On Aug 8, 2011 4:24 PM, "Christopher Morrow" <morrowc.lists@gmail.com> wrote:
On Sat, Aug 6, 2011 at 10:03 PM, Scott Helms <khelms@ispalliance.net>
Not trying to be obtuse, but none of the technical docs you cite appear to talk about HTTP proxies nor does the newswire report have any technical details. I have tested several of the networks listed in the report and in none of the cases I saw was there HTTP proxy activity. Picking up on WCCP/TCS isn't that hard (I used to install those myself) so unless
wrote: there is
some functionality in IOS and/or JUNOS that allows I don't see it happening. Paxfire can operate all of the proxies they want but the network infrastructure has to be able to pass the traffic over to those proxies and I don't see it (on at least 3 of the networks cited).
barefruit/paxfire/nominum/etc all do essentially the same thing: 1) install a dns-appliance in-line (some form of in-line, there are lots of options, it's not really important in the end which is used) between 'cache resolver' and 'user'. (198.6.1.1 has a paxfire appliance literally in-line between it's customer facing port and the world)
2) chose a set/subset of queries to falsify answers for (nxdomain only? autosearch.msn.com? *.google.com? *?)
3) run a farm of servers somewhere else (in the case of paxfire they are the jomax.net servers: ;; QUESTION SECTION: ;asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. IN A ;; ANSWER SECTION: asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. 60 IN A 64.158.56.49 asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. 60 IN A 63.251.179.49 ;; AUTHORITY SECTION: asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. 65535 IN NS WSC2.JOMAX.NET. asdkjad912jd.123adsad.com. 65535 IN NS WSC1.JOMAX.NET.
In the case of barefruit it's another complex and in the case of nominum it's a third complex ...
4) accept http/https/etc on the complex of servers, funnel you an answer which is essentially 'hostname == search-query'. For non-http most of these complexes are SUPPOSED to not permit a connect to happen... for jomax at least they don't accept tcp/443, they do accept 25 though :(
5) profit if users click on these results.
It's not black magic, it's annoying and wrong for some versions (depending upon your ethics I guess?) of wrong :( I wish ISP's would stop doing this, and it seems that some folk have luck twisting arms at ISP's to make this stop.
-chris
Some people believe the search results are a better user experience than the error page they would otherwise receive. The "awesome bar" is a similar feature....imho Cb