Why is Tor sometimes so slow?

Discussion in 'privacy technology' started by DesuMaiden, Oct 5, 2013.

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  1. DesuMaiden

    DesuMaiden Registered Member

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    Anyone got any ideas? It is suppose to be a low-latency anonymity network, so why is it sometimes so bare-ably slow?
     
  2. JohnMatrix

    JohnMatrix Registered Member

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    Probably too busy at moments. I think they need more exit nodes at peak times.
     
  3. mirimir

    mirimir Registered Member

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    Since late August, we can blame the Mevade bots.

    More generally, we can blame the torrent freaks.

    We can also blame all the kids who run relays on home "broadband".

    Sometimes, it's just that you picked a dead-slow entry guard.
     
  4. DesuMaiden

    DesuMaiden Registered Member

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    ~Phrase removed~ they should use a VPN to torrent not Tor!

    What speeds should they be running it at?

    Click on Vidalia Control Panel's Use a New Identity button (the black man) to change your Tor circuit for a faster connection.
     
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  5. mirimir

    mirimir Registered Member

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    Yes.

    Latency matters too, not just bandwidth. From my perspective as a Tor user, they should at least have a real 100 Mbps symmetric link :)

    That might help. But your Tor client only uses three entry guards at any one time, although they do gradually rotate. So if one out of three is very slow, for whatever reason, your circuits have a 33% chance of being very slow.
     
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  6. 0strodamus

    0strodamus Registered Member

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    My guess would be that the Tor infrastructure is overburdened with too many freeloaders.
     
  7. mattdocs12345

    mattdocs12345 Registered Member

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    It's hard not to be a freeloader given that you can be punished by law for operating a node.
     
  8. 0strodamus

    0strodamus Registered Member

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  9. Taliscicero

    Taliscicero Registered Member

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    Because I'm using it to download ever single episode of Glee and American idol in full HD 24/7. I need to watch my shows man! :shifty:. The problem with buying from the Tor store is you will never be able to use or wear any of their merchandise as anyone not familiar with Tor but know about it 99% of people in this case view Tor = Pedophiles which is wrong but guess what you will be thought as if your go around with Tor merchandise lol.
     
    Last edited: Oct 5, 2013
  10. DesuMaiden

    DesuMaiden Registered Member

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    As long as you don't run as an exit node, you are safe from god-knows-what kind of traffic is flowing out of your exit node. I sometimes run an non-exit node in order to contribute to the Tor network. That way I can give back to the Tor network. Nobody knows what's being routed through the entry and relay nodes (non-exit nodes). That's why you are SAFE as long as you don't run as an exit node. I wanted to become an exit node at one point, but after hearing about what kind of traffic sometimes flows out of the exit node, I decided I rather not. It is not worth getting raided by the police for someone else's illegal traffic.
     
  11. Exactly so my question comes out spontaneous, who is so "brave" to run as an exit node and why they should expose themselves to thiso_O? Maybe im paranoic but i think most of times its some federal agency who run itself as an exit node, could be possible?
     
  12. HAN

    HAN Registered Member

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    I'm confused! Why should anyone expect TOR speed to be anything other than average at best and often barely tolerable? A user routes through multiple nodes and is reliant on a limited amount of exit nodes. You can't put 10 pounds in a 5 pound bag.

    In the FWIW category, I have been listening to many old and new podcasts of Security Now. On one episode (can't remember which one) Steve Gibson read a quick item about known TOR exit nodes. Many were ran by governments. Guess that's to be expected right??
     
  13. J_L

    J_L Registered Member

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    Fastest I've ever got is 200 KB/s download, but usually it's less than 1/4th the speed.
     
  14. mirimir

    mirimir Registered Member

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    I have no doubt that some exit nodes are run by governments. But there are many governments, and they don't always cooperate very well. Also, most of those governments also use Tor, so there's a shared interest in making Tor secure.

    Generally, it's my impression that many non-government exit nodes are run by idealists who have the resources (organizational, financial, legal, etc) to defend themselves. It also helps to operate in jurisdictions where legal defences are possible. Look at https://metrics.torproject.org/bubbles.html and play around with with the various views. Viewing by Country, for example, shows that most are US and Germany. The Autonomous Systems view is also informative.
     
  15. 0strodamus

    0strodamus Registered Member

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    I never realized that's what people are thinking of me when I'm sporting my Tor gear. Oh well. The only comments I ever get is when I'm wearing one of my many Wikileaks shirts - all positive so far. :thumb:
     
  16. noone_particular

    noone_particular Registered Member

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    Running an exit node doesn't mean you have to allow any and all kinds of traffic. Each relay has an exit policy where the user specifies the allowed ports. The relay operator can allow traffic to the standard web ports (80, 443). They can allow specific IM and IRC ports. Exit node operators can avoid most problems by not allowing the default torrent and P2P ports. See Reduced exit policy.
    Slow exits are better than no exits. The botnet is a big part of the problem, not because of the bandwidth it uses, but because of the number of connections it's making. It overloads even the fastest relays at times. On nodes with unlimited exit policies, torrent users are a problem as well. Nodes that overrate their capacity can also be a problem. Most torrent users won't use low bandwidth exits if they can avoid them. On the average, there's only about 900 total exit nodes running at any given time. It badly needs more exits.
     
  17. Overkill

    Overkill Registered Member

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    Can someone explain this in detail?
    Is it illegal to run the tor browser?
     
  18. Taliscicero

    Taliscicero Registered Member

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    I can run tor about 1200 KB/s - 1500 KB/s most of the time, due to a flaw in the way Tor works you can get faster speeds. Steve and another guy were arguing about it on Wilders a few years ago, I eventually from reading what they wrote figured it out myself and have used it when I rarely use Tor.
     
  19. mirimir

    mirimir Registered Member

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    I don't know about "illegal" in China, but "unhappy" is a safe bet :(

    But no, this isn't about using Tor browser.

    This is about running Tor relays, which are the "routers" that carry traffic of the Tor network. By default, all relays are listed publicly, with contact information. The openness of that is part of Tor's security model, so that all participants can see all relays. But it's exit relays that attract the most attention.

    Let's say that you're running an exit relay. Eventually, some Tor user with a circuit through your exit will do something that's illegal. That may cause someone to complain to your ISP, demand records through subpoena, etc. And you may have your account cancelled, or get a visit from LEA, TLA or some other gang.
     
  20. If you run a exit node expect a visit from LEA and for you to be wiretapped u the wazoo.

    There needs to be a more decentralized method of funding TOR relays and exit nodes that's transparent and open for all to see. We know for a fact NSA runs some nodes, so does British intelligence so we need to root those ones out if we can, if it's posible and get them on the banned list.

    I don't know how you would do that i.e funding Exit nodes anonymously but stuff having your name connected to a TOR exit node.
     
  21. mirimir

    mirimir Registered Member

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    Depending on where you are, that may take a while, but you're right that it's likely :(

    Yes. The Tor Project does have funds -- maybe from US government ;) -- for funding relays. But there's still the problem that it's your IP address :(

    I'm interested in that too.

    I've asked about that on the new Tor StackExchange site <-http://tor.stackexchange.com/questions/266/what-tor-friendly-hosting-providers-allow-anonymous-accounts->.
     
  22. It can be done in C.I.S countries, parts of ASIA and Africa if you live there and pay cash at the data center..... Why do you think The Pirate Bay founder's were in Cambodia and Laos respectively until recently.

    But it will be slow as hell being so far away and they will yank it once RIPE or the government get's involved and threaten's them.

    Plus do you really want to run a node in those countries anyway? They would be wiretapping the crap out those exit nodes.
     
  23. AaLF

    AaLF Registered Member

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    Sometimes?
     
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