Does BitTorrent work well on Windows XP SP2 or higher operating systems with an unpatched TCPIP.sys?
Yes, by default, BitTorrent will make at most 8 simultaneous connection attempts to work within the 10 connection attempt (half-open connection) limit on these operating systems. Patching TCPIP.sys to a higher limit may help if you are having problems with your Internet connection, though increasing the limit may also cause some routers to freeze up (due to the increased rate of simultaneous connection attempts). If you would still like to patch the file, download the EventID 4226 Patcher from LvlLord.de. Beware that in most cases, you should refrain from setting the TCPIP.sys limit to any number greater than 50, as there are few (if any) benefits to be gained from higher numbers. Also understand that net.max_halfopen should always be set to a number lower than the TCPIP.sys limit set by the patcher (at most 80% of the TCPIP.sys limit only). For more information on how (or whether) the half-open connection limit should be set, see this FAQ entry. Microsoft has made a habit of reverting
