[Jage_b]

This is actually a two part question. I have a LAN gaming group going and we're getting frustrated with the large amount of time we spend transferring files to each other (game mods, save files, the game itself, etc), so if anyone can answer either of these questions, you've just solved our problems.

1.) Is there any free program I can get that will let me transfer large files (1 gig+) to friends over the internet at a relatively fast speed? It would be preferred that we both wouldn't have to be online at the same time but it's not required. Also, reliability is a big deal since transferring over IM usually has a 1% chance of success.

2.) Is there a super fast way to get very large files (5GB+) from one computer to another when they're right next to each other? I'm willing to spend around 50 bucks for anything that's capable of doing this. Directly connecting LAN cables always say the transfer is about 1MB/sec but it's always a lot longer than that...

Also, if there's a way to transfer that same file to multiple computers at a very speedy pace I'd love to know about that too. Transferring files over LAN wouldn't be so bad if there wasn't a significant slowdown when some people started playing a game or transferring files.

Anyway, whatever help you can give is appreciated. Thanks!

[midders]

Adrive offers 50gb of free storage online with the ability to share your files with other users (links only valid for 2 weeks with the free package). I'm not sure what upload/download speeds you'll get, but it should be fast enough. Alternatively, if you don't mind leaving your PC switched on, you could run your own FTP server using FileZilla and give your friends the logon details.

With 2 PCs side-by-side, use a gigabit wired lan for best speeds; both PCs will need a gigabit ethernet card (NIC) and you'll need a gigabit router to make the connection. However; even if you only have 100Mbit ethernet you should still get around 10 Megabytes/s sustained transfer rate. Alternatively, use a Firewire or eSata external hard-drive, or if you don't mind getting your hands dirty, get a cheap internal hard drive and swap it between the systems that you need to move the data to.

Slainte

midders

[zx10guy]

You're only going to transfer data as fast as the lowest denominator. Which is likely your ISP connection. Being that all home service runs an asymmetrical setup, your downloads are many times faster than your uploads. This is why many people I interact with don't see the bigger picture of having an equally fast upload. Me personally, I would trade my download speeds so I can have faster upload speeds.

With the above said, some times the application you're using to move files back and forth is the culprit. I remember in the old days I did LAN parties that map transfers from the dedicated server took forever (even on the LAN.) To alleviate this problem, we would either share out a folder on someone's box which transfered at a much faster rate or just burn a CD.

There isn't a utility which helps move files faster over the internet (assuming the protocol/method of transfer is already optimized for file transfers.) You can get a utility which will help in picking up file transfers from the last good known packet sent. This will help you from not having to start the file transfer all over again.

The second point about file transfers on a LAN is all dependent on a number of factors. As I said, if you're using the gaming software to move files you may be suffering from poor file sharing optimization in the game itself. The other factors are your machine and whether your network has the appropriate setup/equipment. 1 MB/s is slow even with a 100 Mbit network infrastructure. You need to figure out if other issues are causing the poor performance. Remember, potential bottle necks can be caused by the desktop itself with slow hard drives, saturated PCI bus, etc, etc.