for the update.

 

How is it best done for those of us that want to try and share our bandwidth and seed the files?

 

i could in theory perform a new install and grab the torrent files from that, but it seems that they are all replaced with deltas? im just not sure how to maintain the seeding and ensure i get all of the correct files?

 

Is there any additional direction besides the way noted to retain the _Downloads folder and its contents (.torrents and the files)?

bump

anyone able to tell me how i can best help by seeding the content?