X-Git-Url: http://www.privoxy.org/gitweb/?a=blobdiff_plain;f=doc%2Fsource%2Fuser-manual.sgml;h=da22d3bff281b08ed5a6c3698b93d6b31744d099;hb=b7cfc9285d9e3f0e002a1275fdffb0ee67802d14;hp=423e6c3b6424489437fbb8cbb431e22f62eef738;hpb=7cc8a2e93881e34d2695c21c2f302a07f110c5cd;p=privoxy.git diff --git a/doc/source/user-manual.sgml b/doc/source/user-manual.sgml index 423e6c3b..da22d3bf 100644 --- a/doc/source/user-manual.sgml +++ b/doc/source/user-manual.sgml @@ -11,11 +11,11 @@ - - + + - - + + @@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ +Privoxy"> ]> - Copyright &my-copy; 2001 - 2004 by + Copyright &my-copy; 2001 - 2008 by Privoxy Developers -$Id: user-manual.sgml,v 2.11 2006/07/18 14:48:51 david__schmidt Exp $ +$Id: user-manual.sgml,v 2.89 2008/09/21 15:38:56 fabiankeil Exp $ @@ -96,7 +97,7 @@ Hal. - You can find the latest version of the User Manual at Privoxy User Manual at http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/. Please see the Contact section on how to contact the developers. @@ -116,10 +117,9 @@ Hal. Privoxy, v.&p-version;soon ;-)]]>. + configuration files. Development of a new version is currently nearing + completion, and includes significant changes and enhancements over + earlier versions. ]]>. @@ -135,10 +135,12 @@ Hal. Features - In addition to Internet Junkbuster's traditional - features of ad and banner blocking and cookie management, - Privoxy provides new features: + In addition to the core + features of ad blocking and + cookie management, + Privoxy provides many supplemental + features, + that give the end-user more control, more privacy and more freedom: &newfeatures; @@ -162,13 +164,11 @@ Hal. - Note: If you have a previous Junkbuster or - Privoxy installation on your system, you - will need to remove it. On some platforms, this may be done for you as part - of their installation procedure. (See below for your platform). In any case - be sure to backup your old configuration if it is valuable to - you. See the note to - upgraders section below. + Note: + On some platforms, the installer may remove previously installed versions, if + found. (See below for your platform). In any case be sure to backup + your old configuration if it is valuable to you. See the note to upgraders section below. @@ -177,8 +177,10 @@ Hal. How to install the binary packages depends on your operating system: + + -Red Hat, SuSE and Conectiva RPMs +Red Hat and Fedora RPMs RPMs can be installed with rpm -Uvh privoxy-&p-version;-1.rpm, @@ -190,8 +192,7 @@ How to install the binary packages depends on your operating system: Note that on Red Hat, Privoxy will not be automatically started on system boot. You will need to enable that using chkconfig, - ntsysv, or similar methods. Note that SuSE will -automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. + ntsysv, or similar methods. @@ -204,12 +205,12 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. Also note that if you have a Junkbuster RPM installed on your system, you need to remove it first, because the packages conflict. Otherwise, RPM will try to remove Junkbuster - automatically, before installing Privoxy. + automatically if found, before installing Privoxy. -Debian +Debian and Ubuntu DEBs can be installed with apt-get install privoxy, and will use /etc/privoxy for the location of @@ -223,12 +224,45 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. Just double-click the installer, which will guide you through the installation process. You will find the configuration files - in the same directory as you installed Privoxy in. + in the same directory as you installed Privoxy in. + + + Version 3.0.5 beta introduced full Windows service + functionality. On Windows only, the Privoxy + program has two new command line arguments to install and uninstall + Privoxy as a service. + + + + Arguments: + + + --install[:service_name] + + + --uninstall[:service_name] + + + + + + After invoking Privoxy with + --install, you will need to bring up the + Windows service console to assign the user you + want Privoxy to run under, and whether or not you + want it to run whenever the system starts. You can start the + Windows services console with the following + command: services.msc. If you do not take the manual step + of modifying Privoxy's service settings, it will + not start. Note too that you will need to give Privoxy a user account that + actually exists, or it will not be permitted to + write to its log and configuration files. + -Solaris, NetBSD, FreeBSD, HP-UX +Solaris <!--, NetBSD, HP-UX--> Create a new directory, cd to it, then unzip and @@ -264,32 +298,24 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. -Mac OSX - - Unzip the downloaded file (you can either double-click on the file - from the finder, or from the desktop if you downloaded it there). - Then, double-click on the package installer icon named - Privoxy.pkg - and follow the installation process. - Privoxy will be installed in the folder - /Library/Privoxy. - It will start automatically whenever you start up. To prevent it from - starting automatically, remove or rename the folder - /Library/StartupItems/Privoxy. - +Mac OS X - To start Privoxy by hand, double-click on - StartPrivoxy.command in the - /Library/Privoxy folder. - Or, type this command in the Terminal: + Unzip the downloaded file (you can either double-click on the zip file + icon from the Finder, or from the desktop if you downloaded it there). + Then, double-click on the package installer icon and follow the + installation process. - - /Library/Privoxy/StartPrivoxy.command - + The privoxy service will automatically start after a successful + installation (in addition to every time your computer starts up). To + prevent the privoxy service from automatically starting when your + computer starts up, remove or rename the folder named + /Library/StartupItems/Privoxy. - You will be prompted for the administrator password. + To manually start or stop the privoxy service, use the Privoxy Utility + for Mac OS X. This application controls the privoxy service (e.g. + starting and stopping the service as well as uninstalling the software). @@ -303,6 +329,25 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. + +FreeBSD + + + Privoxy is part of FreeBSD's Ports Collection, you can build and install + it with cd /usr/ports/www/privoxy; make install clean. + + + If you don't use the ports, you can fetch and install + the package with pkg_add -r privoxy. + + + The port skeleton and the package can also be downloaded from the + File Release + Page, but there's no reason to use them unless you're interested in the + beta releases which are only available there. + + + Gentoo @@ -313,7 +358,7 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. Before installing Privoxy under Gentoo just do - first emerge rsync to get the latest changes from the + first emerge --sync to get the latest changes from the Portage tree. With emerge privoxy you install the latest version. @@ -331,7 +376,8 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. The most convenient way to obtain the Privoxy sources - is to download the source tarball from our project + is to download the source tarball from our + project download page. @@ -339,9 +385,13 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. If you like to live on the bleeding edge and are not afraid of using possibly unstable development versions, you can check out the up-to-the-minute version directly from the - CVS repository or simply download . + @@ -369,8 +419,9 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. In order not to lose your personal changes and adjustments when updating to the latest default.action file we strongly - recommend that you use user.action for your - customization of Privoxy. See the that you use user.action and + user.filter for your local + customizations of Privoxy. See the Chapter on actions files for details. @@ -382,39 +433,56 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. - -Note to Upgraders + +What's New in this Release - There are very significant changes from earlier - Junkbuster versions to the current - Privoxy. The number, names, syntax, and - purposes of configuration files have substantially changed. - Junkbuster 2.0.x configuration - files will not migrate, Junkbuster 2.9.x - and Privoxy configurations will need to be - ported. The functionalities of the old blockfile, - cookiefile and imagelist - are now combined into the actions - files. - default.action, is the main actions file. Local - exceptions should best be put into user.action. + There are only a few improvements and new features since + Privoxy 3.0.10, the last stable release: + - A filter file (typically - default.filter) is new as of Privoxy - 2.9.x, and provides some of the new sophistication (explained - below). config is much the same as before. + + + + The mingw32 version uses mutex locks now which prevents + log message corruption under load. As a side effect, + the "no thread-safe PRNG" warning could be removed as well. + + + + + Support for remote toggling is controlled by the configure + option --disable-toggle only. In previous versions it also + depended on the action editor and thus configuring with the + --disable-editor option would disable remote toggling support + as well. + + + + + The hide-forwarded-for-headers action has been replaced with + the change-x-forwarded-for{} action which can also be used to + add X-Forwarded-For headers. The latter functionality already + existed in Privoxy versions prior to 3.0.7 but has been removed + as it was often used unintentionally (by not using the + hide-forwarded-for-headers action). + + + + - If upgrading from a 2.0.x version, you will have to use the new config - files, and possibly adapt any personal rules from your older files. - When porting personal rules over from the old blockfile - to the new actions files, please note that even the pattern syntax has - changed. If upgrading from 2.9.x development versions, it is still - recommended to use the new configuration files. + For a more detailed list of changes please have a look at the ChangeLog. + + + + +Note to Upgraders + - A quick list of things to be aware of before upgrading: + A quick list of things to be aware of before upgrading from earlier + versions of Privoxy: @@ -422,61 +490,146 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. - The default listening port is now 8118 due to a conflict with another - service (NAS). + The recommended way to upgrade &my-app; is to backup your old + configuration files, install the new ones, verify that &my-app; + is working correctly and finally merge back your changes using + diff and maybe patch. - + + There are a number of new features in each &my-app; release and + most of them have to be explicitly enabled in the configuration + files. Old configuration files obviously don't do that and due + to syntax changes using old configuration files with a new + &my-app; isn't always possible anyway. + + + + + Note that some installers remove earlier versions completely, + including configuration files, therefore you should really save + any important configuration files! + + + + + On the other hand, other installers don't overwrite existing configuration + files, thinking you will want to do that yourself. + + - Some installers may remove earlier versions completely. Save any - important configuration files! + standard.action now only includes the enabled actions. + Not all actions as before. - Privoxy is controllable with a web browser - at the special URL: http://config.privoxy.org/ - (Shortcut: http://p.p/). Many - aspects of configuration can be done here, including temporarily disabling - Privoxy. + In the default configuration only fatal errors are logged now. + You can change that in the debug section + of the configuration file. You may also want to enable more verbose + logging until you verified that the new &my-app; version is working + as expected. - + + + + Three other config file settings are now off by default: + enable-remote-toggle, + enable-remote-http-toggle, + and enable-edit-actions. + If you use or want these, you will need to explicitly enable them, and + be aware of the security issues involved. + + + + + + The filter-client-headers and + filter-server-headers actions that were introduced with + Privoxy 3.0.5 to apply content filters to + the headers have been removed and replaced with new actions. + See the What's New section above. + + + + + + - Some installers may not automatically start Privoxy after installation. +--> + + -Quickstart to Using <application>Privoxy</application> +Quickstart to Using Privoxy - - - If upgrading, from versions before 2.9.16, please back up any configuration - files. See the Note to Upgraders Section. - - - Install Privoxy. See the Set your browser to use Privoxy as HTTP and - HTTPS (SSL) proxy by setting the proxy configuration for address of + HTTPS (SSL) proxy + by setting the proxy configuration for address of 127.0.0.1 and port 8118. - (Junkbuster and earlier versions of - Privoxy used port 8000.) See the section Starting Privoxy below - for more details on this. + DO NOT activate proxying for FTP or + any protocols besides HTTP and HTTPS (SSL) unless you intend to prevent your + browser from using these protocols. Flush your browser's disk and memory caches, to remove any cached ad images. - If using Privoxy to manage cookies, you should - remove any currently stored cookies too. + If using Privoxy to manage + cookies, + you should remove any currently stored cookies too. @@ -528,55 +682,62 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. A default installation should provide a reasonable starting point for most. There will undoubtedly be occasions where you will want to adjust the configuration, but that can be dealt with as the need arises. Little - to no initial configuration is required in most cases. + to no initial configuration is required in most cases, you may want + to enable the + web-based action editor though. + Be sure to read the warnings first. See the Configuration section for more configuration options, and how to customize your installation. - next section for a quick introduction to how Privoxy blocks ads and - banners.]]> + banners. - If you experience ads that slipped through, innocent images that are + If you experience ads that slip through, innocent images that are blocked, or otherwise feel the need to fine-tune - Privoxy's behaviour, take a look at the Privoxy's behavior, take a look at the actions files. As a quick start, you might find the richly commented examples helpful. You can also view and edit the actions files through the web-based user interface. The - Appendix Anatomy of an - Action has hints how to debug actions that + Appendix Troubleshooting: Anatomy of an + Action has hints on how to understand and debug actions that misbehave. + Please see the section Contacting the - Developers on how to report bugs or problems with websites or to get + Developers on how to report bugs, problems with websites or to get help. - Now enjoy surfing with enhanced comfort and privacy! + Now enjoy surfing with enhanced control, comfort and privacy! - + @@ -602,7 +763,8 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. First a bit of a warning ... blocking ads is much like blocking SPAM: the more aggressive you are about it, the more likely you are to block - things that were not intended. So there is a trade off here. If you want + things that were not intended. And the more likely that some things + may not work as intended. So there is a trade off here. If you want extreme ad free browsing, be prepared to deal with more problem sites, and to spend more time adjusting the configuration to solve these unintended consequences. In short, there is @@ -640,13 +802,17 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. original page's HTML content. An ad image for instance, is just an URL embedded in the page somewhere. The image itself may be on the same server, or a server somewhere else on the Internet. Complex web pages will have many - such embedded URLs. + such embedded URLs. &my-app; can deal with each URL individually, so, for + instance, the main page text is not touched, but images from such-and-such + server are blocked. - The actions we need to know about for ad blocking are: block, handle-as-image, and + linkend="handle-as-image">handle-as-image, + handle-as-empty-document,and set-image-blocker: @@ -655,12 +821,14 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. - block - this action stops - any contact between your browser and any URL patterns that match this - action's configuration. It can be used for blocking ads, but also anything - that is determined to be unwanted. By itself, it simply stops any - communication with the remote server and sends Privoxy's - own built-in BLOCKED page instead to let you now what has happened. + block - this is perhaps + the single most used action, and is particularly important for ad blocking. + This action stops any contact between your browser and any URL patterns + that match this action's configuration. It can be used for blocking ads, + but also anything that is determined to be unwanted. By itself, it simply + stops any communication with the remote server and sends + Privoxy's own built-in BLOCKED page instead to + let you now what has happened (with some exceptions, see below). @@ -680,6 +848,15 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. + + + handle-as-empty-document - + sends an empty document instead of Privoxy's + normal BLOCKED HTML page. This is useful for file types that are neither + HTML nor images, such as blocking JavaScript files. + + + + + Advanced users will eventually want to explore &my-app; + filters as well. Filters + are very different from blocks. + A block blocks a site, page, or unwanted contented. Filters + are a way of filtering or modifying what is actually on the page. An example + filter usage: a text replacement of no-no for + nasty-word. That is a very simple example. This process can be + used for ad blocking, but it is more in the realm of advanced usage and has + some pitfalls to be wary off. + + The quickest way to adjust any of these settings is with your browser through the special Privoxy editor at http://config.privoxy.org/show-status (shortcut: http://p.p/show-status). This - is an internal page, and does not require Internet access. Select the - appropriate actions file, and click + is an internal page, and does not require Internet access. + + + + Note that as of Privoxy 3.0.7 beta the + action editor is disabled by default. Check the + enable-edit-actions + section in the configuration file to learn why and in which + cases it's safe to enable again. + + + + If you decided to enable the action editor, select the appropriate + actions file, and click Edit. It is best to put personal or local preferences in user.action since this is not meant to be overwritten during upgrades, and will over-ride the settings in @@ -763,7 +965,7 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process.
Actions Files in Use - + [ Screenshot of Actions Files in Use ] @@ -820,6 +1022,13 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. to now go to the Actions Files Tutorial. The ideas explained therein also apply to the web-based editor. + + There are also various + filters that can be used for ad blocking + (filters are a special subset of actions). These + fall into the advanced usage category, and are explained in + depth in later sections. + @@ -830,13 +1039,15 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. -Starting <application>Privoxy</application> +Starting Privoxy Before launching Privoxy for the first time, you will want to configure your browser(s) to use - Privoxy as a HTTP and HTTPS proxy. The default is + Privoxy as a HTTP and HTTPS (SSL) + proxy. The default is 127.0.0.1 (or localhost) for the proxy address, and port 8118 (earlier versions - used port 8000). This is the one configuration step that must be done! + used port 8000). This is the one configuration step that must be done +! Please note that Privoxy can only proxy HTTP and @@ -845,10 +1056,11 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. -
Proxy Configuration (Mozilla) +
Proxy Configuration Showing + Mozilla/Netscape HTTP and HTTPS (SSL) Settings - + [ Screenshot of Mozilla Proxy Configuration ] @@ -857,56 +1069,82 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process.
+ + + With Firefox, this is typically set under: + + + + Tools -> Options -> Advanced -> Network ->Connection -> Settings + + + + + Or optionally on some platforms: + + + + Edit -> Preferences -> General -> Connection Settings -> Manual Proxy Configuration + + + + With Netscape (and Mozilla), this can be set under: - + + - Edit - |_ - Preferences - |_ - Advanced - |_ - Proxies - |_ - HTTP Proxy + Edit -> Preferences -> Advanced -> Proxies -> HTTP Proxy + - For Internet Explorer: + For Internet Explorer v.5-7: - - - Tools - |_ - Internet Properties - |_ - Connections - |_ - LAN Settings + Tools -> Internet Options -> Connections -> LAN Settings Then, check Use Proxy and fill in the appropriate info (Address: 127.0.0.1, Port: 8118). Include HTTPS (SSL), if you want HTTPS - proxy support too. + proxy support too (sometimes labeled Secure). Make sure any + checkboxes like Use the same proxy server for all protocols is + UNCHECKED. You want only HTTP and HTTPS (SSL)! + + +
Proxy Configuration Showing + Internet Explorer HTTP and HTTPS (Secure) Settings + + + + + + [ Screenshot of IE Proxy Configuration ] + + +
+ + + After doing this, flush your browser's disk and memory caches to force a - re-reading of all pages and to get rid of any ads that may be cached. You - are now ready to start enjoying the benefits of using + re-reading of all pages and to get rid of any ads that may be cached. Remove + any cookies, + if you want Privoxy to manage that. You are now + ready to start enjoying the benefits of using Privoxy! - Privoxy is typically started by specifying the + Privoxy itself is typically started by specifying the main configuration file to be used on the command line. If no configuration file is specified on the command line, Privoxy will look for a file named config in the current @@ -914,44 +1152,38 @@ automatically start Privoxy in the boot process. -Red Hat and Conectiva +Red Hat and Fedora - We use a script. Note that Red Hat does not start Privoxy upon booting per - default. It will use the file /etc/privoxy/config as - its main configuration file. + A default Red Hat installation may not start &my-app; upon boot. It will use + the file /etc/privoxy/config as its main configuration + file. # /etc/rc.d/init.d/privoxy start - - - -Debian - We use a script. Note that Debian starts Privoxy upon booting per - default. It will use the file - /etc/privoxy/config as its main configuration - file. + Or ... - # /etc/init.d/privoxy start + # service privoxy start - -SuSE + +Debian -We use a script. It will use the file /etc/privoxy/config -as its main configuration file. Note that SuSE starts Privoxy upon booting -your PC. + We use a script. Note that Debian typically starts &my-app; upon booting per + default. It will use the file + /etc/privoxy/config as its main configuration + file. - # rcprivoxy start + # /etc/init.d/privoxy start @@ -959,10 +1191,18 @@ your PC. Windows -Click on the Privoxy Icon to start Privoxy. If no configuration file is +Click on the &my-app; Icon to start Privoxy. If no configuration file is specified on the command line, Privoxy will look for a file named config.txt. Note that Windows will - automatically start Privoxy upon booting you PC. + automatically start &my-app; when the system starts if you chose that option + when installing. + + + Privoxy can run with full Windows service functionality. + On Windows only, the &my-app; program has two new command line arguments + to install and uninstall &my-app; as a service. See the + Windows Installation + instructions for details. @@ -989,21 +1229,34 @@ Example Unix startup command: -Mac OSX +Mac OS X - During installation, Privoxy is configured to - start automatically when the system restarts. To start Privoxy by hand, - double-click on the StartPrivoxy.command icon in the - /Library/Privoxy folder. Or, type this command - in the Terminal: + After downloading the privoxy software, unzip the downloaded file by + double-clicking on the zip file icon. Then, double-click on the + installer package icon and follow the installation process. + + + The privoxy service will automatically start after a successful + installation. In addition, the privoxy service will automatically + start every time your computer starts up. + + + To prevent the privoxy service from automatically starting when your + computer starts up, remove or rename the folder named + /Library/StartupItems/Privoxy. - - /Library/Privoxy/StartPrivoxy.command - + A simple application named Privoxy Utility has been created which + enables administrators to easily start and stop the privoxy service. - You will be prompted for the administrator password. + In addition, the Privoxy Utility presents a simple way for + administrators to edit the various privoxy config files. A method + to uninstall the software is also available. + + + An administrator username and password must be supplied in order for + the Privoxy Utility to perform any of the tasks. @@ -1076,18 +1329,16 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Another feature where you will probably want to define exceptions for trusted - sites is the popup-killing (through the +kill-popups and - +filter{popups} - actions), because your favorite shopping, banking, or leisure site may need + sites is the popup-killing (through +filter{popups}), + because your favorite shopping, banking, or leisure site may need popups (explained below). - Privoxy is HTTP/1.1 compliant, but not all of - the optional 1.1 features are as yet supported. In the unlikely event that - you experience inexplicable problems with browsers that use HTTP/1.1 per default + Privoxy does not support all of the optional HTTP/1.1 + features yet. In the unlikely event that you experience inexplicable problems + with browsers that use HTTP/1.1 per default (like Mozilla or recent versions of I.E.), you might try to force HTTP/1.0 compatibility. For Mozilla, look under Edit -> Preferences -> Debug -> Networking. @@ -1183,7 +1434,6 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph --pidfile FILE - On startup, write the process ID to FILE. Delete the @@ -1195,7 +1445,6 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph --user USER[.GROUP] - After (optionally) writing the PID file, assume the user ID of @@ -1203,19 +1452,36 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph privileges are not sufficient to do so. Unix only. - + --chroot - Before changing to the user ID given in the --user option, - chroot to that user's home directory, i.e. make the kernel pretend to the Privoxy + chroot to that user's home directory, i.e. make the kernel pretend to the &my-app; process that the directory tree starts there. If set up carefully, this can limit - the impact of possible vulnerabilities in Privoxy to the files contained in that hierarchy. + the impact of possible vulnerabilities in &my-app; to the files contained in that hierarchy. Unix only. + + + --pre-chroot-nslookup hostname + + + Specifies a hostname to look up before doing a chroot. On some systems, initializing the + resolver library involves reading config files from /etc and/or loading additional shared + libraries from /lib. On these systems, doing a hostname lookup before the chroot reduces + the number of files that must be copied into the chroot tree. + + + For fastest startup speed, a good value is a hostname that is not in /etc/hosts but that + your local name server (listed in /etc/resolv.conf) can resolve without recursion + (that is, without having to ask any other name servers). The hostname need not exist, + but if it doesn't, an error message (which can be ignored) will be output. + + + configfile @@ -1233,6 +1499,14 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph + + On MS Windows only there are two additional + command-line options to allow Privoxy to install and + run as a service. See the +Window Installation section +for details. + + @@ -1241,7 +1515,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph -<application>Privoxy</application> Configuration +Privoxy Configuration All Privoxy configuration is stored in text files. These files can be edited with a text editor. @@ -1253,7 +1527,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph -Controlling <application>Privoxy</application> with Your Web Browser +Controlling Privoxy with Your Web Browser Privoxy's user interface can be reached through the special URL http://config.privoxy.org/ @@ -1285,7 +1559,8 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph         ▪  Toggle Privoxy on or off -         ▪  Documentation +         ▪  Documentation @@ -1313,6 +1588,14 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph your browser. + + Note that several of the features described above are disabled by default + in Privoxy 3.0.7 beta and later. + Check the + configuration file to learn why + and in which cases it's safe to enable them again. + + @@ -1366,7 +1649,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph default.action (which you will most probably want to define sooner or later) are probably best applied in user.action, where you can preserve them across - upgrades. standard.action is for + upgrades. standard.action is only for Privoxy's internal use. @@ -1381,18 +1664,29 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph - default.filter (the filter + Filter files (the filter file) can be used to re-write the raw page content, including viewable text as well as embedded HTML and JavaScript, and whatever else lurks on any given web page. The filtering jobs are only pre-defined here; - whether to apply them or not is up to the actions files. Only one filter - file may be defined. + whether to apply them or not is up to the actions files. + default.filter includes various filters made + available for use by the developers. Some are much more intrusive than + others, and all should be used with caution. You may define additional + filter files in config as you can with + actions files. We suggest user.filter for any + locally defined filters or customizations. + + The syntax of the configuration and filter files may change between different + Privoxy versions, unfortunately some enhancements cost backwards compatibility. + + + All files use the # character to denote a comment (the rest of the line will be ignored) and understand line continuation @@ -1400,11 +1694,11 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph in a line. If the # is preceded by a backslash, it looses its special function. Placing a # in front of an otherwise valid configuration line to prevent it from being interpreted is called "commenting - out" that line. + out" that line. Blank lines are ignored. - The actions files and default.filter + The actions files and filter files can use Perl style regular expressions for maximum flexibility. @@ -1451,12 +1745,20 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Actions Files - The actions files are used to define what actions - Privoxy takes for which URLs, and thus determine + The actions files are used to define what actions + Privoxy takes for which URLs, and thus determines how ad images, cookies and various other aspects of HTTP content and - transactions are handled, and on which sites (or even parts thereof). There - are three such files included with Privoxy - with differing purposes: + transactions are handled, and on which sites (or even parts thereof). + There are a number of such actions, with a wide range of functionality. + Each action does something a little different. + These actions give us a veritable arsenal of tools with which to exert + our control, preferences and independence. Actions can be combined so that + their effects are aggregated when applied against a given set of URLs. + + + There + are three action files included with Privoxy with + differing purposes: @@ -1467,9 +1769,13 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph that sets the initial values for all actions. It is intended to provide a base level of functionality for Privoxy's array of features. So it is - a set of broad rules that should work reasonably well for users everywhere. + a set of broad rules that should work reasonably well as-is for most users. This is the file that the developers are keeping updated, and making available to users. + The user's preferences as set in standard.action, + e.g. either Cautious (the default), + Medium, or Advanced (see + below). @@ -1482,12 +1788,42 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph - standard.action - is used by the web based editor, + standard.action - is used only by the web based editor + at + http://config.privoxy.org/edit-actions-list?f=default, to set various pre-defined sets of rules for the default actions section - in default.action. These have increasing levels of - aggressiveness and have no influence on your browsing unless - you select them explicitly in the editor. It is not recommend - to edit this file. + in default.action. + + + Edit Set to Cautious Set to Medium Set to Advanced + + + These have increasing levels of aggressiveness and have no + influence on your browsing unless you select them explicitly in the + editor. A default installation should be pre-set to + Cautious (versions prior to 3.0.5 were set to + Medium). New users should try this for a while before + adjusting the settings to more aggressive levels. The more aggressive + the settings, then the more likelihood there is of problems such as sites + not working as they should. + + + The Edit button allows you to turn each + action on/off individually for fine-tuning. The Cautious + button changes the actions list to low/safe settings which will activate + ad blocking and a minimal set of &my-app;'s features, and subsequently + there will be less of a chance for accidental problems. The + Medium button sets the list to a medium level of + other features and a low level set of privacy features. The + Advanced button sets the list to a high level of + ad blocking and medium level of privacy. See the chart below. The latter + three buttons over-ride any changes via with the + Edit button. More fine-tuning can be done in the + lower sections of this internal page. + + + It is not recommend to edit the standard.action file + itself. The default profiles, and their associated actions, as pre-defined in @@ -1505,7 +1841,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Feature Cautious Medium - Adventuresome + Advanced @@ -1519,31 +1855,37 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph - Ad-blocking by URL - yes - yes - yes + Ad-blocking Aggressiveness + medium + high + high Ad-filtering by size - yes + no yes yes - GIF de-animation + Ad-filtering by link + no no - yes yes - - Referer forging - no - yes - yes + Pop-up killing + blocks only + blocks only + blocks only + + + + Privacy Features + low + medium + medium/high @@ -1554,12 +1896,21 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph - Pop-up killing - unsolicited - unsolicited - all + Referer forging + no + yes + yes + + + + + GIF de-animation + no + yes + yes + Fast redirects no @@ -1569,54 +1920,32 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph HTML taming - yes - yes + no + no yes JavaScript taming - yes - yes + no + no yes Web-bug killing - yes - yes - yes - - - - Fun text replacements - no no yes - - - - Image tag reordering - no - no yes - Ad-filtering by link - no + Image tag reordering no yes - - - - Demoronizer - no - no yes - @@ -1629,11 +1958,18 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph The list of actions files to be used are defined in the main configuration file, and are processed in the order they are defined (e.g. - default.action is typically process before + default.action is typically processed before user.action). The content of these can all be viewed and edited from http://config.privoxy.org/show-status. - + The over-riding principle when applying actions, is that the last action that + matches a given URL wins. The broadest, most general rules go first + (defined in default.action), + followed by any exceptions (typically also in + default.action), which are then followed lastly by any + local preferences (typically in user.action). + Generally, user.action has the last word. + An actions file typically has multiple sections. If you want to use @@ -1646,15 +1982,15 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph from consulting any previous file). And then below that, exceptions to the defined universal policies. You can regard user.action as an appendix to default.action, - with the advantage that is a separate file, which makes preserving your + with the advantage that it is a separate file, which makes preserving your personal settings across Privoxy upgrades easier. Actions can be used to block anything you want, including ads, banners, or - just some obnoxious URL that you would rather not see. Cookies can be accepted + just some obnoxious URL whose content you would rather not see. Cookies can be accepted or rejected, or accepted only during the current browser session (i.e. not - written to disk), content can be modified, JavaScripts tamed, user-tracking + written to disk), content can be modified, some JavaScripts tamed, user-tracking fooled, and much more. See below for a complete list of actions. @@ -1666,13 +2002,14 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Note that some actions, like cookie suppression or script disabling, may render some sites unusable that rely on these techniques to work properly. Finding the right mix of actions is not always easy and - certainly a matter of personal taste. In general, it can be said that the more + certainly a matter of personal taste. And, things can always change, requiring + refinements in the configuration. In general, it can be said that the more aggressive your default settings (in the top section of the actions file) are, the more exceptions for trusted sites you will have to make later. If, for example, you want to crunch all cookies per default, you'll have to make exceptions from that rule for sites that you - regularly use and that require cookies for actually useful puposes, like maybe - your bank, favorite shop, or newspaper. + regularly use and that require cookies for actually useful purposes, like maybe + your bank, favorite shop, or newspaper. @@ -1690,55 +2027,73 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph The easiest way to edit the actions files is with a browser by using our browser-based editor, which can be reached from http://config.privoxy.org/show-status. - The editor allows both fine-grained control over every single feature on a - per-URL basis, and easy choosing from wholesale sets of defaults like - Cautious, Medium or Adventuresome. - Warning: the Adventuresome setting is not only more aggressive, - but includes settings that are fun and subversive, and which some may find of - dubious merit! - + Note: the config file option enable-edit-actions must be enabled for + this to work. The editor allows both fine-grained control over every single + feature on a per-URL basis, and easy choosing from wholesale sets of defaults + like Cautious, Medium or + Advanced. Warning: the Advanced setting is more + aggressive, and will be more likely to cause problems for some sites. + Experienced users only! + If you prefer plain text editing to GUIs, you can of course also directly edit the - the actions files. Look at default.action which is richly - commented. + the actions files with your favorite text editor. Look at + default.action which is richly commented with many + good examples. -How Actions are Applied to URLs +How Actions are Applied to Requests Actions files are divided into sections. There are special sections, like the alias sections which will be discussed later. For now let's concentrate on regular sections: They have a heading line (often split up to multiple lines for readability) which consist of a list of actions, separated by whitespace and enclosed in curly braces. - Below that, there is a list of URL patterns, each on a separate line. + Below that, there is a list of URL and tag patterns, each on a separate line. To determine which actions apply to a request, the URL of the request is - compared to all patterns in each action file file. Every time it matches, the list of - applicable actions for the URL is incrementally updated, using the heading - of the section in which the pattern is located. If multiple matches for - the same URL set the same action differently, the last match wins. If not, - the effects are aggregated. E.g. a URL might match a regular section with - a heading line of { + compared to all URL patterns in each action file. + Every time it matches, the list of applicable actions for the request is + incrementally updated, using the heading of the section in which the + pattern is located. The same is done again for tags and tag patterns later on. + + + + If multiple applying sections set the same action differently, + the last match wins. If not, the effects are aggregated. + E.g. a URL might match a regular section with a heading line of { +handle-as-image }, then later another one with just { +block }, resulting - in both actions to apply. + in both actions to apply. And there may well be + cases where you will want to combine actions together. Such a section then + might look like: + + + { +handle-as-image +block{Banner ads.} } + # Block these as if they were images. Send no block page. + banners.example.com + media.example.com/.*banners + .example.com/images/ads/ + + - You can trace this process for any given URL by visiting http://config.privoxy.org/show-url-info. - More detail on this is provided in the Appendix, - Anatomy of an Action. + Examples and more detail on this is provided in the Appendix, + Troubleshooting: Anatomy of an Action section. @@ -1747,15 +2102,15 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Patterns As mentioned, Privoxy uses patterns - to determine what actions might apply to which sites and pages your browser - attempts to access. These patterns use wild card type - pattern matching to achieve a high degree of + to determine what actions might apply to which sites and + pages your browser attempts to access. These patterns use wild + card type pattern matching to achieve a high degree of flexibility. This allows one expression to be expanded and potentially match against many similar patterns. - Generally, a Privoxy pattern has the form + Generally, an URL pattern has the form <domain>/<path>, where both the <domain> and <path> are optional. (This is why the special / pattern matches all @@ -1763,6 +2118,13 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph http://) should not be included in the pattern. This is assumed already! + + The pattern matching syntax is different for the domain and path parts of + the URL. The domain part uses a simple globbing type matching technique, + while the path part uses more flexible + Regular + Expressions (POSIX 1003.2). + @@ -1770,7 +2132,9 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph is a domain-only pattern and will match any request to www.example.com, - regardless of which document on that server is requested. + regardless of which document on that server is requested. So ALL pages in + this domain would be covered by the scope of this action. Note that a + simple example.com is different and would NOT match. @@ -1785,6 +2149,15 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph www.example.com/index.html + + + matches all the documents on www.example.com + whose name starts with /index.html. + + + + + www.example.com/index.html$ matches only the single document /index.html @@ -1793,11 +2166,11 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph - /index.html + /index.html$ matches the document /index.html, regardless of the domain, - i.e. on any web server. + i.e. on any web server anywhere. @@ -1805,8 +2178,9 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph index.html - matches nothing, since it would be interpreted as a domain name and - there is no top-level domain called .html. + matches nothing, since it would be interpreted as a domain name and + there is no top-level domain called .html. So its + a mistake. @@ -1827,8 +2201,11 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph .example.com - matches any domain that ENDS in - .example.com + matches any domain with first-level domain com + and second-level domain example. + For example www.example.com, + example.com and foo.bar.baz.example.com. + Note that it wouldn't match if the second-level domain was another-example. @@ -1837,7 +2214,8 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph matches any domain that STARTS with - www. + www. (It also matches the domain + www but most of the time that doesn't matter.) @@ -1845,8 +2223,14 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph .example. - matches any domain that CONTAINS .example. - (Correctly speaking: It matches any FQDN that contains example as a domain.) + matches any domain that CONTAINS .example.. + And, by the way, also included would be any files or documents that exist + within that domain since no path limitations are specified. (Correctly + speaking: It matches any FQDN that contains example as + a domain.) This might be www.example.com, + news.example.de, or + www.example.net/cgi/testing.pl for instance. All these + cases are matched. @@ -1854,10 +2238,15 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Additionally, there are wild-cards that you can use in the domain names - themselves. They work pretty similar to shell wild-cards: * - stands for zero or more arbitrary characters, ? stands for - any single character, you can define character classes in square - brackets and all of that can be freely mixed: + themselves. These work similarly to shell globbing type wild-cards: + * represents zero or more arbitrary characters (this is + equivalent to the + Regular + Expression based syntax of .*), + ? represents any single character (this is equivalent to the + regular expression syntax of a simple .), and you can define + character classes in square brackets which is similar to + the same regular expression technique. All of this can be freely mixed: @@ -1900,6 +2289,10 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph + + While flexible, this is not the sophistication of full regular expression based syntax. + + @@ -1909,18 +2302,16 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph The Path Pattern - Privoxy uses Perl compatible regular expressions - (through the PCRE library) for - matching the path. + Privoxy uses modern POSIX 1003.2 + Regular + Expressions for matching the path portion (after the slash), + and is thus more flexible. There is an Appendix with a brief quick-start into regular - expressions, and full (very technical) documentation on PCRE regex syntax is available on-line - at http://www.pcre.org/man.txt. - You might also find the Perl man page on regular expressions (man perlre) - useful, which is available on-line at http://www.perldoc.com/perl5.6/pod/perlre.html. + expressions, you also might want to have a look at your operating system's documentation + on regular expressions (try man re_format). @@ -1936,6 +2327,135 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph only documents whose path starts with PaTtErN in exactly this capitalization. + + + + .example.com/.* + + + Is equivalent to just .example.com, since any documents + within that domain are matched with or without the .* + regular expression. This is redundant + + + + + .example.com/.*/index.html$ + + + Will match any page in the domain of example.com that is + named index.html, and that is part of some path. For + example, it matches www.example.com/testing/index.html but + NOT www.example.com/index.html because the regular + expression called for at least two /'s, thus the path + requirement. It also would match + www.example.com/testing/index_html, because of the + special meta-character .. + + + + + .example.com/(.*/)?index\.html$ + + + This regular expression is conditional so it will match any page + named index.html regardless of path which in this case can + have one or more /'s. And this one must contain exactly + .html (but does not have to end with that!). + + + + + .example.com/(.*/)(ads|banners?|junk) + + + This regular expression will match any path of example.com + that contains any of the words ads, banner, + banners (because of the ?) or junk. + The path does not have to end in these words, just contain them. + + + + + .example.com/(.*/)(ads|banners?|junk)/.*\.(jpe?g|gif|png)$ + + + This is very much the same as above, except now it must end in either + .jpg, .jpeg, .gif or .png. So this + one is limited to common image formats. + + + + + + + There are many, many good examples to be found in default.action, + and more tutorials below in Appendix on regular expressions. + + + + + + + + +The Tag Pattern + + + Tag patterns are used to change the applying actions based on the + request's tags. Tags can be created with either the + client-header-tagger + or the server-header-tagger action. + + + + Tag patterns have to start with TAG:, so &my-app; + can tell them apart from URL patterns. Everything after the colon + including white space, is interpreted as a regular expression with + path pattern syntax, except that tag patterns aren't left-anchored + automatically (&my-app; doesn't silently add a ^, + you have to do it yourself if you need it). + + + + To match all requests that are tagged with foo + your pattern line should be TAG:^foo$, + TAG:foo would work as well, but it would also + match requests whose tags contain foo somewhere. + TAG: foo wouldn't work as it requires white space. + + + + Sections can contain URL and tag patterns at the same time, + but tag patterns are checked after the URL patterns and thus + always overrule them, even if they are located before the URL patterns. + + + + Once a new tag is added, Privoxy checks right away if it's matched by one + of the tag patterns and updates the action settings accordingly. As a result + tags can be used to activate other tagger actions, as long as these other + taggers look for headers that haven't already be parsed. + + + + For example you could tag client requests which use the + POST method, + then use this tag to activate another tagger that adds a tag if cookies + are sent, and then use a block action based on the cookie tag. This allows + the outcome of one action, to be input into a subsequent action. However if + you'd reverse the position of the described taggers, and activated the + method tagger based on the cookie tagger, no method tags would be created. + The method tagger would look for the request line, but at the time + the cookie tag is created, the request line has already been parsed. + + + + While this is a limitation you should be aware of, this kind of + indirection is seldom needed anyway and even the example doesn't + make too much sense. + + @@ -1969,7 +2489,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph - There are three classes of actions: + Actions fall into three categories: @@ -1985,7 +2505,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph -name # disable action name - Example: +block + Example: +handle-as-image @@ -2006,7 +2526,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph the last match wins, i.e. the params from earlier matches are simply ignored. - Example: +hide-user-agent{ Mozilla 1.0 } + Example: +hide-user-agent{Mozilla/5.0 (X11; U; FreeBSD i386; en-US; rv:1.8.1.4) Gecko/20070602 Firefox/2.0.0.4} @@ -2038,20 +2558,22 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph If nothing is specified in any actions file, no actions are taken. So in this case Privoxy would just be a - normal, non-blocking, non-anonymizing proxy. You must specifically enable the + normal, non-blocking, non-filtering proxy. You must specifically enable the privacy and blocking features you need (although the provided default actions files will give a good starting point). - Later defined actions always over-ride earlier ones. So exceptions - to any rules you make, should come in the latter part of the file (or - in a file that is processed later when using multiple actions files). For - multi-valued actions, the actions are applied in the order they are specified. - Actions files are processed in the order they are defined in - config (the default installation has three actions - files). It also quite possible for any given URL pattern to match more than - one pattern and thus more than one set of actions! + Later defined action sections always over-ride earlier ones of the same type. + So exceptions to any rules you make, should come in the latter part of the file (or + in a file that is processed later when using multiple actions files such + as user.action). For multi-valued actions, the actions + are applied in the order they are specified. Actions files are processed in + the order they are defined in config (the default + installation has three actions files). It also quite possible for any given + URL to match more than one pattern (because of wildcards and + regular expressions), and thus to trigger more than one set of actions! Last + match wins. @@ -2140,7 +2662,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Typical use: - Block ads or other obnoxious content + Block ads or other unwanted content @@ -2148,10 +2670,16 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Effect: - Requests for URLs to which this action applies are blocked, i.e. the requests are not - forwarded to the remote server, but answered locally with a substitute page or image, - as determined by the handle-as-image - and set-image-blocker actions. + Requests for URLs to which this action applies are blocked, i.e. the + requests are trapped by &my-app; and the requested URL is never retrieved, + but is answered locally with a substitute page or image, as determined by + the handle-as-image, + set-image-blocker, and + handle-as-empty-document actions. + @@ -2160,14 +2688,14 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Type: - Boolean. + Parameterized. Parameter: - N/A + A block reason that should be given to the user. @@ -2176,14 +2704,10 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Privoxy sends a special BLOCKED page - for requests to blocked pages. This page contains links to find out why the request - was blocked, and a click-through to the blocked content (the latter only if compiled with the - force feature enabled). The BLOCKED page adapts to the available - screen space -- it displays full-blown if space allows, or miniaturized and text-only - if loaded into a small frame or window. If you are using Privoxy - right now, you can take a look at the - BLOCKED - page. + for requests to blocked pages. This page contains the block reason given as + parameter, a link to find out why the block action applies, and a click-through + to the blocked content (the latter only if the force feature is available and + enabled). A very important exception occurs if both @@ -2196,7 +2720,8 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph It is important to understand this process, in order to understand how Privoxy deals with - ads and other unwanted content. + ads and other unwanted content. Blocking is a core feature, and one + upon which various other features depend. The filter @@ -2212,16 +2737,272 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph Example usage (section): - {+block} # Block and replace with "blocked" page -.nasty-stuff.example.com + {+block{No nasty stuff for you.}} +# Block and replace with "blocked" page + .nasty-stuff.example.com + +{+block{Doubleclick banners.} +handle-as-image} +# Block and replace with image + .ad.doubleclick.net + .ads.r.us/banners/ + +{+block{Layered ads.} +handle-as-empty-document} +# Block and then ignore + adserver.example.net/.*\.js$ + + + -{+block +handle-as-image} # Block and replace with image -.ad.doubleclick.net -.ads.r.us + + + + + + + +change-x-forwarded-for + + + + Typical use: + + Improve privacy by not forwarding the source of the request in the HTTP headers. + + + + + Effect: + + + Deletes the X-Forwarded-For: HTTP header from the client request, + or adds a new one. + + + + + + Type: + + + Parameterized. + + + + + Parameter: + + + + block to delete the header. + + + + add to create the header (or append + the client's IP address to an already existing one). + + + + + + + + Notes: + + + It is safe and recommended to use block. + + + Forwarding the source address of the request may make + sense in some multi-user setups but is also a privacy risk. + + + + + Example usage: + + + +change-x-forwarded-for{block} + + + + + + + + +client-header-filter + + + + Typical use: + + + Rewrite or remove single client headers. + + + + + + Effect: + + + All client headers to which this action applies are filtered on-the-fly through + the specified regular expression based substitutions. + + + + + + Type: + + + Parameterized. + + + + + Parameter: + + + The name of a client-header filter, as defined in one of the + filter files. + + + + + + Notes: + + + Client-header filters are applied to each header on its own, not to + all at once. This makes it easier to diagnose problems, but on the downside + you can't write filters that only change header x if header y's value is z. + You can do that by using tags though. + + + Client-header filters are executed after the other header actions have finished + and use their output as input. + + + If the request URL gets changed, &my-app; will detect that and use the new + one. This can be used to rewrite the request destination behind the client's + back, for example to specify a Tor exit relay for certain requests. + + + Please refer to the filter file chapter + to learn which client-header filters are available by default, and how to + create your own. + + + + + + + Example usage (section): + + + +# Hide Tor exit notation in Host and Referer Headers +{+client-header-filter{hide-tor-exit-notation}} +/ + + + + + + + +client-header-tagger + + + + Typical use: + + + Block requests based on their headers. + + + + + + Effect: + + + Client headers to which this action applies are filtered on-the-fly through + the specified regular expression based substitutions, the result is used as + tag. + + + + + + Type: + + + Parameterized. + + + + + Parameter: + + + The name of a client-header tagger, as defined in one of the + filter files. + + + + + + Notes: + + + Client-header taggers are applied to each header on its own, + and as the header isn't modified, each tagger sees + the original. + + + Client-header taggers are the first actions that are executed + and their tags can be used to control every other action. + + + + + + Example usage (section): + + + +# Tag every request with the User-Agent header +{+client-header-tagger{user-agent}} +/ + +# Tagging itself doesn't change the action +# settings, sections with TAG patterns do: +# +# If it's a download agent, use a different forwarding proxy, +# show the real User-Agent and make sure resume works. +{+forward-override{forward-socks5 10.0.0.2:2222 .} \ + -hide-if-modified-since \ + -overwrite-last-modified \ + -hide-user-agent \ + -filter \ + -deanimate-gifs \ +} +TAG:^User-Agent: NetBSD-ftp/ +TAG:^User-Agent: Novell ZYPP Installer +TAG:^User-Agent: RPM APT-HTTP/ +TAG:^User-Agent: fetch libfetch/ +TAG:^User-Agent: Ubuntu APT-HTTP/ +TAG:^User-Agent: MPlayer/ + + + + @@ -2284,7 +3065,7 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph If you see a web site that proudly uses XHTML buttons, but sets - Content-Type: text/html, you can use Privoxy + Content-Type: text/html, you can use &my-app; to overwrite it with application/xml and validate the web master's claim inside your XHTML-supporting browser. If the syntax is incorrect, the browser will complain loudly. @@ -2303,10 +3084,9 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph This limitation exists for a reason, think twice before circumventing it. - Most of the time it's easier to enable - filter-server-headers - and replace this action with a custom regular expression. It allows you - to activate it for every document of a certain site and it will still + Most of the time it's easier to replace this action with a custom + server-header filter. + It allows you to activate it for every document of a certain site and it will still only replace the content types you aimed at. @@ -2322,12 +3102,13 @@ must find a better place for this paragraph # Check if www.example.net/ really uses valid XHTML -{+content-type-overwrite {application/xml}} +{ +content-type-overwrite{application/xml} } www.example.net/ + # but leave the content type unmodified if the URL looks like a style sheet {-content-type-overwrite} -www.example.net/*.\.css$ -www.example.net/*.style +www.example.net/.*\.css$ +www.example.net/.*style @@ -2338,7 +3119,10 @@ www.example.net/*.style -crunch-server-header + +crunch-client-header @@ -2352,7 +3136,7 @@ www.example.net/*.style Effect: - Deletes every header send by the client that contains the string the user supplied as parameter. + Deletes every header sent by the client that contains the string the user supplied as parameter. @@ -2391,15 +3175,14 @@ www.example.net/*.style crunch-client-header is only meant for quick tests. If you have to block several different headers, or only want to modify - parts of them, you should enable - filter-client-headers - and create your own filter. + parts of them, you should use a + client-header filter. - - Don't block any header without understanding the consequences. + + Don't block any header without understanding the consequences. + - @@ -2408,7 +3191,7 @@ www.example.net/*.style # Block the non-existent "Privacy-Violation:" client header -{+crunch-client-header {Privacy-Violation:}} +{ +crunch-client-header{Privacy-Violation:} } / @@ -2421,7 +3204,9 @@ www.example.net/*.style crunch-if-none-match - + Typical use: @@ -2467,12 +3252,12 @@ www.example.net/*.style It is also useful to make sure the header isn't used as a cookie - replacement. + replacement (unlikely but possible). Blocking the If-None-Match: header shouldn't cause any caching problems, as long as the If-Modified-Since: header - isn't blocked as well. + isn't blocked or missing as well. It is recommended to use this action together with @@ -2487,10 +3272,11 @@ www.example.net/*.style Example usage (section): - # Let the browser revalidate cached documents without being tracked across sessions -{+hide-if-modified-since {-1} \ -+overwrite-last-modified {randomize} \ -+crunch-if-none-match} + # Let the browser revalidate cached documents but don't +# allow the server to use the revalidation headers for user tracking. +{+hide-if-modified-since{-60} \ + +overwrite-last-modified{randomize} \ + +crunch-if-none-match} / @@ -2508,7 +3294,7 @@ www.example.net/*.style Typical use: - Prevent the web server from setting any cookies on your system + Prevent the web server from setting HTTP cookies on your system @@ -2543,10 +3329,10 @@ www.example.net/*.style Notes: - This action is only concerned with incoming cookies. For - outgoing cookies, use + This action is only concerned with incoming HTTP cookies. For + outgoing HTTP cookies, use crunch-outgoing-cookies. - Use both to disable cookies completely. + Use both to disable HTTP cookies completely. It makes no sense at all to use this action in conjunction @@ -2572,7 +3358,9 @@ www.example.net/*.style crunch-server-header - + Typical use: @@ -2585,7 +3373,7 @@ www.example.net/*.style Effect: - Deletes every header send by the server that contains the string the user supplied as parameter. + Deletes every header sent by the server that contains the string the user supplied as parameter. @@ -2623,15 +3411,14 @@ www.example.net/*.style crunch-server-header is only meant for quick tests. If you have to block several different headers, or only want to modify - parts of them, you should enable - filter-server-headers - and create your own filter. + parts of them, you should use a custom + server-header filter. - + Don't block any header without understanding the consequences. + - @@ -2640,7 +3427,7 @@ www.example.net/*.style # Crunch server headers that try to prevent caching -{+crunch-server-header {no-cache}} +{ +crunch-server-header{no-cache} } / @@ -2658,7 +3445,7 @@ www.example.net/*.style Typical use: - Prevent the web server from reading any cookies from your system + Prevent the web server from reading any HTTP cookies from your system @@ -2693,10 +3480,10 @@ www.example.net/*.style Notes: - This action is only concerned with outgoing cookies. For - incoming cookies, use + This action is only concerned with outgoing HTTP cookies. For + incoming HTTP cookies, use crunch-incoming-cookies. - Use both to disable cookies completely. + Use both to disable HTTP cookies completely. It makes no sense at all to use this action in conjunction @@ -2832,8 +3619,8 @@ www.example.net/*.style This is a left-over from the time when Privoxy didn't support important HTTP/1.1 features well. It is left here for the unlikely case that you experience HTTP/1.1 related problems with some server - out there. Not all (optional) HTTP/1.1 features are supported yet, so there - is a chance you might need this action. + out there. Not all HTTP/1.1 features and requirements are supported yet, + so there is a chance you might need this action. @@ -2941,9 +3728,9 @@ problem-host.example.com followed by another parameter. fast-redirects doesn't know that and will cause a redirect to http://www.example.net/&foo=bar. Depending on the target server configuration, the parameter will be silently ignored - or lead to a page not found error. It is possible to fix these redirected - requests with filter-client-headers - but it requires a little effort. + or lead to a page not found error. You can prevent this problem by + first using the redirect action + to remove the last part of the URL, but it requires a little effort. To detect a redirection URL, fast-redirects only @@ -2961,10 +3748,12 @@ problem-host.example.com Example usage: - +fast-redirects{simple-check} - - - +fast-redirects{check-decoded-url} + + { +fast-redirects{simple-check} } + one.example.com + + { +fast-redirects{check-decoded-url} } + another.example.com/testing @@ -2981,7 +3770,8 @@ problem-host.example.com Typical use: - Get rid of HTML and JavaScript annoyances, banner advertisements (by size), do fun text replacements, etc. + Get rid of HTML and JavaScript annoyances, banner advertisements (by size), + do fun text replacements, add personalized effects, etc. @@ -2989,12 +3779,11 @@ problem-host.example.com Effect: - All files of text-based type, most notably HTML and JavaScript, to which this - action applies, are filtered on-the-fly through the specified regular expression - based substitutions. (Note: as of version 3.0.3 plain text documents + All instances of text-based type, most notably HTML and JavaScript, to which + this action applies, can be filtered on-the-fly through the specified regular + expression based substitutions. (Note: as of version 3.0.3 plain text documents are exempted from filtering, because web servers often use the - text/plain MIME type for all files whose type they - don't know.) + text/plain MIME type for all files whose type they don't know.) @@ -3006,17 +3795,23 @@ problem-host.example.com Parameterized. - + Parameter: - The name of a filter, as defined in the filter file - (typically default.filter, set by the + The name of a content filter, as defined in the filter file. + Filters can be defined in one or more files as defined by the filterfile - option in the config file). When used in its negative form, - and without parameters, filtering is completely disabled. + option in the config file. + default.filter is the collection of filters + supplied by the developers. Locally defined filters should go + in their own file, such as user.filter. + + When used in its negative form, + and without parameters, all filtering is completely disabled. + @@ -3036,8 +3831,14 @@ problem-host.example.com noticeable on slower connections. - This is very powerful feature, but rolling your own - filters requires a knowledge of regular expressions and HTML. + Rolling your own + filters requires a knowledge of + Regular + Expressions and + HTML. + This is very powerful feature, and potentially very intrusive. + Filters should be used with caution, and where an equivalent + action is not available. The amount of data that can be filtered is limited to the @@ -3047,22 +3848,27 @@ problem-host.example.com data, and all pending data, is passed through unfiltered. - Inadequate MIME types, such as zipped files, are not filtered at all. + Inappropriate MIME types, such as zipped files, are not filtered at all. (Again, only text-based types except plain text). Encrypted SSL data (from HTTPS servers) cannot be filtered either, since this would violate the integrity of the secure transaction. In some situations it might be necessary to protect certain text, like source code, from filtering - by defining appropriate -filter sections. + by defining appropriate -filter exceptions. - At this time, Privoxy cannot (yet!) uncompress compressed - documents. If you want filtering to work on all documents, even those that - would normally be sent compressed, use the - prevent-compression + Compressed content can't be filtered either, unless &my-app; + is compiled with zlib support (requires at least &my-app; 3.0.7), + in which case &my-app; will decompress the content before filtering + it. + + + If you use a &my-app; version without zlib support, but want filtering to work on + as much documents as possible, even those that would normally be sent compressed, + you must use the prevent-compression action in conjunction with filter. - Filtering can achieve some of the same effects as the + Content filtering can achieve some of the same effects as the block action, i.e. it can be used to block ads and banners. But the mechanism works quite differently. One effective use, is to block ad banners @@ -3089,71 +3895,71 @@ problem-host.example.com - +filter{js-annoyances} # Get rid of particularly annoying JavaScript abuse + +filter{js-annoyances} # Get rid of particularly annoying JavaScript abuse. - +filter{js-events} # Kill all JS event bindings (Radically destructive! Only for extra nasty sites) + +filter{js-events} # Kill all JS event bindings and timers (Radically destructive! Only for extra nasty sites). - +filter{html-annoyances} # Get rid of particularly annoying HTML abuse + +filter{html-annoyances} # Get rid of particularly annoying HTML abuse. - +filter{content-cookies} # Kill cookies that come in the HTML or JS content + +filter{content-cookies} # Kill cookies that come in the HTML or JS content. - +filter{refresh-tags} # Kill automatic refresh tags (for dial-on-demand setups) + +filter{refresh-tags} # Kill automatic refresh tags (for dial-on-demand setups). - +filter{unsolicited-popups} # Disable only unsolicited pop-up windows + +filter{unsolicited-popups} # Disable only unsolicited pop-up windows. Useful if your browser lacks this ability. - +filter{all-popups} # Kill all popups in JavaScript and HTML + +filter{all-popups} # Kill all popups in JavaScript and HTML. Useful if your browser lacks this ability. - +filter{img-reorder} # Reorder attributes in <img> tags to make the banners-by-* filters more effective + +filter{img-reorder} # Reorder attributes in <img> tags to make the banners-by-* filters more effective. - +filter{banners-by-size} # Kill banners by size + +filter{banners-by-size} # Kill banners by size. - +filter{banners-by-link} # Kill banners by their links to known clicktrackers + +filter{banners-by-link} # Kill banners by their links to known clicktrackers. - +filter{webbugs} # Squish WebBugs (1x1 invisible GIFs used for user tracking) + +filter{webbugs} # Squish WebBugs (1x1 invisible GIFs used for user tracking). - +filter{tiny-textforms} # Extend those tiny textareas up to 40x80 and kill the hard wrap + +filter{tiny-textforms} # Extend those tiny textareas up to 40x80 and kill the hard wrap. - +filter{jumping-windows} # Prevent windows from resizing and moving themselves + +filter{jumping-windows} # Prevent windows from resizing and moving themselves. - +filter{frameset-borders} # Give frames a border and make them resizable + +filter{frameset-borders} # Give frames a border and make them resizable. - +filter{demoronizer} # Fix MS's non-standard use of standard charsets + +filter{demoronizer} # Fix MS's non-standard use of standard charsets. - +filter{shockwave-flash} # Kill embedded Shockwave Flash objects + +filter{shockwave-flash} # Kill embedded Shockwave Flash objects. - +filter{quicktime-kioskmode} # Make Quicktime movies saveable + +filter{quicktime-kioskmode} # Make Quicktime movies saveable. @@ -3161,11 +3967,35 @@ problem-host.example.com - +filter{crude-parental} # Crude parental filtering (demo only) + +filter{crude-parental} # Crude parental filtering. Note that this filter doesn't work reliably. - +filter{ie-exploits} # Disable some known Internet Explorer bug exploits + +filter{ie-exploits} # Disable some known Internet Explorer bug exploits. + + + + +filter{site-specifics} # Cure for site-specific problems. Don't apply generally! + + + + +filter{no-ping} # Removes non-standard ping attributes in <a> and <area> tags. + + + + +filter{google} # CSS-based block for Google text ads. Also removes a width limitation and the toolbar advertisement. + + + + +filter{yahoo} # CSS-based block for Yahoo text ads. Also removes a width limitation. + + + + +filter{msn} # CSS-based block for MSN text ads. Also removes tracking URLs and a width limitation. + + + + +filter{blogspot} # Cleans up some Blogspot blogs. Read the fine print before using this. @@ -3176,12 +4006,14 @@ problem-host.example.com force-text-mode - + Typical use: - Force Privoxy to treat a document as if it was in some kind of text format. + Force Privoxy to treat a document as if it was in some kind of text format. @@ -3225,7 +4057,113 @@ problem-host.example.com Think twice before activating this action. Filtering binary data - with regular expressions can cause file damages. + with regular expressions can cause file damage. + + + + + + + Example usage: + + + ++force-text-mode + + + + + + + + + + +forward-override + + + + Typical use: + + Change the forwarding settings based on User-Agent or request origin + + + + + Effect: + + + Overrules the forward directives in the configuration file. + + + + + + Type: + + + Multi-value. + + + + + Parameter: + + + + forward . to use a direct connection without any additional proxies. + + + + forward 127.0.0.1:8123 to use the HTTP proxy listening at 127.0.0.1 port 8123. + + + + + forward-socks4a 127.0.0.1:9050 . to use the socks4a proxy listening at + 127.0.0.1 port 9050. Replace forward-socks4a with forward-socks4 + to use a socks4 connection (with local DNS resolution) instead, use forward-socks5 + for socks5 connections (with remote DNS resolution). + + + + + forward-socks4a 127.0.0.1:9050 proxy.example.org:8000 to use the socks4a proxy + listening at 127.0.0.1 port 9050 to reach the HTTP proxy listening at proxy.example.org port 8000. + Replace forward-socks4a with forward-socks4 to use a socks4 connection + (with local DNS resolution) instead, use forward-socks5 + for socks5 connections (with remote DNS resolution). + + + + + + + + Notes: + + + This action takes parameters similar to the + forward directives in the configuration + file, but without the URL pattern. It can be used as replacement, but normally it's only + used in cases where matching based on the request URL isn't sufficient. + + + + Please read the description for the forward directives before + using this action. Forwarding to the wrong people will reduce your privacy and increase the + chances of man-in-the-middle attacks. + + + If the ports are missing or invalid, default values will be used. This might change + in the future and you shouldn't rely on it. Otherwise incorrect syntax causes Privoxy + to exit. + + + Use the show-url-info CGI page + to verify that your forward settings do what you thought the do. @@ -3236,7 +4174,19 @@ problem-host.example.com -+force-text-mode +# Always use direct connections for requests previously tagged as +# User-Agent: fetch libfetch/2.0 and make sure +# resuming downloads continues to work. +# This way you can continue to use Tor for your normal browsing, +# without overloading the Tor network with your FreeBSD ports updates +# or downloads of bigger files like ISOs. +# Note that HTTP headers are easy to fake and therefore their +# values are as (un)trustworthy as your clients and users. +{+forward-override{forward .} \ + -hide-if-modified-since \ + -overwrite-last-modified \ +} +TAG:^User-Agent: fetch libfetch/2\.0$ @@ -3248,7 +4198,9 @@ problem-host.example.com handle-as-empty-document - + Typical use: @@ -3263,9 +4215,9 @@ problem-host.example.com This action alone doesn't do anything noticeable. It just marks URLs. If the block action also applies, - the presence or absence of this mark decides whether an HTML blocked + the presence or absence of this mark decides whether an HTML BLOCKED page, or an empty document will be sent to the client as a substitute for the blocked content. - The empty document isn't literally empty, but actually contains a single space. + The empty document isn't literally empty, but actually contains a single space. @@ -3294,6 +4246,8 @@ problem-host.example.com Some browsers complain about syntax errors if JavaScript documents are blocked with Privoxy's default HTML page; this option can be used to silence them. + And of course this action can also be used to eliminate the &my-app; + BLOCKED message in frames. The content type for the empty document can be specified with @@ -3309,7 +4263,7 @@ problem-host.example.com # Block all documents on example.org that end with ".js", # but send an empty document instead of the usual HTML message. -{+block +handle-as-empty-document} +{+block{Blocked JavaScript} +handle-as-empty-document} example.org/.*\.js$ @@ -3327,7 +4281,7 @@ example.org/.*\.js$ Typical use: - Mark URLs as belonging to images (so they'll be replaced by imagee if they get blocked) + Mark URLs as belonging to images (so they'll be replaced by images if they do get blocked, rather than HTML pages) @@ -3396,11 +4350,8 @@ example.org/.*\.js$ # These don't look like images, but they're banners and should be # blocked as images: # -{+block +handle-as-image} -some.nasty-banner-server.com/junk.cgi?output=trash - -# Banner source! Who cares if they also have non-image content? -ad.doubleclick.net +{+block{Nasty banners.} +handle-as-image} +nasty-banner-server.example.com/junk.cgi\?output=trash @@ -3412,7 +4363,9 @@ ad.doubleclick.net hide-accept-language - + Typical use: @@ -3465,7 +4418,7 @@ ad.doubleclick.net Therefore it's a good idea to either only change the Accept-Language: header to languages you understand, - or to languages that aren't widely spread. + or to languages that aren't wide spread. Before setting the Accept-Language: header @@ -3496,7 +4449,9 @@ ad.doubleclick.net hide-content-disposition - + Typical use: @@ -3536,20 +4491,20 @@ ad.doubleclick.net Some servers set the Content-Disposition: HTTP header for - documents they assume you want to safe locally before viewing them. + documents they assume you want to save locally before viewing them. The Content-Disposition: header contains the file name the browser is supposed to use by default. - In most browser that understand this header, it makes it impossible to + In most browsers that understand this header, it makes it impossible to just view the document, without downloading it first, even if it's just a simple text file or an image. Removing the Content-Disposition: header helps - to prevent this annoyance, but some browser additionally check the - Content-Type: header, before they decide if the can - display a document without saving it first. In these cases you have + to prevent this annoyance, but some browsers additionally check the + Content-Type: header, before they decide if they can + display a document without saving it first. In these cases, you have to change this header as well, before the browser stops displaying download menus. @@ -3558,6 +4513,10 @@ ad.doubleclick.net to another one, but in most cases it isn't worth the time to set it up. + + This action will probably be removed in the future, + use server-header filters instead. + @@ -3566,10 +4525,10 @@ ad.doubleclick.net # Disarm the download link in Sourceforge's patch tracker -{-filter\ -+content-type-overwrite {text/plain}\ -+hide-content-disposition {block} } -.sourceforge.net/tracker/download.php +{ -filter \ + +content-type-overwrite{text/plain}\ + +hide-content-disposition{block} } + .sourceforge.net/tracker/download\.php @@ -3580,7 +4539,9 @@ ad.doubleclick.net hide-if-modified-since - + Typical use: @@ -3624,16 +4585,16 @@ ad.doubleclick.net browser to use a cached copy of the page. - Instead of removing the header, hide-if-modified-since can - also add or substract a random amount of time to/from the headers value. - You specify a range of hours were the random factor should be chosen from and + Instead of removing the header, hide-if-modified-since can + also add or subtract a random amount of time to/from the header's value. + You specify a range of minutes where the random factor should be chosen from and Privoxy does the rest. A negative value means subtracting, a positive value adding. Randomizing the value of the If-Modified-Since: makes - sure it isn't used as a cookie replacement, but you will run into - caching problems if the random range is to high. + it less likely that the server can use the time as a cookie replacement, + but you will run into caching problems if the random range is too high. It is a good idea to only use a small negative value and let @@ -3642,7 +4603,8 @@ ad.doubleclick.net It is also recommended to use this action together with - crunch-if-none-match. + crunch-if-none-match, + otherwise it's more or less pointless. @@ -3651,10 +4613,10 @@ ad.doubleclick.net Example usage (section): - # Let the browser revalidate without being tracked across sessions -{+hide-if-modified-since {-1}\ -+overwrite-last-modified {randomize}\ -+crunch-if-none-match} + # Let the browser revalidate but make tracking based on the time less likely. +{+hide-if-modified-since{-60} \ + +overwrite-last-modified{randomize} \ + +crunch-if-none-match} / @@ -3663,72 +4625,6 @@ ad.doubleclick.net - - -hide-forwarded-for-headers - - - - Typical use: - - Improve privacy by hiding the true source of the request - - - - - Effect: - - - Deletes any existing X-Forwarded-for: HTTP header from client requests, - and prevents adding a new one. - - - - - - Type: - - - Boolean. - - - - - Parameter: - - - N/A - - - - - - Notes: - - - It is fairly safe to leave this on. - - - This action is scheduled for improvement: It should be able to generate forged - X-Forwarded-for: headers using random IP addresses from a specified network, - to make successive requests from the same client look like requests from a pool of different - users sharing the same proxy. - - - - - - Example usage: - - - +hide-forwarded-for-headers - - - - - - - hide-from-header @@ -3838,6 +4734,9 @@ ad.doubleclick.net conditional-block to delete the header completely if the host has changed. + + conditional-forge to forge the header if the host has changed. + block to delete the header unconditionally. @@ -3871,7 +4770,7 @@ ad.doubleclick.net Always blocking the referrer, or using a custom one, can lead to failures on servers that check the referrer before they answer any - requests, in an attempt to prevent their valuable content from being + requests, in an attempt to prevent their content from being embedded or linked to elsewhere. @@ -3910,7 +4809,7 @@ ad.doubleclick.net Typical use: - Conceal your type of browser and client operating system + Try to conceal your type of browser and client operating system @@ -3950,10 +4849,6 @@ ad.doubleclick.net order to customize their content for different browsers (which, by the way, is NOT the right thing to do: good web sites work browser-independently). - @@ -3970,7 +4865,10 @@ ad.doubleclick.net (Must be just a silly MS goof, I'm sure :-). - This action is scheduled for improvement. + More information on known user-agent strings can be found at + http://www.user-agents.org/ + and + http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_agent. @@ -3987,101 +4885,6 @@ ad.doubleclick.net - - -kill-popups<anchor id="kill-popup"> - - - - Typical use: - - Eliminate those annoying pop-up windows (deprecated) - - - - - Effect: - - - While loading the document, replace JavaScript code that opens - pop-up windows with (syntactically neutral) dummy code on the fly. - - - - - - Type: - - - Boolean. - - - - - Parameter: - - - N/A - - - - - - Notes: - - - This action is basically a built-in, hardwired special-purpose filter - action, but there are important differences: For kill-popups, - the document need not be buffered, so it can be incrementally rendered while - downloading. But kill-popups doesn't catch as many pop-ups as - filter{all-popups} - does and is not as smart as filter{unsolicited-popups} - is. - - - Think of it as a fast and efficient replacement for a filter that you - can use if you don't want any filtering at all. Note that it doesn't make - sense to combine it with any filter action, - since as soon as one filter applies, - the whole document needs to be buffered anyway, which destroys the advantage of - the kill-popups action over its filter equivalent. - - - Killing all pop-ups unconditionally is problematic. Many shops and banks rely on - pop-ups to display forms, shopping carts etc, and the filter{unsolicited-popups} - does a fairly good job of catching only the unwanted ones. - - - If the only kind of pop-ups that you want to kill are exit consoles (those - really nasty windows that appear when you close an other - one), you might want to use - filter{js-annoyances} - instead. - - - - - - - - Example usage: - - +kill-popups - - - - - - limit-connect @@ -4126,26 +4929,21 @@ ad.doubleclick.net By default, i.e. if no limit-connect action applies, - Privoxy only allows HTTP CONNECT - requests to port 443 (the standard, secure HTTPS port). Use - limit-connect if more fine-grained control is desired - for some or all destinations. + Privoxy allows HTTP CONNECT requests to all + ports. Use limit-connect if fine-grained control + is desired for some or all destinations. The CONNECT methods exists in HTTP to allow access to secure websites (https:// URLs) through proxies. It works very simply: the proxy connects to the server on the specified port, and then short-circuits its connections to the client and to the remote server. - This can be a big security hole, since CONNECT-enabled proxies can be - abused as TCP relays very easily. + This means CONNECT-enabled proxies can be used as TCP relays very easily. Privoxy relays HTTPS traffic without seeing - the decoded content. Websites can leverage this limitation to circumvent Privoxy's + the decoded content. Websites can leverage this limitation to circumvent &my-app;'s filters. By specifying an invalid port range you can disable HTTPS entirely. - If you plan to disable SSL by default, consider enabling - treat-forbidden-connects-like-blocks - as well, to be able to quickly create exceptions. @@ -4157,11 +4955,11 @@ ad.doubleclick.net - +limit-connect{443} # This is the default and need not be specified. + +limit-connect{443} # Port 443 is OK. +limit-connect{80,443} # Ports 80 and 443 are OK. +limit-connect{-3, 7, 20-100, 500-} # Ports less than 3, 7, 20 to 100 and above 500 are OK. +limit-connect{-} # All ports are OK -+limit-connect{,} # No HTTPS traffic is allowed ++limit-connect{,} # No HTTPS/SSL traffic is allowed @@ -4214,23 +5012,33 @@ ad.doubleclick.net More and more websites send their content compressed by default, which - is generally a good idea and saves bandwidth. But for the filter, deanimate-gifs - and kill-popups actions to work, - Privoxy needs access to the uncompressed data. - Unfortunately, Privoxy can't yet(!) uncompress, filter, and - re-compress the content on the fly. So if you want to ensure that all websites, including - those that normally compress, can be filtered, you need to use this action. + is generally a good idea and saves bandwidth. But the filter and + deanimate-gifs + actions need access to the uncompressed data. + + + When compiled with zlib support (available since &my-app; 3.0.7), content that should be + filtered is decompressed on-the-fly and you don't have to worry about this action. + If you are using an older &my-app; version, or one that hasn't been compiled with zlib + support, this action can be used to convince the server to send the content uncompressed. + + + Most text-based instances compress very well, the size is seldom decreased by less than 50%, + for markup-heavy instances like news feeds saving more than 90% of the original size isn't + unusual. - This will slow down transfers from those websites, though. If you use any of the above-mentioned - actions, you will typically want to use prevent-compression in conjunction - with them. + Not using compression will therefore slow down the transfer, and you should only + enable this action if you really need it. As of &my-app; 3.0.7 it's disabled in all + predefined action settings. Note that some (rare) ill-configured sites don't handle requests for uncompressed - documents correctly (they send an empty document body). If you use prevent-compression - per default, you'll have to add exceptions for those sites. See the example for how to do that. + documents correctly. Broken PHP applications tend to send an empty document body, + some IIS versions only send the beginning of the content. If you enable + prevent-compression per default, you might want to add + exceptions for those sites. See the example for how to do that. @@ -4239,16 +5047,24 @@ ad.doubleclick.net Example usage (sections): - # Set default: + +# Selectively turn off compression, and enable a filter # -{+prevent-compression} -/ # Match all sites +{ +filter{tiny-textforms} +prevent-compression } +# Match only these sites + .google. + sourceforge.net + sf.net -# Make exceptions for ill sites: +# Or instead, we could set a universal default: # -{-prevent-compression} -www.debianhelp.org -www.pclinuxonline.com +{ +prevent-compression } + / # Match all sites + +# Then maybe make exceptions for broken sites: +# +{ -prevent-compression } +.compusa.com/ @@ -4260,7 +5076,9 @@ www.pclinuxonline.com overwrite-last-modified - + Typical use: @@ -4341,9 +5159,9 @@ www.pclinuxonline.com # Let the browser revalidate without being tracked across sessions -{+hide-if-modified-since {-1}\ -+overwrite-last-modified {randomize}\ -+crunch-if-none-match} +{ +hide-if-modified-since{-60} \ + +overwrite-last-modified{randomize} \ + +crunch-if-none-match} / @@ -4355,7 +5173,9 @@ www.pclinuxonline.com redirect - + Typical use: @@ -4388,7 +5208,7 @@ www.pclinuxonline.com Parameter: - Any URL. + An absolute URL or a single pcrs command. @@ -4397,31 +5217,61 @@ www.pclinuxonline.com Notes: - This action is useful to replace whole documents with your own - ones. For that to work, they have to be available on another server. - - - You can do the same by combining the actions - block, - handle-as-image and - set-image-blocker{URL}. - It doesn't sound right for non-image documents, and that's why this action - was created. + Requests to which this action applies are answered with a + HTTP redirect to URLs of your choosing. The new URL is + either provided as parameter, or derived by applying a + single pcrs command to the original URL. This action will be ignored if you use it together with block. + It can be combined with + fast-redirects{check-decoded-url} + to redirect to a decoded version of a rewritten URL. + + + Use this action carefully, make sure not to create redirection loops + and be aware that using your own redirects might make it + possible to fingerprint your requests. + + + In case of problems with your redirects, or simply to watch + them working, enable debug 128. - Example usage: + Example usages: # Replace example.com's style sheet with another one -{+redirect{http://localhost/css-replacements/example.com.css}} -example.com/stylesheet.css +{ +redirect{http://localhost/css-replacements/example.com.css} } + example.com/stylesheet\.css + +# Create a short, easy to remember nickname for a favorite site +# (relies on the browser accept and forward invalid URLs to &my-app;) +{ +redirect{http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/actions-file.html} } + a + +# Always use the expanded view for Undeadly.org articles +# (Note the $ at the end of the URL pattern to make sure +# the request for the rewritten URL isn't redirected as well) +{+redirect{s@$@&mode=expanded@}} +undeadly.org/cgi\?action=article&sid=\d*$ + +# Redirect Google search requests to MSN +{+redirect{s@^http://[^/]*/search\?q=([^&]*).*@http://search.msn.com/results.aspx?q=$1@}} +.google.com/search + +# Redirect MSN search requests to Yahoo +{+redirect{s@^http://[^/]*/results\.aspx\?q=([^&]*).*@http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=$1@}} +search.msn.com//results\.aspx\?q= + +# Redirect remote requests for this manual +# to the local version delivered by Privoxy +{+redirect{s@^http://www@http://config@}} +www.privoxy.org/user-manual/ @@ -4431,15 +5281,15 @@ example.com/stylesheet.css - -send-vanilla-wafer + +server-header-filter Typical use: - Feed log analysis scripts with useless data. + Rewrite or remove single server headers. @@ -4448,17 +5298,17 @@ example.com/stylesheet.css Effect: - Sends a cookie with each request stating that you do not accept any copyright - on cookies sent to you, and asking the site operator not to track you. + All server headers to which this action applies are filtered on-the-fly + through the specified regular expression based substitutions. Type: - + - Boolean. + Parameterized. @@ -4466,7 +5316,8 @@ example.com/stylesheet.css Parameter: - N/A + The name of a server-header filter, as defined in one of the + filter files. @@ -4475,20 +5326,35 @@ example.com/stylesheet.css Notes: - The vanilla wafer is a (relatively) unique header and could conceivably be used to track you. + Server-header filters are applied to each header on its own, not to + all at once. This makes it easier to diagnose problems, but on the downside + you can't write filters that only change header x if header y's value is z. + You can do that by using tags though. - This action is rarely used and not enabled in the default configuration. + Server-header filters are executed after the other header actions have finished + and use their output as input. - + + Please refer to the filter file chapter + to learn which server-header filters are available by default, and how to + create your own. + + - Example usage: + Example usage (section): - - +send-vanilla-wafer - + + +{+server-header-filter{html-to-xml}} +example.org/xml-instance-that-is-delivered-as-html + +{+server-header-filter{xml-to-html}} +example.org/instance-that-is-delivered-as-xml-but-is-not + + @@ -4497,15 +5363,15 @@ example.com/stylesheet.css - -send-wafer + +server-header-tagger Typical use: - Send custom cookies or feed log analysis scripts with even more useless data. + Enable or disable filters based on the Content-Type header. @@ -4514,16 +5380,18 @@ example.com/stylesheet.css Effect: - Sends a custom, user-defined cookie with each request. + Server headers to which this action applies are filtered on-the-fly through + the specified regular expression based substitutions, the result is used as + tag. Type: - + - Multi-value. + Parameterized. @@ -4531,8 +5399,8 @@ example.com/stylesheet.css Parameter: - A string of the form name=value. + The name of a server-header tagger, as defined in one of the + filter files. @@ -4541,23 +5409,38 @@ example.com/stylesheet.css Notes: - Being multi-valued, multiple instances of this action can apply to the same request, - resulting in multiple cookies being sent. + Server-header taggers are applied to each header on its own, + and as the header isn't modified, each tagger sees + the original. - This action is rarely used and not enabled in the default configuration. + Server-header taggers are executed before all other header actions + that modify server headers. Their tags can be used to control + all of the other server-header actions, the content filters + and the crunch actions (redirect + and block). - + + Obviously crunching based on tags created by server-header taggers + doesn't prevent the request from showing up in the server's log file. + + + + Example usage (section): - - {+send-wafer{UsingPrivoxy=true}} -my-internal-testing-server.void - + + +# Tag every request with the content type declared by the server +{+server-header-tagger{content-type}} +/ + + + @@ -4720,129 +5603,49 @@ my-internal-testing-server.void URLs, which send the built-in images, as target-url. This has the same visual effect as specifying blank or pattern in the first place, but enables your browser to cache the replacement image, instead of requesting - it over and over again. - - - - - - - - Notes: - - - The URLs for the built-in images are http://config.privoxy.org/send-banner?type=type, where type is - either blank or pattern. - - - There is a third (advanced) type, called auto. It is NOT to be - used in set-image-blocker, but meant for use from filters. - Auto will select the type of image that would have applied to the referring page, had it been an image. - - - - - - Example usage: - - - Built-in pattern: - - - +set-image-blocker{pattern} - - - Redirect to the BSD devil: - - - +set-image-blocker{http://www.freebsd.org/gifs/dae_up3.gif} - - - Redirect to the built-in pattern for better caching: - - - +set-image-blocker{http://config.privoxy.org/send-banner?type=pattern} - - - - - - - - - -treat-forbidden-connects-like-blocks - - - - Typical use: - - Block forbidden connects with an easy to find error message. + it over and over again. + + + - Effect: + Notes: - If this action is enabled, Privoxy no longer - makes a difference between forbidden connects and ordinary blocks. + The URLs for the built-in images are http://config.privoxy.org/send-banner?type=type, where type is + either blank or pattern. + + + There is a third (advanced) type, called auto. It is NOT to be + used in set-image-blocker, but meant for use from filters. + Auto will select the type of image that would have applied to the referring page, had it been an image. - Type: - - - Boolean - - - - - Parameter: - - N/A - - - - - Notes: + Example usage: - By default Privoxy answers - forbidden Connect requests - with a short error message inside the headers. If the browser doesn't display - headers (most don't), you just see an empty page. + Built-in pattern: + + + +set-image-blocker{pattern} - With this action enabled, Privoxy displays - the message that is used for ordinary blocks instead. If you decide - to make an exception for the page in question, you can do so by - following the See why link. + Redirect to the BSD daemon: - For Connect requests the clients tell - Privoxy which host they are interested - in, but not which document they plan to get later. As a result, the - Go there anyway link becomes rather useless: - it lets the client request the home page of the forbidden host - through unencrypted HTTP, still using the port of the last request. + +set-image-blocker{http://www.freebsd.org/gifs/dae_up3.gif} - If you previously configured Privoxy to do the - request through a SSL tunnel, everything will work. Most likely you haven't - and the server will responds with an error message because it is expecting - HTTPS. + Redirect to the built-in pattern for better caching: - - - - - Example usage: - +treat-forbidden-connects-like-blocks + +set-image-blocker{http://config.privoxy.org/send-banner?type=pattern} @@ -4904,7 +5707,6 @@ my-internal-testing-server.void them before writing. So the effects of your aliases are of course preserved, but the aliases themselves are lost when you edit sections that use aliases with it. - This is likely to change in future versions of Privoxy. @@ -4925,14 +5727,15 @@ my-internal-testing-server.void # +crunch-all-cookies = +crunch-incoming-cookies +crunch-outgoing-cookies -crunch-all-cookies = -crunch-incoming-cookies -crunch-outgoing-cookies - block-as-image = +block +handle-as-image - mercy-for-cookies = -crunch-all-cookies -session-cookies-only -filter{content-cookies} + +block-as-image = +block{Blocked image.} +handle-as-image + allow-all-cookies = -crunch-all-cookies -session-cookies-only -filter{content-cookies} # These aliases define combinations of actions # that are useful for certain types of sites: # - fragile = -block -filter -crunch-all-cookies -fast-redirects -hide-referrer -kill-popups - shop = -crunch-all-cookies -filter{all-popups} -kill-popups + fragile = -block -filter -crunch-all-cookies -fast-redirects -hide-referrer -prevent-compression + + shop = -crunch-all-cookies -filter{all-popups} # Short names for other aliases, for really lazy people ;-) # @@ -4954,7 +5757,8 @@ my-internal-testing-server.void {fragile} .office.microsoft.com .windowsupdate.microsoft.com - .nytimes.com + # Gmail is really mail.google.com, not gmail.com + mail.google.com # Shopping sites: # Allow cookies (for setting and retrieving your customer data) @@ -4962,22 +5766,24 @@ my-internal-testing-server.void {shop} .quietpc.com .worldpay.com # for quietpc.com - .scan.co.uk + mybank.example.com # These shops require pop-ups: # - {shop -kill-popups -filter{all-popups}} + {-filter{all-popups} -filter{unsolicited-popups}} .dabs.com .overclockers.co.uk - Aliases like shop and fragile are often used for - problem sites that require some actions to be disabled + Aliases like shop and fragile are typically used for + problem sites that require more than one action to be disabled in order to function properly. - + Actions Files Tutorial @@ -4998,7 +5804,7 @@ Every config file should start with a short comment stating its purpose: - # Sample default.action file <developers@privoxy.org> + # Sample default.action file <ijbswa-developers@lists.sourceforge.net> @@ -5035,14 +5841,14 @@ that also explains why and how aliases are used: # +crunch-all-cookies = +crunch-incoming-cookies +crunch-outgoing-cookies -crunch-all-cookies = -crunch-incoming-cookies -crunch-outgoing-cookies - block-as-image = +block +handle-as-image + +block-as-image = +block{Blocked image.} +handle-as-image mercy-for-cookies = -crunch-all-cookies -session-cookies-only -filter{content-cookies} # These aliases define combinations of actions # that are useful for certain types of sites: # - fragile = -block -filter -crunch-all-cookies -fast-redirects -hide-referrer -kill-popups - shop = -crunch-all-cookies -filter{all-popups} -kill-popups + fragile = -block -filter -crunch-all-cookies -fast-redirects -hide-referrer + shop = -crunch-all-cookies -filter{all-popups} @@ -5065,8 +5871,7 @@ that also explains why and how aliases are used: Again, at the start of matching, all actions are disabled, so there is - no real need to disable any actions here, but we will do that nonetheless, - to have a complete listing for your reference. (Remember: a + + no need to disable any actions here. (Remember: a + preceding the action name enables the action, a - disables!). Also note how this long line has been made more readable by splitting it into multiple lines with line continuation. @@ -5078,43 +5883,15 @@ that also explains why and how aliases are used: # "Defaults" section: ########################################################################## { \ - -add-header \ - -block \ - -crunch-incoming-cookies \ - -crunch-outgoing-cookies \ + +change-x-forwarded-for{block} \ +deanimate-gifs \ - -downgrade-http-version \ - +fast-redirects \ - +filter{js-annoyances} \ - -filter{js-events} \ +filter{html-annoyances} \ - -filter{content-cookies} \ +filter{refresh-tags} \ - +filter{unsolicited-popups} \ - -filter{all-popups} \ - +filter{img-reorder} \ - +filter{banners-by-size} \ - -filter{banners-by-link} \ +filter{webbugs} \ - -filter{tiny-textforms} \ - +filter{jumping-windows} \ - -filter{frameset-borders} \ - -filter{demoronizer} \ - -filter{shockwave-flash} \ - -filter{quicktime-kioskmode} \ - -filter{fun} \ - -filter{crude-parental} \ +filter{ie-exploits} \ - -handle-as-image \ - +hide-forwarded-for-headers \ +hide-from-header{block} \ +hide-referrer{forge} \ - -hide-user-agent \ - -kill-popups \ - -limit-connect \ +prevent-compression \ - -send-vanilla-wafer \ - -send-wafer \ +session-cookies-only \ +set-image-blocker{pattern} \ } @@ -5122,12 +5899,18 @@ that also explains why and how aliases are used: - The default behavior is now set. Note that some actions, like not hiding + The default behavior is now set. + @@ -5149,7 +5932,8 @@ that also explains why and how aliases are used: # { fragile } .office.microsoft.com # surprise, surprise! -.windowsupdate.microsoft.com +.windowsupdate.microsoft.com +mail.google.com @@ -5177,8 +5961,7 @@ that also explains why and how aliases are used: now. Mozilla users, who can turn on smart handling of unwanted pop-ups in their browsers, can safely choose - -filter{popups} (and - -kill-popups) above + -filter{popups} above and hence don't need this section. Anyway, disabling an already disabled action doesn't hurt, so we'll define our exceptions regardless of what was chosen in the defaults section: @@ -5188,7 +5971,7 @@ that also explains why and how aliases are used: # These sites require pop-ups too :( # -{ -kill-popups -filter{popups} } +{ -filter{popups} } .dabs.com .overclockers.co.uk .deutsche-bank-24.de @@ -5244,7 +6027,7 @@ edit.*.yahoo.com generate the banners, so it won't be visible from the URL that the request is for an image. Hence we block them and mark them as images in one go, with the help of our - block-as-image alias defined above. (We could of + +block-as-image alias defined above. (We could of course just as well use +block +handle-as-image here.) Remember that the type of the replacement image is chosen by the @@ -5258,20 +6041,19 @@ edit.*.yahoo.com # Known ad generators: # -{ block-as-image } +{ +block-as-image } ar.atwola.com .ad.doubleclick.net .ad.*.doubleclick.net .a.yimg.com/(?:(?!/i/).)*$ .a[0-9].yimg.com/(?:(?!/i/).)*$ bs*.gsanet.com -bs*.einets.com .qkimg.net One of the most important jobs of Privoxy - is to block banners. A huge bunch of them are already blocked + is to block banners. Many of these can be blocked by the filter{banners-by-size} action, which we enabled above, and which deletes the references to banner images from the pages while they are loaded, so the browser doesn't request @@ -5281,7 +6063,7 @@ bs*.einets.com block action to them. - First comes a bunch of generic patterns, which do most of the work, by + First comes many generic patterns, which do most of the work, by matching typical domain and path name components of banners. Then comes a list of individual patterns for specific sites, which is omitted here to keep the example short: @@ -5292,7 +6074,7 @@ bs*.einets.com ########################################################################## # Block these fine banners: ########################################################################## -{ +block } +{ +block{Banner ads.} } # Generic patterns: # @@ -5309,7 +6091,7 @@ count*. - You wouldn't believe how many advertisers actually call their banner + It's quite remarkable how many advertisers actually call their banner servers ads.company.com, or call the directory in which the banners are stored simply banners. So the above generic patterns are surprisingly effective. @@ -5347,6 +6129,7 @@ count*. { -block } adv[io]*. # (for advogato.org and advice.*) adsl. # (has nothing to do with ads) +adobe. # (has nothing to do with ads either) ad[ud]*. # (adult.* and add.*) .edu # (universities don't host banners (yet!)) .*loads. # (downloads, uploads etc) @@ -5374,12 +6157,15 @@ www.ugu.com/sui/ugu/adv # Don't filter code! # { -filter } -/.*cvs +/(.*/)?cvs +bugzilla. +developer. +wiki. .sourceforge.net - The actual default.action is of course more + The actual default.action is of course much more comprehensive, but we hope this example made clear how it works. @@ -5412,7 +6198,7 @@ www.ugu.com/sui/ugu/adv -# My user.action file. <fred@foobar.com> +# My user.action file. <fred@example.com> @@ -5434,21 +6220,24 @@ www.ugu.com/sui/ugu/adv +crunch-all-cookies = +crunch-incoming-cookies +crunch-outgoing-cookies -crunch-all-cookies = -crunch-incoming-cookies -crunch-outgoing-cookies allow-all-cookies = -crunch-all-cookies -session-cookies-only - allow-popups = -filter{all-popups} -kill-popups -+block-as-image = +block +handle-as-image + allow-popups = -filter{all-popups} ++block-as-image = +block{Blocked as image.} +handle-as-image -block-as-image = -block # These aliases define combinations of actions that are useful for # certain types of sites: # -fragile = -block -crunch-all-cookies -filter -fast-redirects -hide-referrer -kill-popups +fragile = -block -crunch-all-cookies -filter -fast-redirects -hide-referrer shop = -crunch-all-cookies allow-popups # Allow ads for selected useful free sites: # -allow-ads = -block -filter{banners-by-size} -filter{banners-by-link} +allow-ads = -block -filter{banners-by-size} -filter{banners-by-link} + +# Alias for specific file types that are text, but might have conflicting +# MIME types. We want the browser to force these to be text documents. +handle-as-text = -filter +-content-type-overwrite{text/plain} +-force-text-mode -hide-content-disposition - @@ -5463,12 +6252,10 @@ allow-ads = -block -filter{banners-by-size} -filter{banners-by-link} { allow-all-cookies } -sourceforge.net -sunsolve.sun.com -.slashdot.org -.yahoo.com -.msdn.microsoft.com -.redhat.com + sourceforge.net + .yahoo.com + .msdn.microsoft.com + .redhat.com @@ -5478,7 +6265,7 @@ sunsolve.sun.com { -filter } -.your-home-banking-site.com + .your-home-banking-site.com @@ -5504,7 +6291,7 @@ stupid-server.example.com/ seen an ad on your favourite page on example.com that you want to get rid of. You have right-clicked the image, selected copy image location and pasted the URL below while removing the leading http://, into a - { +block } section. Note that { +handle-as-image + { +block{} } section. Note that { +handle-as-image } need not be specified, since all URLs ending in .gif will be tagged as images by the general rules as set in default.action anyway: @@ -5512,9 +6299,9 @@ stupid-server.example.com/ -{ +block } -www.example.com/nasty-ads/sponsor.gif -another.popular.site.net/more/junk/here/ +{ +block{Nasty ads.} } + www.example.com/nasty-ads/sponsor\.gif + another.example.net/more/junk/here/ @@ -5532,9 +6319,10 @@ another.popular.site.net/more/junk/here/ { +block-as-image } -.doubleclick.net -/Realmedia/ads/ -ar.atwola.com/ + .doubleclick.net + .fastclick.net + /Realmedia/ads/ + ar.atwola.com/ @@ -5545,26 +6333,29 @@ ar.atwola.com/ -- whoa! -- it worked. The fragile aliases disables those actions that are most likely to break a site. Also, good for testing purposes to see if it is Privoxy - that is causing the problem or not. + that is causing the problem or not. We later find other regular sites + that misbehave, and add those to our personalized list of troublemakers: { fragile } -.forbes.com + .forbes.com + webmail.example.com + .mybank.com You like the fun text replacements in default.filter, - but it is disabled in the distributed actions file. (My colleagues on the team just - don't have a sense of humour, that's why! ;-). So you'd like to turn it on in your private, + but it is disabled in the distributed actions file. + So you'd like to turn it on in your private, update-safe config, once and for all: { +filter{fun} } -/ # For ALL sites! + / # For ALL sites! @@ -5585,9 +6376,9 @@ ar.atwola.com/ { allow-ads } -.sourceforge.net -.slashdot.org -.osdn.net + .sourceforge.net + .slashdot.org + .osdn.net @@ -5597,6 +6388,19 @@ ar.atwola.com/ -filter{banners-by-link} above. + + Invoke another alias here to force an over-ride of the MIME type + application/x-sh which typically would open a download type + dialog. In my case, I want to look at the shell script, and then I can save + it should I choose to. + + + + +{ handle-as-text } + /.*\.sh$ + + user.action is generally the best place to define exceptions and additions to the default policies of @@ -5625,41 +6429,75 @@ ar.atwola.com/ -The Filter File +Filter Files + + + On-the-fly text substitutions need + to be defined in a filter file. Once defined, they + can then be invoked as an action. + - All text substitutions that can be invoked through the - filter action - must first be defined in the filter file, which is typically - called default.filter and which can be - selected through the - filterfile config - option. + &my-app; supports three different filter actions: + filter to + rewrite the content that is send to the client, + client-header-filter + to rewrite headers that are send by the client, and + server-header-filter + to rewrite headers that are send by the server. - Typical reasons for doing such substitutions are to eliminate - common annoyances in HTML and JavaScript, such as pop-up windows, + &my-app; also supports two tagger actions: + client-header-tagger + and + server-header-tagger. + Taggers and filters use the same syntax in the filter files, the difference + is that taggers don't modify the text they are filtering, but use a rewritten + version of the filtered text as tag. The tags can then be used to change the + applying actions through sections with tag-patterns. + + + + + Multiple filter files can be defined through the filterfile config directive. The filters + as supplied by the developers are located in + default.filter. It is recommended that any locally + defined or modified filters go in a separately defined file such as + user.filter. + + + + Common tasks for content filters are to eliminate common annoyances in + HTML and JavaScript, such as pop-up windows, exit consoles, crippled windows without navigation tools, the infamous <BLINK> tag etc, to suppress images with certain width and height attributes (standard banner sizes or web-bugs), - or just to have fun. The possibilities are endless. + or just to have fun. + + + + Enabled content filters are applied to any content whose + Content Type header is recognised as a sign + of text-based content, with the exception of text/plain. + Use the force-text-mode action + to also filter other content. - Filtering works on any text-based document type, including - HTML, JavaScript, CSS etc. (all text/* - MIME types, except text/plain). Substitutions are made at the source level, so if you want to roll - your own filters, you should be familiar with HTML syntax. + your own filters, you should first be familiar with HTML syntax, + and, of course, regular expressions. Just like the actions files, the filter file is organized in sections, which are called filters - here. Each filter consists of a heading line, that starts with the - keyword FILTER:, followed by - the filter's name, and a short (one line) + here. Each filter consists of a heading line, that starts with one of the + keywords FILTER:, + CLIENT-HEADER-FILTER: or SERVER-HEADER-FILTER: + followed by the filter's name, and a short (one line) description of what it does. Below that line come the jobs, i.e. lines that define the actual text substitutions. By convention, the name of a filter @@ -5676,7 +6514,9 @@ ar.atwola.com/ - A filter header line for a filter called foo could look + Filter definitions start with a header line that contains the filter + type, the filter name and the filter description. + A content filter header line for a filter called foo could look like this: @@ -5690,20 +6530,21 @@ ar.atwola.com/ in a syntax that imitates Perl's s/// operator. If you are familiar with Perl, you will find this to be quite intuitive, and may want to look at the - PCRS man page - for the subtle differences to Perl behaviour. Most notably, the non-standard - option letter U is supported, which turns the default - to ungreedy matching. + PCRS documentation for the subtle differences to Perl behaviour. Most + notably, the non-standard option letter U is supported, + which turns the default to ungreedy matching. - If you are new to regular expressions, you might want to take a look at + If you are new to + Regular + Expressions, you might want to take a look at the Appendix on regular expressions, and - see the Perl + see the Perl manual for - the + the s/// operator's syntax and Perl-style regular + url="http://perldoc.perl.org/perlre.html">Perl-style regular expressions in general. The below examples might also help to get you started. @@ -5713,7 +6554,7 @@ ar.atwola.com/ Filter File Tutorial - Now, let's complete our foo filter. We have already defined + Now, let's complete our foo content filter. We have already defined the heading, but the jobs are still missing. Since all it does is to replace foo with bar, there is only one (trivial) job needed: @@ -5852,9 +6693,9 @@ s/window\.status\s*=\s*(['"]).*?\1/dUmMy=1/ig makes this matching of arbitrary text ungreedy. (Note that the U option is not set). The ['"] construct means: a single or a double quote. Finally, \1 is - a backreference to the first parenthesis just like $1 above, + a back-reference to the first parenthesis just like $1 above, with the difference that in the pattern, a backslash indicates - a backreference, whereas in the substitute, it's the dollar. + a back-reference, whereas in the substitute, it's the dollar. @@ -5979,11 +6820,15 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: removes code that causes new windows to be opened with undesired properties, such as being - full-screen, non-resizable, without location, status or menu bar etc. + full-screen, non-resizeable, without location, status or menu bar etc. + + Use with caution. This is an aggressive filter, and can break sites that + rely heavily on JavaScript. + @@ -5993,7 +6838,7 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: This is a very radical measure. It removes virtually all JavaScript event bindings, which means that scripts can not react to user actions such as mouse movements or clicks, window - resizing etc, anymore. + resizing etc, anymore. Use with caution! We strongly discourage using this filter as a default since it breaks @@ -6012,7 +6857,7 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: The BLINK and MARQUEE tags are neutralized (yeah baby!), and browser windows will be created as - resizable (as of course they should be!), and will have location, + resizeable (as of course they should be!), and will have location, scroll and menu bars -- even if specified otherwise. @@ -6022,7 +6867,7 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: content-cookies - Most cookies are set in the HTTP dialogue, where they can be intercepted + Most cookies are set in the HTTP dialog, where they can be intercepted by the crunch-incoming-cookies and crunch-outgoing-cookies @@ -6030,8 +6875,10 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: to sneak cookies to the browser on the content level. - This filter disables HTML and JavaScript code that reads or sets cookies. Use - it wherever you would also use the cookie crunch actions. + This filter disables most HTML and JavaScript code that reads or sets + cookies. It cannot detect all clever uses of these types of code, so it + should not be relied on as an absolute fix. Use it wherever you would also + use the cookie crunch actions. @@ -6059,8 +6906,14 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: Technical note: The filter works by redefining the window.open JavaScript - function to a dummy function during the loading and rendering phase of each - HTML page access, and restoring the function afterwards. + function to a dummy function, PrivoxyWindowOpen(), + during the loading and rendering phase of each HTML page access, and + restoring the function afterward. + + + This is recommended only for browsers that cannot perform this function + reliably themselves. And be aware that some sites require such windows + in order to function normally. Use with caution. @@ -6070,9 +6923,9 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: Attempt to prevent all pop-up windows from opening. - Note this should be used with more discretion than the above, since it is - more likely to break some sites that require pop-ups for normal usage. Use - with caution. + Note this should be used with even more discretion than the above, since + it is more likely to break some sites that require pop-ups for normal + usage. Use with caution. @@ -6100,6 +6953,10 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: Occasionally this filter will cause false positives on images that are not ads, but just happen to be of one of the standard banner sizes. + + Recommended only for those who require extreme ad blocking. The default + block rules should catch 95+% of all ads without this filter enabled. + @@ -6123,7 +6980,7 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: As an HTML page is loaded by the browser, an embedded image tag causes the browser to contact a third-party site, disclosing the tracking information through the requested URL and/or cookies for that third-party domain, without - the use ever becoming aware of the interaction with the third-party site. + the user ever becoming aware of the interaction with the third-party site. HTML-ized spam also uses a similar technique to verify email addresses. @@ -6153,7 +7010,7 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: Many consider windows that move, or resize themselves to be abusive. This filter neutralizes the related JavaScript code. Note that some sites might not display - or behave as intended when using this filter. + or behave as intended when using this filter. Use with caution. @@ -6180,15 +7037,21 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: Many Microsoft products that generate HTML use non-standard extensions (read: - violations) of the ISO 8859-1 aka Latin-1 character set. This causes those + violations) of the ISO 8859-1 aka Latin-1 character set. This can cause those HTML documents to display with errors on standard-compliant platforms. This filter translates the MS-only characters into Latin-1 equivalents. It is not necessary when using MS products, and will cause corruption of all documents that use 8-bit character sets other than Latin-1. It's mostly - worthwhile for Europeans on non-MS platforms, if wierd garbage characters - sometimes appear on some pages. + worthwhile for Europeans on non-MS platforms, if weird garbage characters + sometimes appear on some pages, or user agents that don't correct for this on + the fly. + @@ -6239,7 +7102,7 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: ie-exploits - A collection of text replacements to disable malicious HTML and JavaScript + An experimental collection of text replacements to disable malicious HTML and JavaScript code that exploits known security holes in Internet Explorer. @@ -6265,6 +7128,113 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: + + google + + + A CSS based block for Google text ads. Also removes a width limitation + and the toolbar advertisement. + + + + + + yahoo + + + Another CSS based block, this time for Yahoo text ads. And removes + a width limitation as well. + + + + + + msn + + + Another CSS based block, this time for MSN text ads. And removes + tracking URLs, as well as a width limitation. + + + + + + blogspot + + + Cleans up some Blogspot blogs. Read the fine print before using this one! + + + This filter also intentionally removes some navigation stuff and sets the + page width to 100%. As a result, some rounded corners would + appear to early or not at all and as fixing this would require a browser + that understands background-size (CSS3), they are removed instead. + + + + + + xml-to-html + + + Server-header filter to change the Content-Type from xml to html. + + + + + + html-to-xml + + + Server-header filter to change the Content-Type from html to xml. + + + + + + no-ping + + + Removes the non-standard ping attribute from + anchor and area HTML tags. + + + + + + hide-tor-exit-notation + + + Client-header filter to remove the Tor exit node notation + found in Host and Referer headers. + + + If &my-app; and Tor are chained and &my-app; + is configured to use socks4a, one can use http://www.example.org.foobar.exit/ + to access the host www.example.org through the + Tor exit node foobar. + + + As the HTTP client isn't aware of this notation, it treats the + whole string www.example.org.foobar.exit as host and uses it + for the Host and Referer headers. From the + server's point of view the resulting headers are invalid and can cause problems. + + + An invalid Referer header can trigger hot-linking + protections, an invalid Host header will make it impossible for + the server to find the right vhost (several domains hosted on the same IP address). + + + This client-header filter removes the foo.exit part in those headers + to prevent the mentioned problems. Note that it only modifies + the HTTP headers, it doesn't make it impossible for the server + to detect your Tor exit node based on the IP address + the request is coming from. + + + + -Templates +Privoxy's Template Files All Privoxy built-in pages, i.e. error pages such as the 404 - No Such Domain @@ -6310,11 +7280,17 @@ pre-defined filters for your convenience: The templates are basically normal HTML files, but with place-holders (called symbols - or exports), which Privoxy fills at run time. You can - edit the templates with a normal text editor, should you want to customize them. - (Not recommended for the casual user). Note that - just like in configuration files, lines starting with # are - ignored when the templates are filled in. + or exports), which Privoxy fills at run time. It + is possible to edit the templates with a normal text editor, should you want + to customize them. (Not recommended for the casual + user). Should you create your own custom templates, you should use + the config setting templdir + to specify an alternate location, so your templates do not get overwritten + during upgrades. + + + Note that just like in configuration files, lines starting + with # are ignored when the templates are filled in. @@ -6387,7 +7363,7 @@ Requests -<application>Privoxy</application> Copyright, License and History +Privoxy Copyright, License and History ©right; @@ -6442,7 +7418,11 @@ Requests expressions in its actions files and filter file, through the PCRE and + + PCRS libraries. @@ -6522,7 +7502,7 @@ Requests - [] - Characters enclosed in brackets will be matched if + [ ] - Characters enclosed in brackets will be matched if any of the enclosed characters are encountered. For instance, [0-9] matches any numeric digit (zero through nine). As an example, we can combine this with + to match any digit one of more times: [0-9]+. @@ -6531,7 +7511,7 @@ Requests - () - parentheses are used to group a sub-expression, + ( ) - parentheses are used to group a sub-expression, or multiple sub-expressions. @@ -6573,7 +7553,7 @@ Requests - A now something a little more complex: + And now something a little more complex: @@ -6611,7 +7591,7 @@ Requests /.*/advert[0-9]+\.(gif|jpe?g) - Again another path statement with forward slashes. Anything in the square brackets - [] can be matched. This is using 0-9 as a + [ ] can be matched. This is using 0-9 as a shorthand expression to mean any digit one through nine. It is the same as saying 0123456789. So any digit matches. The + means one or more of the preceding expression must be included. The preceding @@ -6647,7 +7627,7 @@ Requests More reading on Perl Compatible Regular expressions: - http://www.perldoc.com/perl5.6/pod/perlre.html + http://perldoc.perl.org/perlre.html @@ -6662,7 +7642,7 @@ Requests -<application>Privoxy</application>'s Internal Pages +Privoxy's Internal Pages Since Privoxy proxies each requested @@ -6750,8 +7730,10 @@ Requests - Toggle Privoxy on or off. In this case, Privoxy continues - to run, but only as a pass-through proxy, with no actions taking place: + Toggle Privoxy on or off. This feature can be turned off/on in the main + config file. When toggled off, Privoxy + continues to run, but only as a pass-through proxy, with no actions taking + place:
@@ -6830,12 +7812,13 @@ Requests url="javascript:void(window.open('http://config.privoxy.org/toggle?mini=y','ijbstatus','width=250,height=2,resizable=yes,scrollbars=no,toolbar=no,location=no,directories=no,status=no,menubar=no,copyhistory=no').focus());">Privoxy- View Status - + Privoxy - Why? @@ -6860,8 +7843,9 @@ Requests Chain of Events - Let's take a quick look at the basic sequence of events when a web page is - requested by your browser and Privoxy is on duty: + Let's take a quick look at how some of Privoxy's + core features are triggered, and the ensuing sequence of events when a web + page is requested by your browser: @@ -6877,7 +7861,7 @@ Requests Privoxy traps any request for its own internal CGI - pages (e.g http://p.p/) and sends the CGI page back to the browser. + pages (e.g http://p.p/) and sends the CGI page back to the browser. @@ -6887,10 +7871,13 @@ Requests linkend="BLOCK">+block patterns. If so, the URL is then blocked, and the remote web server will not be contacted. +handle-as-image - is then checked and if it does not match, an - HTML BLOCKED page is sent back. Otherwise, if it does match, - an image is returned. The type of image depends on the setting of +set-image-blocker + and + +handle-as-empty-document + are then checked, and if there is no match, an + HTML BLOCKED page is sent back to the browser. Otherwise, if + it does match, an image is returned for the former, and an empty text + document for the latter. The type of image would depend on the setting of + +set-image-blocker (blank, checkerboard pattern, or an HTTP redirect to an image elsewhere). @@ -6918,8 +7905,8 @@ Requests - Now the web server starts sending its response back (i.e. typically a web page and related - data). + Now the web server starts sending its response back (i.e. typically a web + page). @@ -6935,27 +7922,20 @@ Requests - If the +kill-popups - action applies, and it is an HTML or JavaScript document, the popup-code in the - response is filtered on-the-fly as it is received. - - - - - If a +filter + If any +filter action or +deanimate-gifs action applies (and the document type fits the action), the rest of the page is read into memory (up to a configurable limit). Then the filter rules (from - default.filter) are processed against the buffered - content. Filters are applied in the order they are specified in the - default.filter file. Animated GIFs, if present, are - reduced to either the first or last frame, depending on the action + default.filter and any other filter files) are + processed against the buffered content. Filters are applied in the order + they are specified in one of the filter files. Animated GIFs, if present, + are reduced to either the first or last frame, depending on the action setting.The entire page, which is now filtered, is then sent by Privoxy back to your browser. - If neither +filter + If neither a +filter action or +deanimate-gifs matches, then Privoxy passes the raw data through @@ -6964,24 +7944,32 @@ Requests - As the browser receives the now (probably filtered) page content, it + As the browser receives the now (possibly filtered) page content, it reads and then requests any URLs that may be embedded within the page source, e.g. ad images, stylesheets, JavaScript, other HTML documents (e.g. - frames), sounds, etc. For each of these objects, the browser issues a new - request. And each such request is in turn processed as above. Note that a - complex web page may have many such embedded URLs. + frames), sounds, etc. For each of these objects, the browser issues a + separate request (this is easily viewable in Privoxy's + logs). And each such request is in turn processed just as above. Note that a + complex web page will have many, many such embedded URLs. If these + secondary requests are to a different server, then quite possibly a very + differing set of actions is triggered. + + NOTE: This is somewhat of a simplistic overview of what happens with each URL + request. For the sake of brevity and simplicity, we have focused on + Privoxy's core features only. + -Anatomy of an Action +Troubleshooting: Anatomy of an Action The way Privoxy applies @@ -7001,7 +7989,16 @@ Requests or not, is to disable it temporarily. This should be the first troubleshooting step. See the Bookmarklets section on a quick and easy way to do this (be sure to flush caches afterward!). Looking at the - logs is a good idea too. + logs is a good idea too. (Note that both the toggle feature and logging are + enabled via config file settings, and may need to be + turned on.) + + + Another easy troubleshooting step to try is if you have done any + customization of your installation, revert back to the installed + defaults and see if that helps. There are times the developers get complaints + about one thing or another, and the problem is more related to a customized + configuration issue. @@ -7017,7 +8014,7 @@ Requests how the current configuration will handle it. This will not help with filtering effects (i.e. the +filter action) from - the default.filter file since this is handled very + one of the filter files since this is handled very differently and not so easy to trap! It also will not tell you about any other URLs that may be embedded within the URL you are testing. For instance, images such as ads are expressed as URLs within the raw page source of HTML pages. So @@ -7030,47 +8027,31 @@ Requests Let's try an example, google.com, - and look at it one section at a time: + and look at it one section at a time in a sample configuration (your real + configuration may vary): - Matches for http://google.com: + Matches for http://www.google.com: In file: default.action [ View ] [ Edit ] -{-add-header - -block - -crunch-outgoing-cookies - -crunch-incoming-cookies - +deanimate-gifs{last} - -downgrade-http-version - +fast-redirects - -filter{popups} - -filter{fun} - -filter{shockwave-flash} - -filter{crude-parental} - +filter{html-annoyances} - +filter{js-annoyances} - +filter{content-cookies} - +filter{webbugs} - +filter{refresh-tags} - +filter{nimda} - +filter{banners-by-size} - +hide-forwarded-for-headers - +hide-from-header{block} - +hide-referer{forge} - -hide-user-agent - -handle-as-image - -kill-popups - -limit-connect - +prevent-compression - -send-vanilla-wafer - -send-wafer - +session-cookies-only - +set-image-blocker{pattern} } + {+change-x-forwarded-for{block} + +deanimate-gifs {last} + +fast-redirects {check-decoded-url} + +filter {refresh-tags} + +filter {img-reorder} + +filter {banners-by-size} + +filter {webbugs} + +filter {jumping-windows} + +filter {ie-exploits} + +hide-from-header {block} + +hide-referrer {forge} + +session-cookies-only + +set-image-blocker {pattern} / - + { -session-cookies-only } .google.com @@ -7083,41 +8064,53 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ] - This tells us how we have defined our + This is telling us how we have defined our actions, and - which ones match for our example, google.com. The first listing - is any matches for the standard.action file. No hits at - all here on standard. Then next is default, or - our default.action file. The large, multi-line listing, - is how the actions are set to match for all URLs, i.e. our default settings. - If you look at your actions file, this would be the section - just below the aliases section near the top. This will apply to - all URLs as signified by the single forward slash at the end of the listing - -- /. - - - - But we can define additional actions that would be exceptions to these general - rules, and then list specific URLs (or patterns) that these exceptions would - apply to. Last match wins. Just below this then are two explicit matches for - .google.com. The first is negating our previous cookie setting, - which was for google.com. + Displayed is all the actions that are available to us. Remember, + the + sign denotes on. - + denotes off. So some are on here, but many + are off. Each example we try may provide a slightly different + end result, depending on our configuration directives. + + + The first listing + is for our default.action file. The large, multi-line + listing, is how the actions are set to match for all URLs, i.e. our default + settings. If you look at your actions file, this would be the + section just below the aliases section near the top. This + will apply to all URLs as signified by the single forward slash at the end + of the listing -- / . + + + + But we have defined additional actions that would be exceptions to these general + rules, and then we list specific URLs (or patterns) that these exceptions + would apply to. Last match wins. Just below this then are two explicit + matches for .google.com. The first is negating our previous + cookie setting, which was for +session-cookies-only - (i.e. not persistent). So we will allow persistent cookies for google. The - second turns off any - off any +fast-redirects action, allowing this to take place unmolested. Note that there is a leading dot here -- .google.com. This will match any hosts and sub-domains, in the google.com domain also, such as - www.google.com. So, apparently, we have these two actions - defined somewhere in the lower part of our default.action - file, and google.com is referenced somewhere in these latter - sections. + www.google.com or mail.google.com. But it would not + match www.google.de! So, apparently, we have these two actions + defined as exceptions to the general rules at the top somewhere in the lower + part of our default.action file, and + google.com is referenced somewhere in these latter sections. Then, for our user.action file, we again have no hits. + So there is nothing google-specific that we might have added to our own, local + configuration. If there was, those actions would over-rule any actions from + previously processed files, such as default.action. + user.action typically has the last word. This is the + best place to put hard and fast exceptions, @@ -7132,42 +8125,69 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ] + -add-header + -block + +change-x-forwarded-for{block} + -client-header-filter{hide-tor-exit-notation} + -content-type-overwrite + -crunch-client-header + -crunch-if-none-match + -crunch-incoming-cookies + -crunch-outgoing-cookies + -crunch-server-header + +deanimate-gifs {last} + -downgrade-http-version + -fast-redirects + -filter {js-events} + -filter {content-cookies} + -filter {all-popups} + -filter {banners-by-link} + -filter {tiny-textforms} + -filter {frameset-borders} + -filter {demoronizer} + -filter {shockwave-flash} + -filter {quicktime-kioskmode} + -filter {fun} + -filter {crude-parental} + -filter {site-specifics} + -filter {js-annoyances} + -filter {html-annoyances} + +filter {refresh-tags} + -filter {unsolicited-popups} + +filter {img-reorder} + +filter {banners-by-size} + +filter {webbugs} + +filter {jumping-windows} + +filter {ie-exploits} + -filter {google} + -filter {yahoo} + -filter {msn} + -filter {blogspot} + -filter {no-ping} + -force-text-mode + -handle-as-empty-document + -handle-as-image + -hide-accept-language + -hide-content-disposition + +hide-from-header {block} + -hide-if-modified-since + +hide-referrer {forge} + -hide-user-agent + -limit-connect + -overwrite-last-modified + -prevent-compression + -redirect + -server-header-filter{xml-to-html} + -server-header-filter{html-to-xml} + -session-cookies-only + +set-image-blocker {pattern} Notice the only difference here to the previous listing, is to - fast-redirects and session-cookies-only. + fast-redirects and session-cookies-only, + which are activated specifically for this site in our configuration, + and thus show in the Final Results. @@ -7177,22 +8197,23 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ] - { +block +handle-as-image } - .ad.doubleclick.net - - { +block +handle-as-image } + { +block{Domains starts with "ad"} } ad*. - { +block +handle-as-image } - .doubleclick.net + { +block{Domain contains "ad"} } + .ad. + + { +block{Doubleclick banner server} +handle-as-image } + .[a-vx-z]*.doubleclick.net - We'll just show the interesting part here, the explicit matches. It is - matched three different times. Each as an +block +handle-as-image, + We'll just show the interesting part here - the explicit matches. It is + matched three different times. Two +block{} sections, + and a +block{} +handle-as-image, which is the expanded form of one of our aliases that had been defined as: - +imageblock. (+block-as-image. (Aliases are defined in the first section of the actions file and typically used to combine more than one action.) @@ -7205,65 +8226,98 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ]ad.doubleclick.net is done here -- as both a +block + linkend="BLOCK">+block{} and an - +handle-as-image. - The custom alias +imageblock just simplifies the process and make - it more readable. + +handle-as-image. + The custom alias +block-as-image just + simplifies the process and make it more readable. - One last example. Let's try http://www.rhapsodyk.net/adsl/HOWTO/. + One last example. Let's try http://www.example.net/adsl/HOWTO/. This one is giving us problems. We are getting a blank page. Hmmm ... - Matches for http://www.rhapsodyk.net/adsl/HOWTO/: + Matches for http://www.example.net/adsl/HOWTO/: In file: default.action [ View ] [ Edit ] {-add-header - -block - -crunch-incoming-cookies - -crunch-outgoing-cookies + -block + +change-x-forwarded-for{block} + -client-header-filter{hide-tor-exit-notation} + -content-type-overwrite + -crunch-client-header + -crunch-if-none-match + -crunch-incoming-cookies + -crunch-outgoing-cookies + -crunch-server-header +deanimate-gifs -downgrade-http-version - +fast-redirects - +filter{html-annoyances} - +filter{js-annoyances} - +filter{kill-popups} - +filter{webbugs} - +filter{nimda} - +filter{banners-by-size} - +filter{hal} - +filter{fun} - +hide-forwarded-for-headers + +fast-redirects {check-decoded-url} + -filter {js-events} + -filter {content-cookies} + -filter {all-popups} + -filter {banners-by-link} + -filter {tiny-textforms} + -filter {frameset-borders} + -filter {demoronizer} + -filter {shockwave-flash} + -filter {quicktime-kioskmode} + -filter {fun} + -filter {crude-parental} + -filter {site-specifics} + -filter {js-annoyances} + -filter {html-annoyances} + +filter {refresh-tags} + -filter {unsolicited-popups} + +filter {img-reorder} + +filter {banners-by-size} + +filter {webbugs} + +filter {jumping-windows} + +filter {ie-exploits} + -filter {google} + -filter {yahoo} + -filter {msn} + -filter {blogspot} + -filter {no-ping} + -force-text-mode + -handle-as-empty-document + -handle-as-image + -hide-accept-language + -hide-content-disposition +hide-from-header{block} +hide-referer{forge} -hide-user-agent - -handle-as-image - +kill-popups + -overwrite-last-modified +prevent-compression - -send-vanilla-wafer - -send-wafer + -redirect + -server-header-filter{xml-to-html} + -server-header-filter{html-to-xml} +session-cookies-only +set-image-blocker{blank} } / - { +block +handle-as-image } + { +block{Path contains "ads".} +handle-as-image } /ads - Ooops, the /adsl/ is matching /ads! But - we did not want this at all! Now we see why we get the blank page. We could - now add a new action below this that explicitly does not - block ({-block}) paths with adsl. There are - various ways to handle such exceptions. Example: + Ooops, the /adsl/ is matching /ads in our + configuration! But we did not want this at all! Now we see why we get the + blank page. It is actually triggering two different actions here, and + the effects are aggregated so that the URL is blocked, and &my-app; is told + to treat the block as if it were an image. But this is, of course, all wrong. + We could now add a new action below this (or better in our own + user.action file) that explicitly + un blocks ( + {-block}) paths with + adsl in them (remember, last match in the configuration + wins). There are various ways to handle such exceptions. Example: @@ -7275,8 +8329,10 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ] - Now the page displays ;-) Be sure to flush your browser's caches when - making such changes. Or, try using Shift+Reload. + Now the page displays ;-) + Remember to flush your browser's caches when making these kinds of changes to + your configuration to insure that you get a freshly delivered page! Or, try + using Shift+Reload. @@ -7287,25 +8343,27 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ] - { +block +handle-as-image } + { +block{Path starts with "ads".} +handle-as-image } /ads - That actually was very telling and pointed us quickly to where the problem + That actually was very helpful and pointed us quickly to where the problem was. If you don't get this kind of match, then it means one of the default - rules in the first section is causing the problem. This would require some - guesswork, and maybe a little trial and error to isolate the offending rule. - One likely cause would be one of the {+filter} actions. These - tend to be harder to troubleshoot. Try adding the URL for the site to one of - aliases that turn off +filter: + rules in the first section of default.action is causing + the problem. This would require some guesswork, and maybe a little trial and + error to isolate the offending rule. One likely cause would be one of the + +filter actions. + These tend to be harder to troubleshoot. + Try adding the URL for the site to one of aliases that turn off + +filter: - {shop} + { shop } .quietpc.com .worldpay.com # for quietpc.com .jungle.com @@ -7315,8 +8373,8 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ] - {shop} is an alias that expands to - { -filter -session-cookies-only }. + { shop } is an alias that expands to + { -filter -session-cookies-only }. Or you could do your own exception to negate filtering: @@ -7324,29 +8382,55 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ] - {-filter} + { -filter } + # Disable ALL filter actions for sites in this section .forbes.com + developer.ibm.com + localhost - This would turn off all filtering for that site. This would probably be most - appropriately put in user.action, for local site - exceptions. + This would turn off all filtering for these sites. This is best + put in user.action, for local site + exceptions. Note that when a simple domain pattern is used by itself (without + the subsequent path portion), all sub-pages within that domain are included + automatically in the scope of the action. Images that are inexplicably being blocked, may well be hitting the - +filter{banners-by-size} rule, which assumes - that images of certain sizes are ad banners (works well most of the time - since these tend to be standardized). ++filter{banners-by-size} + rule, which assumes + that images of certain sizes are ad banners (works well + most of the time since these tend to be standardized). + + + + { fragile } is an alias that disables most + actions that are the most likely to cause trouble. This can be used as a + last resort for problem sites. + + + + + { fragile } + # Handle with care: easy to break + mail.google. + mybank.example.com + - {fragile} is an alias that disables most actions. This can be - used as a last resort for problem sites. Remember to flush caches! If this - still does not work, you will have to go through the remaining actions one by - one to find which one(s) is causing the problem. + Remember to flush caches! Note that the + mail.google reference lacks the TLD portion (e.g. + .com). This will effectively match any TLD with + google in it, such as mail.google.de., + just as an example. + + + If this still does not work, you will have to go through the remaining + actions one by one to find which one(s) is causing the problem. @@ -7370,10 +8454,295 @@ In file: user.action [ View ] [ Edit ][ View ] [ Edit ][ View ] [ Edit ][ View ] [ Edit ][ View ] [ Edit ]