[Author Prev][Author Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Author Index][Thread Index]

Re: Am I really helping tor



John Brooks wrote:
> I think that ivvmm is slightly confused about the terminology here -
> which is perfectly understandable. In the interest of clarity:
> 
> A bridge is not handling general tor traffic; it's not put into the
> directory. Bridges exist to assist people in countries that attempt to
> block tor, by giving them a place to connect to that is not listed in
> any tor directory. As no countries currently attempt to block tor (to my
> knowledge), that is mostly a feature for when that day comes. This means
> that bridges handle far less traffic and don't get used much at all
> (currently).
> 
> A relay is a normal server relaying data for the network, as entry,
> middle, or exit. These are listed in the directories and chosen by the
> clients as their circuit. Relays are very important; every relay added
> increases anonymity and available bandwidth to the network. Relays *do
> not* have to allow exit traffic - you can keep the ExitPolicy as
> rejecting everything, and your relay will only handle entry and middle
> node traffic (which avoids abuse issues). Exit and non-exit are both
> very useful to the network. In my experience, a relay will use about as
> much bandwidth as you let it use, which is a sign of how desperate the
> network is for more of them.
> 
> I *think* that what you're going for here is running a non-exit relay;
> that is more useful to the network than a bridge (although bridges are
> very good too, as roger mentioned), and not allowing exit traffic avoids
> abuse and most legal issues.
> 
> Sorry if this is redundant, I just wasn't certain that this was made
> clear to you ;)
> 
>  - John Brooks
> 

You've read my thoughts! Thanks for your explanation. Really thought
that bridges are those servers in the middle, so it's clear now that
they are not.

Now going ExitPolicy reject *:* and
sudo kill -SIGHUP $(ps -C tor -o pid=)

Thanks everyone!

Attachment: signature.asc
Description: OpenPGP digital signature