How to use the command transmission-show (with examples)

Transmission-show is a command-line utility that provides information about torrent files. It can be used to display metadata for a specific torrent, generate a magnet link for a torrent, and query a torrent’s trackers to get the current number of peers.

Use case 1: Display metadata for a specific torrent

Code:

transmission-show path/to/file.torrent

Motivation: Being able to display metadata for a specific torrent file is useful for understanding the details of a torrent before downloading it. It allows users to check important information such as the files included in the torrent, the total size, and the piece size.

Explanation:

• transmission-show is the command used to execute the utility.
• path/to/file.torrent is the path to the torrent file for which we want to display the metadata.

Example output:

Name: Ubuntu 20.04.1 LTS Desktop (AMD64)
File: Ubuntu 20.04.1 LTS Desktop (AMD64).iso
Size: 2.51 GB (2690639360 bytes)
Pieces: 12260
Piece Size: 256.00 KiB
Created By: Bittorrent (7)

Use case 2: Generate a magnet link for a specific torrent

Code:

transmission-show --magnet path/to/file.torrent

Motivation: Generating a magnet link for a specific torrent allows users to easily share the torrent with others. Instead of sharing the torrent file itself, the magnet link can be shared, making it convenient for distributing torrents without the need for a physical file.

Explanation:

• --magnet is an argument that instructs transmission-show to generate a magnet link for the specified torrent.
• path/to/file.torrent is the path to the torrent file for which we want to generate the magnet link.

Example output:

magnet:?xt=urn:btih:255d1e4970485111ca8f7fe13f8b7f2c9655f035&dn=Ubuntu%2020.04.1%20LTS%20Desktop%20%28AMD64%29&xl=2690639360

Use case 3: Query torrent’s trackers and print the current number of peers

Code:

transmission-show --scrape path/to/file.torrent

Motivation: By querying a torrent’s trackers and printing the current number of peers, users can get an idea of the popularity and availability of a torrent. This information can be helpful in deciding whether to start the download or to prioritize other torrents.

Explanation:

• --scrape is an argument that tells transmission-show to query the torrent’s trackers and provide information on the number of peers.
• path/to/file.torrent is the path to the torrent file for which we want to query the trackers.

Example output:

Tracker 1: udp://tracker.opentrackr.org:1337/announce
   Seeded: 700
   Peers: 180

Tracker 2: udp://tracker.torrent.eu.org:451/announce
   Seeded: 860
   Peers: 210

Tracker 3: udp://tracker.coppersurfer.tk:6969/announce
   Seeded: 1000
   Peers: 230

Conclusion:

The transmission-show command-line utility provides several useful functionalities for working with torrent files. It allows users to display metadata for a specific torrent, generate magnet links, and query a torrent’s trackers for information on the number of peers. These features provide valuable insights and convenience when dealing with torrents.