BATorrent 4.0: A Leap Forward in Lightweight BitTorrent Clients
In mid-June 2026, the open-source project BATorrent unveiled its fourth major release, marking a significant milestone for this lightweight BitTorrent client developed using C++, Qt 6, and libtorrent-rasterbar. Following the initial launch of BATorrent 1.0 in March 2026, the source code has been made publicly available on GitHub under the MIT license, with builds compatible across Windows, Linux, and macOS platforms.
BATorrent boasts a comprehensive feature set that includes support for magnet links, .torrent files, resumable downloads, sequential downloading, and customizable file priorities. Additionally, users can import settings from qBittorrent, enhancing the transition for those familiar with that platform. The client also integrates an automatic RSS download feature with regex filtering, duplicate detection, and automatic tracker list generation from Stremio. Streaming capabilities are facilitated through auto-detected players like VLC and IINA.
The development team emphasizes user privacy, stating, “No telemetry, no analytics, no server calls. The only outgoing request initiated by the application is a release check on GitHub, which can be disabled in the settings. You can verify this yourself in the file src/app/updater.cpp.”
The user interface is thoughtfully designed, featuring:
- Three themes: dark, light, and midnight (evoking a bat/vampire aesthetic);
- A real-time speed graph;
- A detailed tabbed panel with sections for general information, peers, files, and trackers;
- A filter panel for searching by name and filtering by status (active, downloading, seeding, paused, completed);
- Drag-and-drop support for .torrent files and magnet links;
- Reordering torrents in the list via drag-and-drop;
- A system tray with notifications (download completion, crash events, automatic RSS downloads);
- Multilingual support including EN, PT, ZH, JA, RU, ES, DE.
Privacy features and support for private trackers include:
- PT mode — a one-click compliance feature that disables DHT/PEX/LSD, enforces anonymous connections, and announces to all levels;
- One-click Tor proxy setup — filling in SOCKS5 127.0.0.1:9050 with ease;
- Automatic detection and blocking of leechers — identifying and blocking Xunlei, QQDownload, and Baidu Netdisk P2P by peer_id prefix.
Notifications and integrations enhance user experience with:
- Telegram webhooks for download completion, crash notifications, automatic RSS downloads, and error messages sent to any chat via bot token;
- Enhanced Discord presence status — displaying download progress in the Discord profile with action buttons;
- Native OS notifications through QSystemTrayIcon::showMessage.
Key improvements introduced in BATorrent versions 4.0 and 4.1 include:
- An interactive tour with prompts — a step-by-step guide;
- Automatic launch after the initial welcome screen/update — applicable for clean installations and those upgrading to version four, with an option to skip and restart from the Help section;
- Refined protection against automatic updates — downloaded installers are verified for size before execution, eliminating issues with truncated or blocked downloads. A safe mode during download failures offers recovery options (reset settings/get the latest version) if the launch fails twice, and the update dialog always features a backup option to “Download Manually.”;
- The “Peers” tab now operates smoothly even with large groups — unsuccessful geolocation requests are cached, and the peer list updates only while the tab is open;
- Complete translation into eight languages;
- Resolved issues with qBittorrent and fixed bugs related to Windows settings/tree/splash screen;
- Adding torrents via URL — File → Add Torrent by URL (Ctrl+U) allows users to load remote .torrent files through the standard add dialog;
- Regression tests to identify issues related to settings saving and logical values in Windows. A new set of Qt Quick Test tests covers the splash screen at startup and design system widgets.
