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  5. [0.9.x] Trying to get my head around anti-spam measures

[0.9.x] Trying to get my head around anti-spam measures

1 Apr 22, 2007 16:20    

My b2evolution Version: 0.9.x

OK, so some 18 months after installing 0.9, I'm now trying to get my head around all the anti-spam measures that I should have looked at immediately following the initial install, but I didn't so I'm into catch up time. So far I've been wading through Whoo's thread here - http://forums.b2evolution.net/viewtopic.php?t=3764 and have done the following:

1. b2evo comes with a blacklist. Update that frequently. - DONE

2. Change the URL to your trackback and comments. - DONE

3. Using an .htaccess, fix it so your comments can ONLY be called locally. - OK, this is where I start coming unstuck

I'd already done as suggested in DOCS | TRICKY STUFF and had renamed sample.htaccess to .htaccess, but now a few days later, I find that both versions of the file have mysteriously vanished from /blogs and /blogs/admin. Is this something that is known to happen following a rename, or is it evidence that the spammers know where to look for it and have the wherewithal to delete it for me? It's easy enough to fix with a quick 'drag and drop', but that doesn't help me understand where it went in the first place.

.htaccess is clearly an important file in the fight against the spammers, but I think I'm lacking in understanding of where this file fits into the bigger picture and what it does there - apart from saying it's important, DOCS | HTACCESS doesn't actually say too much. Can anyone give me a potted summary?

I guess my next question is whether or not I should be wading through the enhancements to .htaccess under v0.9, or looking to upgrade to v1.9.3.

I need to protect the site as I've just weeded out 44,000 dodgy referrers from the db, and around 12,000 exceptionally dodgy comments. Whilst the blacklist has helped, it's not stopping the comments fully, presumably due to backdoor access methods that .htaccess would prevent.

I just need to map my way through this, so all suggestions are welcomed.

Thanks in advance

>;o))

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2 Apr 22, 2007 17:07

Before you go any further: does your host allow you to use .htaccess? Is the server Linux based (Windows based servers can't handle the .htaccess because there's no filename before the suffix)
A quick Google got me this page: http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum92/2593.htm. It might lead you to the right direction.

Good luck

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3 Apr 22, 2007 17:27

OK, the server is definitely Linux based according to the phpinfo I've just run. A quick ctrl-f doesn't throw up any mention of .htaccess though.

>;o))

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4 Apr 22, 2007 17:44

Chris of Arabia wrote:

I guess my next question is whether or not I should be wading through the enhancements to .htaccess under v0.9, or looking to upgrade to v1.9.3.

First and foremost, upgrade. After that you could start looking into antispam tricks, but you'll find 1.9.3 is way better than the old stuff at dealing with it. Just don't wait a year and a half before putting some time into it ;)

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5 Apr 22, 2007 17:48

I guess that's me told then - download completed, time to start backing some stuff up.

Thanks guys

>;o))

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6 Apr 22, 2007 17:56

Make sure you have a backup of your database and the files, with the conf/_config.php being probably the most important of all. It has your database connection info. Also anything in your media folder.

Your current skin won't work anymore. Lots of changes in how skins do their thing, so you'll have to pick a new one or re-customize one to your liking.

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7 Apr 22, 2007 17:58

Can I throw a real dumb question in here. I've been using FTP Explorer from FTPx Corp as my means of backing up my /blogs directory to my PC. Unfortunately it's choking on the job and bombs out part way through. Can anyone recommend a reliable free FTP program out there that I can use?

>;o))

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8 Apr 22, 2007 18:26

I use FileZilla, but sometimes jobs can overwhelm whatever it is that makes stuff choke. When that happens I tell it to do one directory at a time.

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9 Apr 28, 2007 02:28

Chris of Arabia wrote:

Can I throw a real dumb question in here. I've been using FTP Explorer from FTPx Corp as my means of backing up my /blogs directory to my PC. Unfortunately it's choking on the job and bombs out part way through. Can anyone recommend a reliable free FTP program out there that I can use?

Maybe is there an idea to develop a blog backup plug-in?... Such a plug-in should have a a scheduled behavior, so it should be possible to schedule the whole blog backup (every file found in the directories, plus the database dump), with a possibility to restore or to merge an old backup... If that plugin would compress everything into a .tar.gz or a .zip file, it should be possible to make download of the backed-up site easier... (It's probably not a great idea to automatically upload the backed-up files onto a distant FTP, since a hacker could then know your other FTP access information in the case your site would be hacked.)

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