- Joined
- Jul 19, 2004
- Messages
- 29,622
- Location
- Out of Bounds
If you attempt to access the forum and get an error message advising you your IP address is banned, it means you are arriving at our gates using a connection from an IP address that's been flagged for enough spam / hacking / malware attacks to render it unacceptable.
This sort of blockage has nothing to do with your user account, username, etc. It relates to the underlying method(s) by which you're connecting to the forum's server. This blockage is practically guaranteed to occur now and then if you're (e.g.):
- accessing the forum using a mobile device at multiple locations;
- relying on constantly-shifting IP assignments dynamically applied in a wireless networking scheme, or ...
- using an ISP or service (e.g., a VPN) that routes you to our gates via who-knows-what IP address or address range.
You may be routed to our server via multiple nodes, analogous to stepping stones used when crossing a creek. When you arrive at our server all the server 'sees' is the IP address of the last stepping stone / node from which you're directly linking to our site. That's the way the Net works.
If you receive the 'IP banned' block on a regular basis, the best thing to do is to proactively contact the forum staff directly using the Contact link at the bottom of each webpage or a PM to one or more staff members. You can also post about the problem here in the Website Issues section, but any staff response will almost certainly have to be shifted to email or PMs.
If you post about the problem on the open forum, do not post any details of your IP address(es) or your Net connections (e.g., services, equipment).
This sort of blockage has nothing to do with your user account, username, etc. It relates to the underlying method(s) by which you're connecting to the forum's server. This blockage is practically guaranteed to occur now and then if you're (e.g.):
- accessing the forum using a mobile device at multiple locations;
- relying on constantly-shifting IP assignments dynamically applied in a wireless networking scheme, or ...
- using an ISP or service (e.g., a VPN) that routes you to our gates via who-knows-what IP address or address range.
You may be routed to our server via multiple nodes, analogous to stepping stones used when crossing a creek. When you arrive at our server all the server 'sees' is the IP address of the last stepping stone / node from which you're directly linking to our site. That's the way the Net works.
If you receive the 'IP banned' block on a regular basis, the best thing to do is to proactively contact the forum staff directly using the Contact link at the bottom of each webpage or a PM to one or more staff members. You can also post about the problem here in the Website Issues section, but any staff response will almost certainly have to be shifted to email or PMs.
If you post about the problem on the open forum, do not post any details of your IP address(es) or your Net connections (e.g., services, equipment).