Astraweb Completion Update and Download Tips

Astraweb, one of our favorite Usenet providers, is currently working through some technical issues with incompletes and articles not available.  As mentioned in a support post Astraweb is experiencing completion problems with articles in the 110-130 day range.  It appears they are still working toward a resolution.  In the meantime we’d like to suggest a few tips to help with Astraweb downloads.

Here are the details of the Astraweb support post:

Incompletes & Article Not Available

We are looking into and fixing the issue with article completion for articles at and around the 110-130 day old mark. This issue is unrelated to the Network Instability issue posted earlier today.
Completion will return gradually as the articles are recovered.
We regret and apologise for this incident, and our engineers are working with urgency to rectify the problem.

Here are some tips for those experiencing completion issues:

1.  Connect to both US and European news servers

Astraweb offers server farms in the United States and Europe.  In the past we’ve seen articles complete in Europe that were incomplete on the US server.  We suggest you setup both servers and split your connections between them.

Here is the Astraweb news server info:

Secure (SSL encrypted):
ssl-us.astraweb.com (U.S. servers)
ssl-eu.astraweb.com (European servers)

Standard (non-SSL):
us.news.astraweb.com (U.S. servers)
eu.news.astraweb.com (European servers)

2. Run NZB Completion Checker before downloading

A few months ago we wrote about a cool new tool for checking completion.  You can use NZB Completion Checker to check and see if there are any missing or damaged parts before downloading.  This can save you lots of time and bandwidth on incomplete posts.

3.  PAR files can help with missing or damaged articles

Usenet veterans can skip this one.  For those less familiar with PAR files they will help you recover missing or incomplete parts.  See our PAR files guide for more details.

4. Consider signing up for a backup Usenet account

Unlimited Usenet access is affordable now a days.  With leading providers like Astraweb along with UseNetServer, Newshosting, NewsDemon and Easynews offering unlimited Usenet accounts for $8-$10 a month.  Making a backup newsgroup service a good option at times like these.  See our Usenet specials section for the latest promotions or sign up for the UNS deal below.


5. Consider a non-expiring block Usenet account

If you don’t plan to download that much or find there isn’t much missing then consider a block Usenet account.  Those who download a lot will want to consider tip #4 instead.  Block plans come in many sizes and prices from services like NewsDemon, NewsgroupDirect, BlockNews, Usenet-News.  All of which offer non-expiring block accounts.

We know the Astraweb team is working hard to remedy the completion issue and look forward to the results.  In the meantime hopefully our tips can help with downloads.  For those considering signing up for Astraweb we still highly recommend the service.  As they have provided quality, affordable Usenet access over the years.  Read our Astraweb review to learn more.  Also consider their $11 a month or $96 a year specials.