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I just tried Free Download Manager (FDM), again, having the Firefox addon Flashgot use it. The download gets passed to FDM, and fails, giving the error message "access denied, invalid username or password." No password was required. The site I'm trying to get the file from is turbobit.net, which limits downloads speeds to 100kb/sec, and has a 59 second countdown before you get the link. I guess it's transparently using a password on their end. If I just download normally (save to disk) the download starts fine, but it fails after 30 minutes to 1 hour (always different), and my Wi-fi connection will stop briefly - and I have to start all over. So I will never be able to download a large file. I also tried DTA instead of FMD with Flashgot, and I get an "access denied" message in DTA. Again, I reloaded - waited the 59 seconds, and download w/Firefox, and the download starts fine. The failure message in the Firefox Downloads window is "source file at http... could not be read."

Any help would be greatly appreciated. When is Firefox going to finally add the ability to resume downloads????? Is there some other software I haven't found using Google that will work?

This page says: "This error can occur if the connection to the server was interrupted during the download. Make sure you are connected to the internet, then try the download again." - regarding the error message "... the source file could not be read." http://kb.mozillazine.org/Source_file_could_not_be_read

BTW - I have watched this closely, and the download quits when the wi-fi connection fails for a moment. The download fails after a different time period each time I try it, and after a different number of MB's have transferred - so it's unrelated to the server at turbobit.net.

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  • Here's an example of the lie from Firefox that they're going to fix this, going clear back to 2007 - "Firefox 3 to resume downloads across sessions" mozillalinks.org/wp/2007/09/…
    – Kim
    Jun 3, 2010 at 18:23

6 Answers 6

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The download managers don't require the server to support resuming

That's not correct. If a server doesn't support resume then download managers cannot resume downloads.

When is Firefox going to finally add the ability to resume downloads

Firefox does resume downloads. The problem is that many servers refuse to resume downloads even if there's a break in connection - the time period differs from server to server. ( TED's servers immediately comes to my mind, if there's break in connection for about 5 seconds, the download is ruined and I have to restart the download from start.)

I just tried Free Download Manager (FDM), again, having the Firefox addon Flashgot use it. The download gets passed to FDM, and fails, giving the error message "access denied, invalid username or password.

I also tried DTA instead of FMD with Flashgot, and I get an "access denied" message in DTA.

Few servers inspect the HTTP headers for the referrers, and block if the referrer is not a browser. I guess while transferring the download, the header gets mangled and the referrer becomes the download manager, instead of the browser.

The failure message in the Firefox Downloads window is source file at http... could not be read.

That's become the download links are autogenerated, are valid particular combination of parameters ( perhaps some session id ? I'm not sure), and are not persistent. Once the control of the download has been handed over to the browser, the links expire, and hence you get the error message. My suggestion: Try IDM. It's one of the better download managers that I've used. If the problem still persists, my suggestion is to use an alternative link to download, or maybe switch to a wired connection while downloading.

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  • Thank you for explaining why the download manager doesn't work.
    – Kim
    Jun 4, 2010 at 13:56
  • I think you're mixing up Referer [sic] with User-Agent.
    – Hello71
    May 15, 2011 at 0:39
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I have FF and I can resume downloads. Be aware that the server itself must be configured to allow resuming, so I imagine that's your issue. I'd also imagine that all servers that display countdowns or similar behaviour won't allow resume.

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  • You think they are MOVING the source file because MY internet connection was interrupted briefly? The download managers exist to resume downloads because Firefox doesn't do it right. My problem is the two download managers I have tried try to make their own connection to the internet, and the server that waited 59 seconds doesn't recognize the new connection. That's what I need to solve.
    – Kim
    Jun 3, 2010 at 18:39
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    @Kim: Actually, yes, in a sense they are moving the source file every few minutes (by letting download links expire).
    – sleske
    Jun 3, 2010 at 21:13
  • I'm suggesting that the http server might (be configured to) not support byte ranges which I believe is the mechanism behind resuming downloads. In my experience the files don't have an externally visible address to move anyway - they appear to the browser as generated content from an url like www.site/file?query=something. I imagine that once your connection's dropped you have to go through the website's process to generate a new custom url to download from.
    – Andy
    Jun 3, 2010 at 23:02
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This is definitely a problem on your end. Firefox resumes downloads just fine from servers which allow resuming. Try this out, go to some website serving fairly large files directly, with no redirects or countdowns. Start the download, then close Firefox. Reopen Firefox and your download will resume.

The problem with your case that you're trying to resume a download from a server that doesn't want you to. Firefox can't do anything about that.

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  • The download managers don't require the server to support resuming - that's what they are for. My problem is the two download managers I have tried make their OWN connection to the internet, and the server that waited 59 seconds doesn't recognize the new connection. That's what I need to solve.
    – Kim
    Jun 3, 2010 at 18:41
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    No program can resume a download if the server does not support it - after all it's the server who decides what data to send.
    – sleske
    Jun 3, 2010 at 21:12
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BTW - I have watched this closely, and the download quits when the wi-fi connection fails for a moment. The download fails after a different time period each time I try it, and after a different number of MB's have transferred - so it's unrelated to the server at turbobit.net.

Well, that's probably your problem. The download fails because your network connection drops, and Firefox runs into a timeout. You should probably try fixing your WiFi network problem.

And as pointed out by others, Firefox can and does resume downloads. However, resuming a download just means asking the server to continue sending data. If the server refuses, there's nothing FF (or any download manager) can do. In your case, the site probably provides download links which are only valid for a certain time. By the time the connection fails and you try to restart, the link has expired, hence the download cannot resume. So, definitely a problem with the site.

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I have also had problems with the Firefox and the turbobit website. They are both responsible. GetRight is the best download manager I have used and suspect it would solve your problem. It can not only resume from any website but download the same file from multiple sources at once for faster speed (similar to a torrent client). The downside of GetRight is you have to put up with nag pop-ups or pay for it, but for what it can do I'd say it's worth it.

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Maybe turbobit.net is looking for a POST & your download manager does not support POST requests? (I don't know if FDM does or does not?)

"Is uploaded.to broken?" http://forums.informaction.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5207&hilit=post+get

If that is the case, Browser Built In (from FlashGot) or simply downloading directly with FF itself should work (though less then optimal).

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