This thread discusses the Content article: Protect your Website from Leeching with htaccess

At the bottom of the code for the .htaccess file there is this line which redirects hotlinked files and images:

Code:

RewriteRule .*\.(.*)$ http://themebot.com/ [R,NC]

If you are feeling creative, the URL can be adjusted to replace all hotlinked images with another image of your choice. First, you would need to setup another domain in your hosting or use an existing domain that does not have hotlink protection active. Then replace the URL with the URL to the image. For example:

Code:

RewriteRule .*\.(.*)$ http://newdomain.com/leechers_suck.jpg [R,NC]

You could have a lot of fun with this one

I would like to prevent downloading/recording of mp3 files that are streamed.

The proposed lines in .htaccess, will they do the job?

RewriteEngine on
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://www.mywebsite.com/.*$ [NC]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://www.mywebsite.com$ [NC]
RewriteRule .*\.(.*)$ http://www.mywebsite.com/ [R,NC]

Thanks in advance.

Rooman

The .htaccess rules in this article are for preventing other sites from hotlinking to the files on your site. Even if you implement these rules, people will still be able to download the mp3 files directly from your site if they are hosted in a public directory and the visitor knows the URL that leads to the files.

Are you wanting to prevent visitors from downloading the mp3 files on your site altogether so that they can only be listened to in streaming format?

Exactly, streaming but not downloadable.
I know that it's posssible to use specific leeching software but, expensive dedicated streaming servers are a little too expensive and also overkill for the amount of data concerned.
The problem concerns an orchestra who will authorise streaming of pieces recorded with personal collaboration but, only if download not posssible.

You are probably going to ask how much time and money can be spent to counter leeching? I reply, what is possible and at what expense?

If a simple solution that blocks 80% of users is possible, then for me that's probably okay. There is no commercial risk value involved here.

Probably the simplest way to do this is to use a Content Management System for the site with a module that streams audio. You would need to do some research to find a module that allows you to place the audio files in a private directory (only accessible to the server) and then have the module stream from that directory. I think Drupal, Joomla and WordPress offer modules / plugins with this capability and I'm sure there are other CMS that can do this. Of course, there is a learning curve with any CMS. If you are already familiar with one, check around for some modules or plugins that can do this. Best of luck!