Filter
Top Products
Wireless Gateway User Guide
66
URL Filter
The URL Filter provides a means to block access to undesirable Web sites. The blocking action
applies to all PCs accessing the Internet via the Wireless Gateway.
Operation
The URL Filter feature works by matching the "Filter Strings" (text strings) against the re-
quested URL. For example, by inputting the word “bad” in the URL Filter, any URL containing
the letters “bad” in it will be blocked.
Note that if
any component
of the URL request contains one of the "Filter Strings", that
request will be blocked while the URL Filter is enabled.
URL requests to Web (Internet) Servers include the following components:
•
Protocol.
For Internet access, the usual protocol is HTTP (shown in your browser as
"HTTP://"). The URL Filter works ONLY with the HTTP protocol. Other protocols, such
as FTP and E-Mail, are not affected by the URL Filter.
•
Domain.
This is the address of the site (e.g. www.microsoft.com)
•
Path.
This specifies a certain file on the Server (e.g. /public/docs/index.html )
•
Parameters.
This is the data which is sent (submitted) to the Server when you submit a
form, such as when you use a search engine to search the Internet.
On a Web page, clicking a link may also submit data to a Server, rather than just request a
file.
All of these components are searched to see if they contain any of the "Filter Strings".
Tips
•
To use the URL Filter feature properly, you should try inputting as much of the text for the
given URL as possible. For example, instead of simply using the word “bad,” you could
use the full web site name.
•
If you do not want to block an entire web site, you can include the path rather than just the
domain. For example, “www.badsite.com/badsection/”
•
Be careful when using the URL Filter, as a general word might block access to many other
sites as well as the one that you intend to block.
•
You can use the Internet Access Log, accessed from the
Status
screen, to see which sites
have been blocked by the URL Filter.