`requireFile` allows requesting files that cannot be fetched automatically, but whose content is known.
This is a useful last-resort workaround for license restrictions that prohibit redistribution, or for downloads that are only accessible after authenticating interactively in a browser.
If the requested file is present in the Nix store, the resulting derivation will not be built, because its expected output is already available.
Otherwise, the builder will run, but fail with a message explaining to the user how to provide the file. The following code, for example:
```nix
requireFile {
name = "jdk-${version}_linux-x64_bin.tar.gz";
url = "https://www.oracle.com/java/technologies/javase-jdk11-downloads.html";
hash = "sha256-lL00+F7jjT71nlKJ7HRQuUQ7kkxVYlZh//5msD8sjeI=";
}
```
results in this error message:
```
***
Unfortunately, we cannot download file jdk-11.0.10_linux-x64_bin.tar.gz automatically.
Please go to https://www.oracle.com/java/technologies/javase-jdk11-downloads.html to download it yourself, and add it to the Nix store
using either
nix-store --add-fixed sha256 jdk-11.0.10_linux-x64_bin.tar.gz
or
nix-prefetch-url --type sha256 file:///path/to/jdk-11.0.10_linux-x64_bin.tar.gz
***
```
This function should only be used by non-redistributable software with an unfree license that we need to require the user to download manually.
It produces packages that cannot be built automatically.
## `fetchtorrent` {#fetchtorrent}
`fetchtorrent` expects two arguments. `url` which can either be a Magnet URI (Magnet Link) such as `magnet:?xt=urn:btih:dd8255ecdc7ca55fb0bbf81323d87062db1f6d1c` or an HTTP URL pointing to a `.torrent` file. It can also take a `config` argument which will craft a `settings.json` configuration file and give it to `transmission`, the underlying program that is performing the fetch. The available config options for `transmission` can be found [here](https://github.com/transmission/transmission/blob/main/docs/Editing-Configuration-Files.md#options)
```nix
{ fetchtorrent }:
fetchtorrent {
config = {
peer-limit-global = 100;
};
url = "magnet:?xt=urn:btih:dd8255ecdc7ca55fb0bbf81323d87062db1f6d1c";
hash = "";
}
```
### Parameters {#fetchtorrent-parameters}
- `url`: Magnet URI (Magnet Link) such as `magnet:?xt=urn:btih:dd8255ecdc7ca55fb0bbf81323d87062db1f6d1c` or an HTTP URL pointing to a `.torrent` file.
- `backend`: Which bittorrent program to use. Default: `"transmission"`. Valid values are `"rqbit"` or `"transmission"`. These are the two most suitable torrent clients for fetching in a fixed-output derivation at the time of writing, as they can be easily exited after usage. `rqbit` is written in Rust and has a smaller closure size than `transmission`, and the performance and peer discovery properties differs between these clients, requiring experimentation to decide upon which is the best.
- `config`: When using `transmission` as the `backend`, a json configuration can
be supplied to transmission. Refer to the [upstream documentation](https://github.com/transmission/transmission/blob/main/docs/Editing-Configuration-Files.md) for information on how to configure.