Bypass LGfL YouTube blocking

[timzim]

LGfL/Synetrix appear to have just added YouTube to their blocked sites. Since a lot of our staff use it as a teaching aid I added it to my proxy bypass rule in ISA server (which uses a web chaining rule to bypass Synetrix's filtering) and blocked rule for pupils. However, although staff can access all YouTube pages the videos won't load - the Flash player box just sits there loading for ever.

 

I've added *.youtube.com and *.youtube.com/* to my bypass list but there must be something else I'm missing although there's nothing being blocked if I log the connection in ISA. Has anyone any ideas? FYI YouTube worked just fine before LGfL's block came into being.

[Theblacksheep]

according to my noscript plug-in Youtube requires ytimg.com for the vids.

[timzim]

I already spotted ytimg.com and added it to the bypass list but still no joy.

[glensc]

Add googlevideos.com to your allow list, worked for us with the same problem.

[timzim]

Unfortunately googlevideos.com had no effect - still can't load videos. In fact, if I type googlevideos.com into a browser I get a Google page which has turned the url into a search string - weird.

[glensc]

Checking it in a browser I think it was googlevideo.com ( which repaces with video.google.com in the browser address bar )

[timzim]

Got it - added *.cache.googlevideo.com/* to the allow list. Spotted the address in the monitor log - typed the IP address and the page never loaded, just like the videos were doing.

 

Thanks for the pointer glensc!

[adamf]

YouTube never stopped working for us!

 

On the web chaining..... are you not just redirecting to an upstream proxy.. in which case your not bypassing Synetrix's filtering. If your doing something else with web chaining, what is it because i'd be interested to look at configuring ours differently.

[timzim]

@adamf

 

You're right, web-chaining is routing to an upstream proxy but that's what we're doing when we go through the filter. If I choose not to go through Synetrix's proxy then my content isn't filtered

 

Setup is as follows:

 

I have 3 web-chaining rules (ISA Manager - servername - Configuration - Networks - Web Chaining)

 

1st rule's Action is 'Retrieve requests directly from the specified destination' and is applied only to a URL set (called 'Allowed thru filter'). Since this rule is applied first, any request to a url in the set bypasses the filter.

 

2nd rule's Action is 'Redirect to a specific upstream server' and in Settings put Synetrix proxy url, is applied to 'External', i.e. all other requests. Every other request has this rule applied and so goes through the Synetrix filters.

 

3rd rule is default but only gets used for internal requests since the 1st & 2nd rule catch all external requests. However, if I disabled the 2nd rule then every external request will bypass the filters (...pandemonium!! porn fiesta in every class!!! Daily Mail reporters on doorstep, etc....).

 

Have been using this setup for years - works just fine, except when a site uses multiple urls (e.g. YouTube, hence this thread) when it's a bit trickier.

[adamf]

Hmmmm..... I can't get it to work!

 

I've now got 3 rules under web chaning:

 

1: Bypass Synetrix - applying to traffic sent to a URL set and set to retrieve directly from the specified destination.

 

2: Redirect to Synetrix - applied to External and set to forward requests to proxy1.equinoxsolutions.com

 

3: Last default rule

 

When I try and browse to a site that is blocked using the url filtering I get the brown Network Access Error message saying timeout.

 

Do i need to do anything at the client end?

[timzim]

If you disable rules 1 & 2 (and leave rule 3 on) can you access any websites at all? If so are any of them still filtered? Try to access something you know is normally banned (I couldn't possibly suggest any site, he-he) - if you can access normally-allowed websites but get LGfL filtering for normally-banned sites then your router must be configured to go directly through the Synetrix proxy, in which case you may not be able to bypass it.

[flyinghaggis]

Without wanting to sound like a killjoy are you not skating on thin ice by trying to proactively bypass filltering that LGfL have put in place!

[timzim]

Oooh, don't touch it - you might break it....