I'm trying to install arch for the first time, but I haven't been able to get past the verification stage. First I tried using the pgp signature but I was unable to import the key from the server (keyserver communications error: general error).

Then I tried using both the MD5 and SHA1 checksums but neither matched when I checked them at onlinemd5.com. I downloaded the .iso from the magnet link at this site:

https://www.archlinux.org/download/

That's also where I got the checksums. Any suggestions? Is the torrent file corrupt or are the checksums out of date?

md5sum arch.iso

or

sha1sum arch.iso

then compare them visually

If you have the arch.iso.asc file you can also do another quick test of file integrity
(which is what the two above give you)

gpg --verify arch.iso.asc

Thanks! the md5 matched when I did it from the command line. So does that mean the website I used just doesn't work? I got a totally different hash from onlinemd5.com. Anyway now I'm ready to move ahead with installation, thanks so much!!

It means always rely on your self and the tools you have at hand.