Recent problems downloading Rapidshare using TOR

[phkhgh]

Using latest stable Vadilia / TOR / Privoxy bundle for Windows (on Vista x64), with Tor Button for Firefox.

When trying to d/l ANY type file from many file sharing sites, incl Rapidshare, always get message:

Your IP address xx.xx.xxx.xxx is already downloading a file. Please wait until the download is completed

I'm not downloading a file from the stated address, & often haven't downloaded anything from that site - in days, or EVER (someone else may be).

Even if I get a NEW IP address (by various means), clear Firefox & the page & try again, get same message.

Any ideas what's going on & how to get around it?

Thanks.

[SteveTX]

The easiest way is for you to pay for a rapidshare account.

[phkhgh]

Thanks, but not helpful. Need feedback from those experienced w/ TOR in general.

[SteveTX]

Originally Posted by phkhgh

those experienced w/ TOR in general.

Oh. My mistake. I'll let you know if I find someone experienced in Tor

[phkhgh]

This is just a quick link I grabbed to d/l from rapidshare to show what was happening & the message. I blanked the IP address, though I assure you it's one from Onion network, not real ISP (dynamic) address.

Error
You want to download the following file:

http://rapidshare.com/files/10041072/RaidenII.zip | 11963 KB

Your IP address 192.xxx.xxx.206 is already downloading a file. Please wait until the download is completed.

NOTE: Rapidshare also has this message at bottom of error page:

Notice
Our system checks your IP-address in order to count the downloads. If you are getting an error message that you are already downloading while no downloads where made, then your IP is being created by a proxy-server. Proxy servers are placed by ISP's or network administrators to save IP addresses. This can lead to multiple downloads from one IP.

Are they saying if you use a proxy, you probably won't be able to d/l from them?

[Cudni]

think about it, the whole idea of tor is that many people may use it (not really to download from rapidshare though). so it is very, very likely that somebody is already downloading via that tor node from them. Rapidshare obviously take a dim view of people downloading masses of data for free (past the imposed limit) and block it.

[phkhgh]

Thanks.

I don't know this, but starting to make assumption. If anyone can verify for a fact, I'd appreciate it.

If you connected to [any] proxy network like Onion, at any given moment the LAST server (outlet node) I see on the TOR network screen, could be assigning the SAME EXACT IP addr to thousands of other users?

It would have to be assigning same IP to 1000's or 10,000's because if only, say 50 people world wide, had same IP as me, odds one would ALSO be trying to d/l a file from SAME site at exact SAME time as me would be staggering.

Am I missing something?

[SteveTX]

Yes, you are missing it. Thousands of other people are trying to abuse Tor to bypass rapidshare's ip restrictions ~~snipped unsubstantiated assumption~~ .

[phkhgh]

It would have to be assigning same IP to 1000's or 10,000's

That's the question. Anyone know if that's the way proxies like Onion work? (put your hand down, Steve)

[SteveTX]

The tor network has approximately 50,000 to 150,000 users on at any one time. It has approximately 1000 active exit nodes at any one time. That means natural crowding of exit nodes is ~100 +/- 50 per node at any given time. Presuming 1 IP per exit node, that is 150 user crowded per server, max.

Considering the slow speed and large size, there will always be 1) people downloading {edit italicized - let's not jump to conclusions - Blue} files aheads of your file download, and for a long time. 2) rapidshare queues to the tor network will always be full or in cool-down mode.

This is called the tragedy of the commons.

So as I told you before, the simplest way is for you to just buy a rapidshare account.

[phkhgh]

By the math cited, if there are ~ 50 - 150 TOR users w/ same IP addr on a given exit node, at a given time, spread out all over the world, with the ?millions? of websites available, at any given moment, at least 2 of those users are going to, or in process of d/l'g a file from Rapidshare, Megaupload, etc?

That would mean one of a very few things.

No one using proxies visits any other than file sharing sites.

There are many more than 150 identical IP addresses from a single exit node. [remember the message says, "there's ALREADY a file d/l'g from this IP," not, "the d/l limit for this IP addr has been reached.]

You know nothing about statistics / probability.

The largest # in the world is infinity + 1 (mathematician joke).

[SteveTX]

I'm afraid it may be you who is unfamiliar with statistics. You've presumed an even distribution, but statistics is about patterns, not averages. You've never run a tor node, otherwise you might know what type of traffic goes over it, other than legitimate traffic. Tor is widely abused by people for 1) spamming 2) hacking 3) circumventing IP filtering. In this particular case, it is being abused in method #3 for Rapidshare.

Would you like to know just how popular that abuse is? Infact there are two articles written about how to abuse tor for rapidshare, using the anonymous browser I wrote: November 2008, Oct 2007

Your query is not unique. Infact I think it has appeared on this very forum before as well. The point is you are abusing tor and potentially depriving connectivity from people who have a legitimate use for it, such as those who have their democracy under threat.

[fuzzylogic]

Hear, Hear, steve, you're going to find noone sorry here for people whom abuse TOR. Just buy a rapidshare account and save yourself the hassle. or if you want, go and abuse the countless cgi/proxy lists on the web. Leave Tor for people whom really need it.

[caspian]

I have a Rapidshare account and I LOVE it! So far I have been able to find almost anything that I am looking for. I download links sometimes just out of curiosity and sift through to see if there is anything I want to keep. I can load up as many as I like at a time. The paid version is cheap and fast. Add Free Download Manager and your downloads are even faster. Tor would be an absolute nightmare for downloading. I can't imagine it.

[Leonid]

I don't understand how you can use file web hosting services for free on Tor anyway? This is most likely impossible on nearly all services. As you need javascript enabled to dl for free there. I guess the thread starter is not using Tor in a proper way. I'm using Tor for years, and I've been able to download only from those services that I have the pass for.