How To Block Direct Image Linking Using .htaccess
Posted by Danny Wirken on: 2006-07-29 20:04:18
Self SEO > Webmaster Articles
Most of us have a specified limit to the amount of traffic our web servers will handle for us. That limit seems very generous – until you start looking at image downloads and the bandwidth required. A few dozen users downloading an image – that's one thing. But what if you have an image that dozens of other websites like?
Worst-case scenario: suppose you run a site that gets hold of a picture taken by an Iraqi soldier of an incident that gains a lot of media attention. And suppose you have the exclusive rights to that image. You want to sell it, of course, not give it away, so you don't post it as a freebie. You may have a downloadable version that others can take away to post on their own website, generally with a link to your site. But your original image is reserved for your use only.
Here's the problem. Webmasters, often amateurs not really understanding why what they are doing is harmful, want to deliver the best possible image to their own readers. So instead of downloading your free file or linking to your site, they embed a link in their own page that downloads your picture, and only your picture, as part of their own website. This is easy to do; all you have to do is use the image link straight out to the other website.
With that excellent and lucrative image referenced above, you may have blogs on both sides indexing you; you may even have news sites or image sites indexing you. How much bandwidth can your site take before it exceeds your monthly limit? Chances are, even a medium-case scenario is going to turn your site into a DNS instead, and you will lose viewers and site ranking while you are unavailable. Not worth posting that great picture anymore, is it?
But you do have another option: the .htaccess file. This works primarily in Apache servers; if you're not certain what you've got, call and ask. Because not all systems will allow them, and some can even be damaged by improper .htaccessing, you should contact your server administrator before you upload one, anyway.
What Is .htaccess?
.htaccess is a type of file that has, for years, been used to restrict access to protected web pages or areas, such as error pages and password-protected directories. You create it using a text editor such as NotePad or SimpleText, and then save as plain (ASCII) text. Upon saving it, the file extension needs to be changed from .txt to .htaccess – and the rest of the name needs to be left off. Your file should be named nothing except for .htaccess. Not file.htaccess. Just .htaccess.
If your text program insists on appending the .txt, you can right-click the file anywhere you normally open it and select Rename to remove the .txt. If your computer system does not show file extensions, look up how to make it show them! Alternately, telnet and ftp programs will also allow you to rename files and remove extensions.
Creating .htaccess Files
Your first step in creating this file should be to open your text editor and save an empty page as .htaccess. Turn off your word wrap function. .htaccess files are intended to be single-line commands, and a word wrap can throw this completely off and make your file unusable, either by breaking lines in the wrong place or by putting in unwanted characters when it's uploaded.
When you upload an .htaccess file, it should be encoded as ASCII, not binary. CHMOD the file to either 644 or (RW-R—R--) so that the server can use it but a browser cannot; readable .htaccess files can compromise your security by allowing hackers to figure out what you have protected and where the authentication files are. (You can also prevent this problem by putting your authentication files above the root directory so that they cannot be accessed via www.)
An .htaccess file affects the directory it's placed in as well as any subsequent subdirectories; if you have files everywhere you want protected, you can put the .htaccess file in your root directory. If you only want to protect your images, you can put it in your images directory alone. The closest .htaccess file to any given directory, reading up the directory tree, is the one that is applied to that specific directory. Try to use the fewest number of .htaccess files possible; redundancies can cause an infinite loop, which is bad for your site.
Preventing Hot Linking
The most important thing you want to do with an .htaccess file is prevent hot linking of non-HTML objects like images and movies. Hot linking is often referred to as "bandwidth stealing."
Your .htaccess file will disallow hotlinking; instead of the image your thief is trying to use, they'll get something else, like a broken image symbol or content you specify (angry men are popular).
Your .htaccess file content should read as follows:
RewriteEngine on
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www\.)?mydomain.com/.*$ [NC]
RewriteRule \.(gif|jpg)$ - [F]
The first two lines you don't have to modify in any way. However, the third line's http://mydomain.com needs to be modified to reflect your URL. The fourth line in the example is set up to deny use of GIFs and JPEGs; you can add, using a pipe (|) separator, any other file type you wish.
If your server is set up to deliver alternate content (call your server administrator and ask), you can add another piece to the fourth line of code in the .htaccess file to do this:
RewriteRule \.(gif|jpg)$ http://www.mydomain.com/angryman.gif [R,L]
This delivers an angry-man image you have in your directory; just as above, make certain you change that domain name to the proper one.
About The Author:
http://www.theinternetone.net
Print this article 
Tell a friend
 | User comments: |
californiaeagle
-
Posted on: 2011-05-13 08:17:04
I am looking forward for your next post, I will try to get the hang of it!
Buy Term Paper Online Buy Theses
jimb45
-
Posted on: 2011-06-10 23:37:38
This works so good if it is setup properly. This is such a great asset to me at work. I use this process all the time.
orlando personal injury attorneys
Helmore
-
Posted on: 2011-07-25 14:32:15
Great Article. Creating Face book Pages is also one of the great techniques to promote the website .
Freelance SEO India
SEO Expert India
aymenbnr
-
Posted on: 2011-08-10 04:53:24
Very good article,there are plenty of useful infos at selfseo
Advantages of solar energy
darrensy
-
Posted on: 2011-10-12 15:37:54
I never thought there is this kind of solution, it's been a months that I just ask someone to fix it, if I only knew as simple is this, I could have done so.
general contractors houston
xingxing
-
Posted on: 2011-10-29 04:21:28
Look closely at the
chanel earrings cc logo. The logo should consist of 2 interlocking C's that are facing away from each other. The top part of the C which faces right should be going over the top part of the C which is facing left.Check for the official Chanel authenticity card since a real Chanel handbag should come with one. It looks a little like a credit card and is usually embossed and has a serial number printed on it.The serial number should also be located inside the
chanel 2.55 as well which should match the authenticity card. Current
chanel 2.55 bag buy beginning from the latter part of the 1990's have the serial number printed on a white decal which is below two
chanel wallet purse chain buy online that are in the color gold. The decal should be covered with a rectangle of clear plastic big enough to cover the entire decal itself.Review carefully the hardware on the actual strap of the
chanel handbags 2011. The Chanel logo or brand name should be engraved onto the straps hardware.
LucasDyer
-
Posted on: 2011-12-19 13:51:53
Thank you for posting this. I was lurking in robots.txt for ages trying to block direct image linking through blocking them for search engines bots, however these tries were not successful at all. I even tried to
buy term paper which someone wrote regarding this topic, but then found your article. I will now try to block it via .htaccess and write back with my results. Thanks once again.
store
-
Posted on: 2012-01-19 07:26:10
If you buy Coach items at the
coach outlet online store, the goods will be sent out within 24 hours after confirming your payment and arrive to your door within 7 work days.Attention!
coach outlet is offering new products at favorable prices for August. Brighter colors, finer looks and newer designs, all bring you a whole new summer.
store
-
Posted on: 2012-01-19 07:26:56
Louis Vuitton Sale online offers a big discount on the Mother's Day. We even offers
louis vuitton uk as gifts for the first ten guests who buy our items. We are looking forward to your coming.I am so confused that I don,t even know where to buy the
louis vuitton Handbags. Because I can prefer to chose the fashionable design, favorable price, top service .
erica1988
-
Posted on: 2012-01-19 07:38:37
No one can deny the shopping at the
coach factory outlet is satisfactory. For the low prices and good quality.Most significantly, the coach designer purses of
coach factory online industry won't deteriorate your individual fashions at all. Rather they would immediately change your overall looks marvelously.
erica1988
-
Posted on: 2012-01-19 07:39:31
At the
coach outlet online you have the largest selection of the day. If you touch the item and like it, keep it in your possession until you make your final decision.Just come to our
coach factory outlet to get your favorite bag. There are many kinds of designs of coach products for you to make choice.
| Post New Comment |
This site does not allow anonymous comments. Registered members can
login to participate.
Registration is free and takes only a few seconds
jolyrichardson
-