Using rTorrent console

Most users never need to touch the rTorrent console directly. RuTorrent handles everything through the browser. But if ruTorrent is down, or you need to do something ruTorrent cannot, the console gives you full control over the rTorrent process running on your seedbox.

Connecting to the console

rTorrent runs inside a GNU Screen session on your seedbox. To reach it:

Connect to your seedbox via SSH (see Connecting using Putty or Connecting with SSH)
Attach to the screen session:

screen -r rtorrent

If you get "There is no screen to be resumed" your rTorrent process is not running. PMSS watchdog restarts crashed processes within 1-15 minutes. Wait and try again, or check Restarting rTorrent.

If you get "Already attached" (another SSH session has it open), use:

screen -x rtorrent

This shares the session between both terminals.

Leaving the console safely

What to do	Keys	What happens
Detach (SAFE)	`Ctrl+A` then `D`	Returns to shell. rTorrent keeps running. This is the correct way to leave.
DO NOT use Ctrl+C	—	Sends SIGINT. rTorrent begins shutting down.
DO NOT use Ctrl+Q	—	Also shuts down rTorrent. This is NOT detach.

If you accidentally hit Ctrl+C or Ctrl+Q, rTorrent will stop. PMSS watchdog restarts it within 1-15 minutes, but all active connections drop and must reconnect to trackers.

Terminal flow control conflict

Some terminals use Ctrl+S and Ctrl+Q for flow control (XON/XOFF). If pressing Ctrl+S freezes your terminal instead of starting a torrent, run this before attaching:

stty -ixon

Add it to your ~/.bashrc to make it permanent.

Views

rTorrent has 10 views. Switch between them with the number keys.

Key	View	Shows
`1`	Main	All torrents (default)
`2`	Name	All torrents, sorted alphabetically
`3`	Started	Only active torrents
`4`	Stopped	Only stopped torrents
`5`	Complete	Only finished downloads
`6`	Incomplete	Only unfinished downloads
`7`	Hashing	Torrents being hash-checked
`8`	Seeding	Torrents currently uploading
`9`	Leeching	Torrents currently downloading
`0`	Active	Torrents with network activity right now

The current view name shows in the top-left corner as [View: viewname].

Navigation

Key	Action
`Up` / `Ctrl+P`	Previous torrent
`Down` / `Ctrl+N`	Next torrent
`Right` / `Ctrl+F`	Enter torrent detail view
`Left` / `Ctrl+B`	Go back to previous screen
`Page Up`	Scroll up one page
`Page Down`	Scroll down one page

Torrent operations

All of these work in the main view on the currently selected (highlighted) torrent.

Key	Action	Notes
`Backspace`	Add torrent by URL	Enter a URL or local path to a .torrent file. Starts immediately.
`Enter`	Add torrent (paused)	Same as Backspace but does not start automatically.
`Ctrl+S`	Start	Runs hash check first if data exists on disk.
`Ctrl+D`	Stop or Remove	On an active torrent: stops it. On a stopped torrent: removes it from the list.
`Ctrl+K`	Close	Stops the torrent and releases all open file handles.
`Ctrl+R`	Hash check	Re-verifies all downloaded data against the torrent. Takes a while on large torrents.
`Ctrl+O`	Set download directory	Torrent must be closed first (`Ctrl+K`).
`+`	Raise priority	Cycles: off → low → normal → high
`-`	Lower priority	Cycles: high → normal → low → off
`I`	Toggle ignore ratio	Makes this torrent ignore global ratio rules.
`U`	Delete tied .torrent file	Removes the associated .torrent file from the watch directory.
`l`	View log	Shows rTorrent's internal log. Press spacebar to exit.
`L`	Toggle layout	Switch between compact (1-line) and full (3-line) display per torrent.
`F`	Filter	Enter a regex to temporarily filter the current view.

Stop, close, and remove

These three do different things:

Stop (Ctrl+D on active torrent) — Stops transferring. The torrent stays in the list as "Stopped". Data files untouched.
Close (Ctrl+K) — Stops and closes all file handles. Same as stop but also releases disk locks.
Remove (Ctrl+D on stopped torrent) — Takes the torrent off the list entirely. Data files stay on disk in ~/data/.

There is no built-in key to delete the downloaded files. Use SFTP, the shell (rm), or the ruTorrent file manager plugin for that.

Pressing Ctrl+D twice quickly on an active torrent will stop it and then immediately remove it from the list.

Speed controls

Lowercase keys control upload speed, uppercase (Shift) controls download. Keys are paired by step size: a/z for small adjustments, s/x for medium, d/c for large.

Step size	Upload +	Upload -	Download +	Download -
±5 KB/s	`a`	`z`	`A`	`Z`
±50 KB/s	`s`	`x`	`S`	`X`
±500 KB/s	`d`	`c`	`D`	`C`

Setting the throttle to 0 removes the limit entirely (unlimited speed).

Current throttle values and actual transfer rates show in the status bar at the bottom of the screen.

Torrent detail view

Press Right on a torrent in the main view to enter its detail screen.

Key	Shows
`Right`	File list (individual files in the torrent)
`p`	Peer list
`o`	Tracker list
`i`	Chunk distribution / rarity
`u`	Currently transferring blocks
`t`	Request tracker update
`T`	Force tracker update (ignores minimum interval)
`1` / `2`	Adjust min uploads (decrease / increase)
`3` / `4`	Adjust max uploads (decrease / increase)
`5` / `6`	Adjust min peers (decrease / increase)
`7` / `8`	Adjust max peers (decrease / increase)

File list

From the detail view, press Right again to see individual files.

Key	Action
`Space`	Cycle file priority (normal → off → high → normal). Works on directories too (recursive).
`*`	Change priority for ALL files at once
`/`	Collapse or expand directory tree

Use this to skip files you do not want. Set a file to "off" priority before starting the torrent, and rTorrent will not download it.

Tracker list

Press o from the detail view to see trackers.

Key	Action
`*`	Enable or disable tracker
`Space`	Rotate through trackers in the same group

Peer list

Shows connected peers with their IP, client name, upload/download rates, completion percentage, and connection flags (encrypted, interested, choked, snubbed).

Key	Action
`*`	Snub peer (stop uploading to them)
`k`	Kick peer (disconnect)
`B`	Ban peer permanently

Command line mode

Press Ctrl+X in the main view to open a command prompt at the bottom of the screen. Commands run against the currently selected torrent.

Useful commands:

Command	What it does
`d.directory.set=/new/path`	Change download directory (stop torrent first)
`d.priority.set=3`	Set priority: 0=off, 1=low, 2=normal, 3=high
`load.start=/path/to/file.torrent`	Load and start a .torrent file
`load.normal=/path/to/file.torrent`	Load without starting
`throttle.global_down.max_rate.set_kb=5000`	Set global download limit to 5000 KB/s
`throttle.global_up.max_rate.set_kb=2000`	Set global upload limit to 2000 KB/s
`print=$d.name=`	Print torrent name
`print=$d.directory=`	Print download directory

Status bar

The bottom line shows (left to right): upload/download throttle limits, current transfer rates, listening port, connection slot counts, and open file count.

Common mistakes

Mistake	What actually happens	Fix
Pressing Ctrl+Q to "quit"	Shuts down rTorrent. All connections drop.	Use `Ctrl+A D` to detach from screen instead.
Pressing Ctrl+C	Same as Ctrl+Q. Shuts down rTorrent.	Use `Ctrl+A D` to detach.
Ctrl+S freezes terminal	Terminal flow control (XOFF), not rTorrent.	Run `stty -ixon` before attaching.
Ctrl+D "deleted my torrent"	Ctrl+D on a stopped torrent removes it from the list.	Data files are still in `~/data/`. Re-add the .torrent.
Hash check takes forever	Normal for large torrents. rTorrent reads every byte on disk.	Wait. Do not interrupt it.