By: Privoxy Developers
-$Id: faq.sgml,v 1.34 2002/03/29 04:35:56 hal9 Exp $
+$Id: faq.sgml,v 1.51 2002/04/26 17:24:31 swa Exp $
This FAQ gives users and developers alike answers to frequently asked questions
-about Privoxy.
+about Privoxy .
Privoxy is a web proxy with advanced filtering capabilities for protecting
privacy, filtering web page content, managing cookies, controlling access, and
tastes. Privoxy has application for both stand-alone systems and multi-user
networks.
-Privoxy is based on the code of the Internet Junkbuster. Junkbuster was
-originally written by JunkBusters Corporation, and was released as free
-open-source software under the GNU GPL. Stefan Waldherr made many improvements,
-and started the SourceForge project to continue development.
+Privoxy is based on Internet Junkbuster (tm).
You can find the latest version of the document at http://www.privoxy.org/faq/.
-Please see the Contact section in the user-manual if you want to contact the
-developers.
+Please see the Contact section if you want to contact the developers.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table of Contents
-1. Frequently Asked Questions
+
+1. General Information
- 1.1. General Information
+ 1.1. What is this new version of Privoxy?
+ 1.2. Why "Privoxy"? Why a name change at all?
+ 1.3. How does Privoxy differ from the old Junkbuster?
+ 1.4. What are some of the new features?
+ 1.5. What is a "proxy"? How does Privoxy work?
+ 1.6. How does Privoxy know what is an ad, and what is not?
+ 1.7. Can Privoxy make mistakes? This does not sound very scientific.
+ 1.8. My browser does the same things as Privoxy. Why should I use Privoxy
+ at all?
+ 1.9. Is there is a license or fee? What about a warranty? Registration?
+ 1.10. I would like to help you, what do I do?
- 1.1.1. What is this new version of Privoxy?
- 1.1.2. Why "Privoxy"? Why a name change at all?
- 1.1.3. How does Privoxy differ from the old Junkbuster?
- 1.1.4. What are some of the new features?
- 1.1.5. What is a "proxy"? How does Privoxy work?
- 1.1.6. How does Privoxy know what is an ad, and what is not?
- 1.1.7. Can Privoxy make mistakes? This does not sound very scientific.
- 1.1.8. My browser does the same things as Privoxy. Why should I use
- Privoxy at all?
- 1.1.9. Is there is a license or fee? What about a warranty?
- Registration?
- 1.1.10. I would like to help you, what do I do?
+ 1.10.1. Money Money Money
+ 1.10.2. You want to work with us?
- 1.2. Installation
-
- 1.2.1. Which browsers are supported by Privoxy?
- 1.2.2. Which operating systems are supported?
- 1.2.3. Can I install Privoxy over Junkbuster?
- 1.2.4. I just installed Privoxy. Is there anything special I have to do
- now?
- 1.2.5. What is the proxy address of Privoxy?
- 1.2.6. I just installed Privoxy, and nothing is happening. All the ads
- are there. What's wrong?
-
- 1.3. Configuration
-
- 1.3.1. Can I use my old config files?
- 1.3.2. What is an "actions" file?
- 1.3.3. The "actions"concept confuses me. Please list some of these
- "actions".
- 1.3.4. How are actions files configured? What is the easiest way to do
- this?
- 1.3.5. What are the differences between intermediate.action,
- basic.action, etc.?
- 1.3.6. Why can I change the configuration with a browser? Does that not
- raise security issues?
- 1.3.7. What is "default.filter"?
- 1.3.8. How can I set up Privoxy to act as a proxy for my LAN?
- 1.3.9. Instead of ads, now I get a checkerboard pattern. I don't want
- to see anything.
- 1.3.10. Why would anybody want to see a checkerboard pattern?
- 1.3.11. I see large red banners on some pages that say "Blocked". Why
- and how do I get rid of this?
- 1.3.12. I cannot see all of the "Blocked" page banner. All I see is a
- bright red square.
- 1.3.13. How can I make Privoxy work with other proxies like Squid?
-
- 1.4. Miscellaneous
-
- 1.4.1. How much does Privoxy slow my browsing down? This has to add
- extra time to browsing.
- 1.4.2. I noticed considerable delays in page requests compared to the
- old Junkbuster. What's wrong?
- 1.4.3. What is the "http://p.p/"?
- 1.4.4. Do you still maintain the blocklists?
- 1.4.5. How can I submit new ads?
- 1.4.6. How can I hide my IP address?
- 1.4.7. Can Privoxy guarantee I am anonymous?
- 1.4.8. Might some things break because header information is being
- altered?
- 1.4.9. Can Privoxy act as a "caching" proxy to speed up web browsing?
- 1.4.10. What about as a firewall? Can Privoxy protect me?
- 1.4.11. The Privoxy logo that replaces ads is very blocky and ugly
- looking. Can't a better font be used?
- 1.4.12. I have large empty spaces now where ads used to be. Why?
- 1.4.13. How can Privoxy filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?
- 1.4.14. Privoxy runs as a "server". How secure is it? Do I need to take
- any special precautions?
- 1.4.15. How can I temporarily disable Privoxy?
-
- 1.5. Troubleshooting
-
- 1.5.1. I just upgraded and am getting "connection refused" with every
- web page?
- 1.5.2. I just added a new rule, but the steenkin ad is still getting
- through. How?
- 1.5.3. One of my favorite sites does not work with Privoxy. What can I
- do?
- 1.5.4. Where can I get help? Report bugs? Feature Requests? Etc?
- 1.5.5. What time is it?
-
-2. Copyright and History
-3. See also
-
-1. Frequently Asked Questions
+2. Installation
+
+ 2.1. Which browsers are supported by Privoxy?
+ 2.2. Which operating systems are supported?
+ 2.3. Can I install Privoxy over Junkbuster?
+ 2.4. I just installed Privoxy. Is there anything special I have to do now?
+ 2.5. What is the proxy address of Privoxy?
+ 2.6. I just installed Privoxy, and nothing is happening. All the ads are
+ there. What's wrong?
+
+3. Configuration
+
+ 3.1. Can I use my old config files?
+ 3.2. What is an "actions" file?
+ 3.3. The "actions" concept confuses me. Please list some of these
+ "actions".
+ 3.4. How are actions files configured? What is the easiest way to do this?
+ 3.5. There are several different "actions" files. What are the differences?
+ 3.6. Why can I change the configuration with a browser? Does that not raise
+ security issues?
+ 3.7. What is "default.filter"?
+ 3.8. How can I set up Privoxy to act as a proxy for my LAN?
+ 3.9. Instead of ads, now I get a checkerboard pattern. I don't want to see
+ anything.
+ 3.10. Why would anybody want to see a checkerboard pattern?
+ 3.11. I see large red banners on some pages that say "Blocked". Why and how
+ do I get rid of this?
+ 3.12. I cannot see all of the "Blocked" page banner. Help.
+ 3.13. Can Privoxy run as a service on Win2K/NT?
+ 3.14. How can I make Privoxy work with other proxies like Squid?
+
+4. Miscellaneous
+
+ 4.1. How much does Privoxy slow my browsing down? This has to add extra
+ time to browsing.
+ 4.2. I noticed considerable delays in page requests compared to the old
+ Junkbuster. What's wrong?
+ 4.3. What is the "http://p.p/"?
+ 4.4. Do you still maintain the blocklists?
+ 4.5. How can I submit new ads?
+ 4.6. How can I hide my IP address?
+ 4.7. Can Privoxy guarantee I am anonymous?
+ 4.8. Might some things break because header information is being altered?
+ 4.9. Can Privoxy act as a "caching" proxy to speed up web browsing?
+ 4.10. What about as a firewall? Can Privoxy protect me?
+ 4.11. The Privoxy logo that replaces ads is very blocky and ugly looking.
+ Can't a better font be used?
+ 4.12. I have large empty spaces now where ads used to be. Why?
+ 4.13. How can Privoxy filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?
+ 4.14. Privoxy runs as a "server". How secure is it? Do I need to take any
+ special precautions?
+ 4.15. How can I temporarily disable Privoxy?
+ 4.16. Where can I find more information about Privoxy and related issues?
+
+5. Troubleshooting
+
+ 5.1. I just upgraded and am getting "connection refused" with every web
+ page?
+ 5.2. I just added a new rule, but the steenkin ad is still getting through.
+ How?
+ 5.3. One of my favorite sites does not work with Privoxy. What can I do?
+
+7. Contacting the developers, Bug Reporting and Feature Requests
+
+ 7.1. Get Support
+ 7.2. Report bugs
+ 7.3. Request new features
+ 7.4. Report ads or other filter problems
+ 7.5. Other
+
+8. Copyright and History
+
+ 8.1. Copyright
+ 8.2. History
+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1. General Information
+1. General Information
-1.1.1. What is this new version of Privoxy?
+1.1. What is this new version of Privoxy?
-The original Internet Junkbuster (tm) is a copyrighted product of Junkbusters
+The original Internet JunkbusterTM (tm) is a copyrighted product of Junkbusters
Corporation. Development of this effort stopped some time ago as of version
2.0.2. Stefan Waldherr started the ijbswa project on Sourceforge to rekindle
development. Other developers subsequently joined with Stefan, and have since
added many new features, refinements and enhancements. The result of this
effort is Privoxy.
-Privoxy started with the Junkbuster 2.0.2 code base, but has advanced
+Privoxy has evolved from the Junkbuster 2.0.2 code base, and has advanced
significantly at this point.
+Please see the History section for more information on the history of
+Junkbuster and Privoxy.
+
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.2. Why "Privoxy"? Why a name change at all?
+1.2. Why "Privoxy"? Why a name change at all?
Privoxy is the "Privacy Enhancing Proxy".
-There are possible legal complications from the continued use of the Junkbuster
-name, which is a trademark of Junkbusters Corporation. (There are, however, no
-objections from Junkbusters Corporation to the Privoxy project itself, and
-they, in fact, still share our ideals and goals.)
+There are potential legal complications from the continued use of the
+Junkbuster name, which is a registered trademark of Junkbusters Corporation.
+And thus they "own" the rights to the name. (There are, however, no objections
+from Junkbusters Corporation to the Privoxy project itself, and they, in fact,
+still share our ideals and goals.)
-The developers also believed that there so many changes from the original code,
-that it was time to make a clean break from the past and make a name in their
-own right, especially now with the pending release of version 3.0.
+The developers also believed that there are so many changes from the original
+code, that it was time to make a clean break from the past and make a name in
+their own right, especially now with the pending release of version 3.0.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.3. How does Privoxy differ from the old Junkbuster?
+1.3. How does Privoxy differ from the old Junkbuster?
Privoxy picks up where Junkbuster left off. All the old features remain. The
new Privoxy still blocks ads and banners, still manages cookies, and still
have been added, all in the same vein.
The configuration has changed significantly as well. This is something that
-users will notice right off the bat. The "blocklist" file does not exist any
-more. This is replaced by "actions" files, such as default.actions. This is
-where most of the per site configuration is now.
+users will notice right off the bat if you are upgrading from Junkbuster 2.0.x.
+The "blocklist" file does not exist any more. This is replaced by "actions"
+files, such as default.actions. This is where most of the per site
+configuration is now.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.4. What are some of the new features?
+1.4. What are some of the new features?
- * Integrated browser based configuration and control utility (http://p.p).
- Browser-based tracing of rule and filter effects.
+ * FIXME: complete the list of features. change the order: most important
+ features to the top of the list. prefix new features with "NEW".
+
+ * Integrated browser based configuration and control utility at http://
+ config.privoxy.org/ (shortcut: http://p.p/). Browser-based tracing of rule
+ and filter effects. Remote toggling.
* Blocking of annoying pop-up browser windows.
- * HTTP/1.1 compliant (most, but not all 1.1 features are supported).
+ * HTTP/1.1 compliant (but not all optional 1.1 features are supported).
* Support for Perl Compatible Regular Expressions in the configuration files,
and generally a more sophisticated and flexible configuration syntax over
* GIF de-animation.
* Web page content filtering (removes banners based on size, invisible
- "web-bugs", JavaScript, pop-ups, status bar abuse, etc.)
+ "web-bugs", JavaScript and HTML annoyances, pop-ups, etc.)
* Bypass many click-tracking scripts (avoids script redirection).
* Improved signal handling, and a true daemon mode (Unix).
- * Builds from source on most UNIX-like systems. Packages available for: Linux
- (RedHat, SuSE, or Debian), Windows, Sun Solaris, Mac OSX, OS/2, HP-UX 11
- and AmigaOS.
+ * Every feature now controllable on a per-site or per-location basis,
+ configuration more powerful and versatile over-all.
- * In addition, the configuration is much more powerful and versatile
- over-all.
+ * Many smaller new features added, limitations and bugs removed, and security
+ holes fixed.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.5. What is a "proxy"? How does Privoxy work?
+1.5. What is a "proxy"? How does Privoxy work?
When you connect to a web site with Privoxy, you are really connecting to your
locally running version of Privoxy. Privoxy intercepts your requests for the
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.6. How does Privoxy know what is an ad, and what is not?
+1.6. How does Privoxy know what is an ad, and what is not?
Privoxy processes all the raw content of every web page. So it reads everything
on each page. It then compares this to the rules as set up in the configuration
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.7. Can Privoxy make mistakes? This does not sound very scientific.
+1.7. Can Privoxy make mistakes? This does not sound very scientific.
Actually, it's a black art ;-) And yes, it is always possible to have a broad
rule accidentally block something by mistake. There is a good chance you may
But this should not be a big concern since the Privoxy configuration is very
flexible, and includes tools to help identify these types of situations so they
can be addressed as needed, allowing you to customize your installation. (See
-the appendix below.)
+the Troubleshooting section below.)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.8. My browser does the same things as Privoxy. Why should I use Privoxy at
+1.8. My browser does the same things as Privoxy. Why should I use Privoxy at
all?
Modern browsers do indeed have some of the same functionality as Privoxy. Maybe
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.9. Is there is a license or fee? What about a warranty? Registration?
+1.9. Is there is a license or fee? What about a warranty? Registration?
Privoxy is licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL). It is free to
use, copy, modify or distribute as you wish under the terms of this license.
-See http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html for specifics.
+Please see the Copyright section for more information on the license and
+copyright.
There is no warranty of any kind, expressed, implied or otherwise. That is
something that would cost real money ;-) There is no registration either.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.10. I would like to help you, what do I do?
+1.10. I would like to help you, what do I do?
-1.1.10.1. Money Money Money
+1.10.1. Money Money Money
We, of course, welcome donations and use the money for domain registering,
regular world-wide get-togethers (hahaha). Anyway, we'll soon describe the
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.1.10.2. You want to work with us?
+1.10.2. You want to work with us?
Well, helping the team is always a good idea. We welcome new developers, RPM
gurus or documentation makers. Simply get an account on sourceforge.net and
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.2. Installation
+2. Installation
-1.2.1. Which browsers are supported by Privoxy?
+2.1. Which browsers are supported by Privoxy?
Any browser that can be configured to use a "proxy", which should be virtually
all browsers. Direct browser support is not necessary since Privoxy runs as a
-separate application and just exchanges standard HTML data with your browser.
+separate application and just exchanges standard HTML data with your browser,
+just like a web server does.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.2.2. Which operating systems are supported?
+2.2. Which operating systems are supported?
+
+At present, Privoxy is known to run on Windows(95, 98, ME, 2000, XP), Linux
+(RedHat, Suse, Debian), Mac OSX, OS/2, AmigaOS, FreeBSD, NetBSD, BeOS, and many
+more flavors of Unix.
-Right now Win32, Mac OSX, OS/2, AmigaOS, Linux, and many flavors of Unix.
+But any operating system that runs TCP/IP, can conceivably take advantage of
+Privoxy in a networked situation where Privoxy would run as a server on a LAN
+gateway. Then only the "gateway" needs to be running one of the above operating
+systems.
-Source code is available, so porting to other operating systems, is always a
-possibility.
+Source code is freely available, so porting to other operating systems, is
+always a possibility.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.2.3. Can I install Privoxy over Junkbuster?
+2.3. Can I install Privoxy over Junkbuster?
We recommend you uninstall Junkbuster first to minimize conflicts and
confusion. You may want to save your old configuration files for future
reference. The configuration is substantially changed.
-See the user-manual for platform specific installation instructions. [FIXME:
-This is meant for after the name change for 3.0!]
+See the user-manual for platform specific installation instructions.
Note: Some installers may automatically uninstall Junkbuster, if present!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.2.4. I just installed Privoxy. Is there anything special I have to do now?
+2.4. I just installed Privoxy. Is there anything special I have to do now?
All browsers must be told to use Privoxy as a proxy by specifying the correct
proxy address and port number in the appropriate configuration area for the
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.2.5. What is the proxy address of Privoxy?
+2.5. What is the proxy address of Privoxy?
If you set up the Privoxy to run on the computer you browse from (rather than
your ISP's server or some networked computer on a LAN), the proxy will be on
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.2.6. I just installed Privoxy, and nothing is happening. All the ads are
-there. What's wrong?
+2.6. I just installed Privoxy, and nothing is happening. All the ads are there.
+What's wrong?
Did you configure your browser to use Privoxy as a proxy? It does not sound
like it. See above. You might also try flushing the browser's caches to force a
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3. Configuration
+3. Configuration
-1.3.1. Can I use my old config files?
+3.1. Can I use my old config files?
-There are major changes to Junkbuster configuration from version 2.0.x to 2.9.x
-and later. The older files will not work at all. If this is the case, you will
-need to re-enter your old data into the new configuration structure. This is
-probably also a good recommendation even if upgrading from 2.9.x to 3.x since
-there were many minor changes along the way.
+There are major changes to Junkbuster/ Privoxy configuration from version 2.0.x
+to 2.9.x and later. Most of the older files will not work at all. This is
+especially true of blocklist. If this is the case, you will need to re-enter
+your old data into the new configuration structure. This is probably also a
+good recommendation even if upgrading from 2.9.x to 3.x since there were many
+minor changes along the way.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.2. What is an "actions" file?
+3.2. What is an "actions" file?
"actions" files are where various actions that Privoxy might take, are
configured. Typically, you would define a set of default actions that apply to
-all URLs, then add exceptions to these defaults.
+all URLs, then add exceptions to these defaults where needed.
Actions can be defined on a per site basis, or for groups of sites. Actions can
also be grouped together and then applied to one or more sites. There are many
blocking cookies as one of our default actions, but need to accept cookies from
a given site, we would define this in our "actions" file.
-Privoxy comes with several default actions files, with varying degrees of
-filtering and blocking, as starting points for your own configuration (see
-below).
-
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.3. The "actions"concept confuses me. Please list some of these "actions".
+3.3. The "actions" concept confuses me. Please list some of these "actions".
These are all explained in the user-manual. Please refer to that.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.4. How are actions files configured? What is the easiest way to do this?
+3.4. How are actions files configured? What is the easiest way to do this?
The easiest way to do this, is to access Privoxy with your web browser at http:
-//p.p/, and then select "Edit the actions list" from the selection list. You
-can also do this by editing the appropriate file with a text editor.
+//p.p/, and then select "View & change the current configuration" from the
+selection list. You can also do this by editing the appropriate file with a
+text editor.
Please see the user-manual for a detailed explanation of these and other
configuration files, and their various options and syntax.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.5. What are the differences between intermediate.action, basic.action,
-etc.?
-
-Configuring Privoxy is not easy. To help you get started, we provide you with
-three different default configurations. The following table shows you, which
-features are enabled in each configuration.
-
-Table 1. Default Configurations
-
-+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
-|Feature |default.action|basic.action |intermediate.action|advanced.action|
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|ad-filtering |? |x |x |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|blank image |? |x |x |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|de-animate GIFs |? |x |x |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|referer forging |? |x |x |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|jon's |? |x |x |x |
-|+no-cookies-keep | | | | |
-|(i.e. session | | | | |
-|cookies only) | | | | |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|no-popup windows |? | |x |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|fast redirects |? | |x |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|hide-referrer |? | |x |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|hide-useragent |? | |x |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|content-modification|? | | |x |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|feature-x |? | | | |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|feature-y |? | | | |
-|--------------------+--------------+--------------+-------------------+---------------|
-|feature-z |? | | | |
-+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-1.3.6. Why can I change the configuration with a browser? Does that not raise
+3.5. There are several different "actions" files. What are the differences?
+
+As of Privoxy v2.9.15, three actions files are being included, to be used for
+different purposes. These are default.action, standard.action, and user.action.
+Please see the User Manual for an explanation of each.
+
+Earlier versions included three different versions default.action files. The
+new scheme allows for greater flexibility of local configuration, and for
+browser based configuration.
+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+3.6. Why can I change the configuration with a browser? Does that not raise
security issues?
What I don't understand, is how I can browser edit the config file as a regular
user, while the whole /etc/privoxy hierarchy belongs to the user "privoxy",
-with only 644 perms.
+with only 644 permissions.
When you use the browser-based editor, Privoxy itself is writing to the config
files. Because Privoxy is running as the user "privoxy", it can update the
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.7. What is "default.filter"?
+3.7. What is "default.filter"?
-The "default.filter" file is used to "filter" any web page content. By
-"filtering" we mean it can modify, remove, or change anything on the page,
-including HTML tags, and JavaScript. Regular expressions are used to accomplish
-this, and operate on a line by line basis. This is potentially a very powerful
-feature, but requires some expertise.
+The "default.filter" file is where "filters" are defined, which are used to
+"filter" any web page content. By "filtering" we mean it can modify, remove, or
+change anything on the page, including HTML tags, and JavaScript. Regular
+expressions are used to accomplish this, and operate on a line by line basis.
+This is potentially a very powerful feature, but requires some expertise.
If you are familiar with regular expressions, and HTML, you can look at the
provided default.filter with a text editor and see some of things it can be
Presently, there is no GUI editor option for this part of the configuration,
but you can disable/enable various sections of the included default file with
-the "Actions List Editor" from your browser.
+the "View & change the current configuration" from your browser.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.8. How can I set up Privoxy to act as a proxy for my LAN?
+3.8. How can I set up Privoxy to act as a proxy for my LAN?
By default, Privoxy only responds to requests from localhost. To have it act as
a server for a network, this needs to be changed in the main config file where
and assign it the address of the LAN gateway interface, and port number to use:
listen-address 192.168.1.1:8118
-
Save the file, and restart Privoxy. Configure all browsers on the network then
to use this address and port number.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.9. Instead of ads, now I get a checkerboard pattern. I don't want to see
+3.9. Instead of ads, now I get a checkerboard pattern. I don't want to see
anything.
This is a configuration option for images that Privoxy is stopping. You have
the choice of a checkerboard pattern, a transparent 1x1 GIF image (aka
"blank"), or a custom URL of your choice. Note that to fit this category, the
-URL must match both the "+image" and "+block" actions.
+URL must match both the "+handle-as-image" and "+block" actions.
-If you want to see nothing, then change the "+image-blocker" action to
-"+image-blocker{blank}". This can be done from the "Edit Actions List"
-selection at http://p.p/. Or by hand editing the appropriate actions file. This
-will only effect what is defined as "images" though. Also, any URLs that
-generate the bright red "Blocked" banner, can be moved to the "+image-blocker"
-section for the same reason.
+If you want to see nothing, then change the "+set-image-blocker" action to
+"+image-blocker{blank}". This can be done from the "View & change the current
+configuration" selection at http://p.p/. Or by hand editing the appropriate
+actions file. This will only effect what is defined as "images" though. Also,
+some URLs that generate the bright red "Blocked" banner, can be moved to the
+"+set-image-blocker" section for the same reason, but there are some limits and
+risks to this (see below).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.10. Why would anybody want to see a checkerboard pattern?
+3.10. Why would anybody want to see a checkerboard pattern?
This can be helpful for troubleshooting problems. It might also be good for
anyone new to Privoxy so that they can see if their favorite pages are
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.11. I see large red banners on some pages that say "Blocked". Why and how
-do I get rid of this?
+3.11. I see large red banners on some pages that say "Blocked". Why and how do
+I get rid of this?
+
+These are URLs that match something in one of Privoxy's block actions ("+block"
+). It is meant to be a warning so that you know something has been blocked and
+an easy way for you to see why. These are handled differently than what has
+been defined explicitly as "images" (e.g. ads that are GIF image files).
+Depending on the URL itself, it is sometimes hard for Privoxy to really know
+whether there is indeed an ad image there or not. And there are limitations as
+to what Privoxy can do to "fool" the browser.
+
+For instance, if the ad is in a frame, then it is embedded in the separate HTML
+page used for the frame. In this case, you cannot just substitute an aribitrary
+image (like we would for a "blank" image), for an HTML page. The browser is
+expecting an HTML page, and that is what it must have for frames. Such
+situations can be a little trickier to deal with, and Privoxy may show the
+"Blocked" page, despite your best efforts.
+
+If you want these to be treated as if they were images, so that they can be
+made invisible, you can try moving the offending URL from the "+block" section
+to the "+imageblock" section of your actions file. Just be forewarned, if any
+URL is made "invisible", you may not have any inkling that something has been
+removed from that page, or why. If this approach does not work, then you are
+probably dealing with a frame (or "ilayer"), and the only thing that can go
+there is an HTML page of some sort.
+
+To deal with this situation, you could modify the "block" HTML template that is
+used by Privoxy to display this, and make it something more to your liking.
+Currently, there is no configuration option for this. You will have to modify,
+or create your own page, and use this to replace templates/blocked, which is
+what Privoxy uses to display the "Blocked" page.
-These are URLs that match something in one of Privoxy's block actions (+block).
-It is meant to be a warning so that you know something has been blocked and an
-easy way for you to see why. These are handled differently than what has been
-defined explicitly as "images" (e.g. ad banners). Depending on the URL itself,
-it is sometimes hard for Privoxy to really know whether it is indeed an ad
-image or not.
+Another way to deal with this is find why and where Privoxy is blocking the
+frame, and diable this. Then let the "+set-image-blocker" action handle the ad
+that is embedded in the frame's HTML page.
-If you want them to be treated as if they were images, so that they can be made
-invisible, then move the offending URL from the "+block" section to the
-"+imageblock" section of your actions file. Just be forewarned, if make any URL
-is made "invisible", you may not have any inkling that something has been
-removed from that page.
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+3.12. I cannot see all of the "Blocked" page banner. Help.
+
+There is not enough available space to fit the entire Blocked page. Try right
+clicking on the visible portion, and select "Show Frame", or equivalent. This
+will usually allow you to see the entire Privoxy "Blocked" page, and from there
+you can see just what is being blocked, and why.
-Alternately, you could modify the "block" HTML template that is used by Privoxy
-to display this, and make it something more to your liking.
+As of Privoxy 2.9.14, the Blocked banner page is re-sizeable, and tries to
+adjust to the allotted space. There may be occassions where there just isn't
+enough room to display much of anything useful though.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.12. I cannot see all of the "Blocked" page banner. All I see is a bright
-red square.
+3.13. Can Privoxy run as a service on Win2K/NT?
-There is not enough space to fit the entire page. Try right clicking on the
-visible, red portion, and select "Show Frame", or equivalent. This will usually
-allow you to see the entire Privoxy "Blocked" page, and from there you can see
-just what is being blocked, and why.
+Yes, it can run as a system service using srvany.exe. The only catch is that
+this will effectively disable the Privoxy icon in the taskbar. You can have one
+or the other, but not both at this time :(
+
+There is a pending feature request for this functionality. See thread: http://
+sourceforge.net/tracker/?func=detail&atid=361118&aid=485617&group_id=11118, for
+details, and a sample configuration.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.3.13. How can I make Privoxy work with other proxies like Squid?
+3.14. How can I make Privoxy work with other proxies like Squid?
This can be done. See the user manual, which describes how to do this.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4. Miscellaneous
+4. Miscellaneous
-1.4.1. How much does Privoxy slow my browsing down? This has to add extra time
-to browsing.
+4.1. How much does Privoxy slow my browsing down? This has to add extra time to
+browsing.
It should not slow you down any in real terms, and may actually help speed
things up since ads, banners and other junk are not being displayed. The actual
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.2. I noticed considerable delays in page requests compared to the old
+4.2. I noticed considerable delays in page requests compared to the old
Junkbuster. What's wrong?
-Using the default filtering configuration, I noticed considerable delays in
-page requests compared to the old Junkbuster. Loading pages with large contents
-seemed to take forever, then suddenly delivering all the content at once.
-
-The whole content must be loaded in order to filter, and nothing is is sent to
-the browser during this time. The loading time does not really change in real
-numbers, but the feeling is different, because most browsers are able to start
-rendering incomplete content, giving the user a feeling of "it works".
+The entire page content must be loaded into memory in order for the filtering
+mechanism to work, and nothing is sent to the browser during this time. The
+loading time does not really change in real numbers, but the feeling is
+different, because most browsers are able to start rendering incomplete
+content, giving the user a feeling of "it works".
To modify the content of a page (i.e. make frames resizeable again, etc.) and
not just replace ads, Privoxy needs to download the entire page first, do its
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.3. What is the "http://p.p/"?
+4.3. What is the "http://p.p/"?
Since Privoxy sits between your web browser and the Internet, it can be
programmed to handle certain pages specially.
-With recent versions of Privoxy (version 2.9.x), you can get some information
-about Privoxy and change some settings by going to http://p.p/ or,
+With recent versions of Privoxy (version 2.9.x and greater), you can get some
+information about Privoxy and change some settings by going to http://p.p/ or,
equivalently, http://config.privoxy.org/ (Note that p.p is far easier to type
but may not work in some configurations. With the name change to Privoxy, this
-is changed from the previous http://i.j.b/ or earlier 2.9.x versions).
+is changed from the previous http://i.j.b/ and earlier 2.9.x versions).
These pages are not forwarded to a server on the Internet - instead they are
handled by a special web server which is built in to Privoxy.
If you have version 2.0.2, then the equivalent is http://example.com/
show-proxy-args (but you get far less information, and you should really
-consider upgrading to 2.9.x).
+consider upgrading to 2.9.14).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.4. Do you still maintain the blocklists?
+4.4. Do you still maintain the blocklists?
-No. The format of the blocklists has changed significantly in the versions
-2.9.x. Once we have released the new stable version, v3.0, there will again be
-blocklists that you can update automatically.
+No, not by this name. The format of the blocklists has changed significantly in
+versions 2.9.x and later. This functionality is done by the "actions" file now.
+See next question ...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.5. How can I submit new ads?
+4.5. How can I submit new ads?
-As of now, please discontinue to submit new ad blocking infos. Once we have
-released the new version, there will again be a form on the website, which you
-can use to contribute new ads.
+Please see the Contact section.
+
+This process does not work with earlier versions of Privoxy or Junkbuster.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.6. How can I hide my IP address?
+4.6. How can I hide my IP address?
You cannot hide your IP address with Privoxy or any other software, since the
-server needs to know your IP address to send the answer to you.
+server needs to know your IP address to send the answers back to you.
Fortunately there are many publicly usable anonymous proxies out there, which
solve the problem by providing a further level of indirection between you and
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.7. Can Privoxy guarantee I am anonymous?
+4.7. Can Privoxy guarantee I am anonymous?
No. Your chances of remaining anonymous are greatly improved, but unless you
are an expert on Internet security it would be safest to assume that everything
you do on the Web can be traced back to you.
Privoxy can remove various information about you, and allows you more freedom
-to decide which sites you can trust. But it's still possible that web sites can
-find out who you are. Here's one way this can happen.
+to decide which sites you can trust, and what details you want to reveal. But
+it's still possible that web sites can find out who you are. Here's one way
+this can happen.
A few browsers disclose the user's email address in certain situations, such as
when transferring a file by FTP. Privoxy does not filter FTP. If you need this
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.8. Might some things break because header information is being altered?
+4.8. Might some things break because header information is being altered?
Definitely. More and more sites use HTTP header content to decide what to
display and how to display it. There is many ways that this can be handled, so
If you have problems with a site, you will have to adjust your configuration
accordingly. Cookies are probably the most likely adjustment that may be
-required, but by no means the only one.
+required, but by no means the only one.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.9. Can Privoxy act as a "caching" proxy to speed up web browsing?
+4.9. Can Privoxy act as a "caching" proxy to speed up web browsing?
No, it does not have this ability at all. You want something like Squid for
this. And, yes, before you ask, Privoxy can co-exist with other kinds of
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.10. What about as a firewall? Can Privoxy protect me?
+4.10. What about as a firewall? Can Privoxy protect me?
Not in the way you mean, or in the way a true firewall can, or a proxy that has
this specific capability. Privoxy can help protect your privacy, but not really
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.11. The Privoxy logo that replaces ads is very blocky and ugly looking.
-Can't a better font be used?
+4.11. The Privoxy logo that replaces ads is very blocky and ugly looking. Can't
+a better font be used?
This is not a font problem. The logo is an image that is created by Privoxy on
the fly. So as to not waste memory, the image is rather small. The blockiness
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.12. I have large empty spaces now where ads used to be. Why?
+4.12. I have large empty spaces now where ads used to be. Why?
It would be easy enough to just eliminate this space altogether, rather than
fill it with blank space. But, this would create problems with many pages that
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.13. How can Privoxy filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?
+4.13. How can Privoxy filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?
This is a limitation since HTTPS transactions are encrypted SSL sessions
between your browser and the secure site, and are meant to be reliably secure
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.14. Privoxy runs as a "server". How secure is it? Do I need to take any
+4.14. Privoxy runs as a "server". How secure is it? Do I need to take any
special precautions?
There are no known exploits that might effect Privoxy. On Unix-like systems,
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.4.15. How can I temporarily disable Privoxy?
+4.15. How can I temporarily disable Privoxy?
The easiest way is to access Privoxy with your browser by using the special
URL: http://p.p/ and select "Toggle Privoxy on or off" from that page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.5. Troubleshooting
+4.16. Where can I find more information about Privoxy and related issues?
+
+Other references and sites of interest to Privoxy users:
+
+http://www.privoxy.org/, The Privoxy Home page.
+
+http://sourceforge.net/projects/ijbswa, the Project Page for Privoxy on
+Sourceforge.
+
+http://p.p/, access Privoxy from your browser. Alternately, http://
+config.privoxy.org may work in some situations where the first does not.
+
+http://p.p/, and select "Privoxy - Submit Filter Feedback" to submit "misses"
+to the developers.
+
+http://www.junkbusters.com/ht/en/cookies.html
+
+http://www.waldherr.org/junkbuster/
+
+http://privacy.net/analyze/
+
+http://www.squid-cache.org/
+
+
+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+5. Troubleshooting
-1.5.1. I just upgraded and am getting "connection refused" with every web page?
+5.1. I just upgraded and am getting "connection refused" with every web page?
Either Privoxy is not running, or your browser is configured for a different
port than what Privoxy is using.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.5.2. I just added a new rule, but the steenkin ad is still getting through.
+5.2. I just added a new rule, but the steenkin ad is still getting through.
How?
If the ad had been displayed before you added its URL, it will probably be held
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.5.3. One of my favorite sites does not work with Privoxy. What can I do?
+5.3. One of my favorite sites does not work with Privoxy. What can I do?
First verify that it is indeed a Privoxy problem, by disabling Privoxy
filtering and blocking. Go to http://p.p/ and click on "Toggle Privoxy On or
Off", then disable it. Now try that page again. It's probably a good idea to
-flush the browser cache as well.
+flush the browser cache as well with Shift+Reload to flush caches.
If still a problem, go to "Show which actions apply to a URL and why" from
http://p.p/ and paste the full URL of the page in question into the prompt. See
which actions are being applied to the URL. Now, armed with this information,
-go to "Edit the actions list". Here you should see various sections that have
-various Privoxy features disabled for specific sites. Disabled "actions" will
-have a "-" (minus sign) in front of them. Add your problem page URL to one of
-these sections that looks like it is disabling the feature that is causing the
-problem. Re-try the page. There might be some trial and error involved. This is
-discussed in a little more detail in the user-manual appendix.
+go to "View & change the current configuration". Here you should see various
+sections that have various Privoxy features disabled for specific sites. Most
+disabled "actions" will have a "-" (minus sign) in front of them. Some aliases
+are used just to disable other actions, e.g. "shop" and "fragile", and won't
+necessarily use a "+" or "-" sign. Add your problem page URL to one of these
+sections that looks like it is disabling the feature that is causing the
+problem. Rember to flush your browser's caches when making such changes! As a
+last resort, try "fragile" which disables most actions. Now re-try the page.
+There might be some trial and error involved. This is discussed in more detail
+in the user-manual appendix.
Alternately, if you are comfortable with a text editor, you can accomplish the
same thing by editing the appropriate "actions" file.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.5.4. Where can I get help? Report bugs? Feature Requests? Etc?
+7. Contacting the developers, Bug Reporting and Feature Requests
+
+We value your feedback. However, to provide you with the best support, please
+note the following sections.
+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+7.1. Get Support
+
+To get support, use the Sourceforge Support Forum:
+
+ http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=11118&atid=211118
+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+7.2. Report bugs
+
+To submit bugs, use the Sourceforge Bug Forum:
+
+ http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=11118&atid=111118.
+
+Make sure that the bug has not already been submitted. Please try to verify
+that it is a Privoxy bug, and not a browser or site bug first. If you are using
+your own custom configuration, please try the stock configs to see if the
+problem is a configuration related bug. And if not using the latest development
+snapshot, please try the latest one. Or even better, CVS sources. Please be
+sure to include the Privoxy version, platform, browser, any pertinent log data,
+any other relevant details (please be specific) and, if possible, some way to
+reproduce the bug.
+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+7.3. Request new features
+
+To submit ideas on new features, use the Sourceforge feature request forum:
+
+ http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?atid=361118&group_id=11118&func=browse.
+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+7.4. Report ads or other filter problems
+
+You can also send feedback on websites that Privoxy has problems with. Please
+bookmark the following link: "Privoxy - Submit Filter Feedback". Once you surf
+to a page with problems, use the bookmark to send us feedback. We will look
+into the issue as soon as possible.
-Feedback is encouraged, whether good, bad or ugly. Please see the contact page
-in the user-manual for details.
+New, improved default.action files will occasionally be made available based on
+your feedback. These will be announced on the ijbswa-announce list.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-1.5.5. What time is it?
+7.5. Other
-Time for you to go!
+For any other issues, feel free to use the mailing lists:
+
+ http://sourceforge.net/mail/?group_id=11118.
+
+Anyone interested in actively participating in development and related
+discussions can also join the appropriate mailing list. Archives are available,
+too. See the page on Sourceforge.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-2. Copyright and History
+8. Copyright and History
+
+8.1. Copyright
+
+Privoxy is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the
+terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software
+Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later
+version.
-Please see the user-manual for information on Copyright and History.
+This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY
+WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A
+PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details, which
+is available from the Free Software Foundation, Inc, 59 Temple Place - Suite
+330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.
+
+You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with
+this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple
+Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-3. See also
+8.2. History
+
+Privoxy is evolved, and derived from, the Internet Junkbuster, with many
+improvments and enhancements over the original.
-Please see the user-manual for others references.
+Junkbuster was originally written by Anonymous Coders and Junkbusters
+Corporation, and was released as free open-source software under the GNU GPL.
+Stefan Waldherr made many improvements, and started the SourceForge project
+Privoxy to rekindle development. There are now several active developers
+contributing. The last stable release of Junkbuster was v2.0.2, which has now
+grown whiskers ;-).
projects / privoxy.git / blobdiff