Patent ID: 7814146

Claim:
A method in a peer-to-peer file sharing client data processing system for background file sharing in a peer-to-peer file sharing network, the method comprising: allocating background resources in the peer-to-peer file sharing client data processing system for background file sharing comprising a specified amount of bandwidth and a specified amount of storage space to be used for background file sharing, wherein the amount of bandwidth and the amount of storage space to be used for background file sharing are specified in a preferences data structure; receiving, by the peer-to-peer file sharing client data processing system, one or more background file fragments from a first swarm for background file sharing of a file using at least a portion of the specified amount of bandwidth; storing, by the peer-to-peer file sharing client data processing system, the at least one file fragment in at least a portion of the specified amount of storage space; obtaining, by the peer-to-peer file sharing client data processing system, a rarity value for the one or more background file fragments; identifying, by the peer-to-peer file sharing client data processing system, one or more foreground file fragments that are approximately as rare as the one or more background file fragments, wherein the foreground file fragments are shared in a second swarm; and sharing, by the peer-to-peer file sharing client data processing system, the one or more foreground file fragments with at least one peer-to-peer file sharing client data processing system in the first swarm.