WinMX, if properly configured, can share almost any
type of file. Files over 2GB will not be shared, and must be split
into chunks smaller than 2GB. Although there is no limit to the number
of files a user can share on the network, when a list of a specific
user's files is requested (by the browse function) only a limited
amount will be shown. However, all the shared files will be visible to
a general search by filename.
In September of 2005, the original developer
received a cease and desist letter from the RIAA demanding that they
either implement filters to make it impossible for users to download
copyrighted material from WinMX, or shut down. The decision was made
to drop the service and cease any further development. Later that same
month, users were able to download a working software patch for WinMX
from two websites. These patches work by modifying the DNS lookup
WinMX uses to find peer caches. When WinMX tries to find the original
peer caches, it is instead directed to look up one of the new caches
set up by the community.
Most of the software that was made by third party
developers were for use in the chat rooms. They include bots, clients
to host rooms and plugins. Bots were used in the chat rooms to either
make it more lively, introduce games or to moderate users.
Chat clients are used primarily to host rooms. A
big advantage of chat clients is that a chat room can be accessed
without having to run a full copy of WinMX. For normal users, the
clients can be used to view rooms independently of the server. Web
listings of the chat room are also available and can be accessed.