This page replaces the old ?id=tour page of the Shareaza website. We rebuilt it from published sources and did not copy the original text. For the authoritative feature list, see the official Shareaza wiki.
One client, several networks
Shareaza’s defining idea was to connect to Gnutella, Gnutella2, eDonkey and BitTorrent from one interface, and to treat HTTP, HTTPS and FTP servers as extra download sources. If the same file was available on several networks, Shareaza could download different parts from different peers at once. This is known as swarming.
Hashing and file identity
Shareaza hashed every file it shared and tracked several hash types used by different networks. Matching hashes let it merge sources for the same file across networks and detect corrupt or fake data. The same principle underpins modern checksum verification.
Library, metadata and search
A managed library organised shared files with metadata such as artist, album or resolution. Search results could be filtered on that metadata. Metadata was also how Shareaza displayed community ratings and warnings on files.
Built-in chat
Version 2.4.0.0 (October 2008) was the first stable release with integrated IRC chat.
BitTorrent improvements
Version 2.6.0.0 (June 2012) added Mainline DHT and UDP tracker support, so torrents could find peers without relying solely on HTTP trackers.
Remote access
Shareaza included a remote web interface that let users check and control downloads from a browser on another device. The old wiki page about it (UsingRemoteAccess) now redirects here. If you expose any remote-control interface today, protect it with a strong unique password and never publish it directly to the internet. Use a VPN or SSH tunnel instead.
Platform
Shareaza is a Windows application written in C++ with Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC) and Boost. See the developer quick guide.