Forum Moderators: phranque
I have a site that has alot of pictures and videos.
I have noticed alot of Downloader type user agents (Download Accelerator, Star Downloader, etc...) in my logs.
My question is...Is it smart to block these download accelerators?
Thanks.
The answer to your question would depend on:
A) The purpose of your site
-and-
B) Your reason for blocking any user-agents.
...Neither of which are entirely clear from your post.
I have one site that is meant for human visitors interested in the site's content from a participatory or academic viewpoint. There is no reason any of them would want or need to download most or all of the site. On that site, I allow only well-know browsers and search engine spiders. Everything else gets redirected to a custom 403 page which cites our Terms of Service page, and explains that the site is accessible with standard browsers only. For those who come back with a downloader using a spoofed user-agent, there is a spider trap to permanently block them.
My purpose is simply to limit the site's monthly bandwidth costs, because it is a not-for-profit "hobby" site, and such site abuse can be costly. So on that site I would answer, "Yes, it's wise to block downloaders." But your situation could very well be completely different.
Jim
