News3 mins ago
mirror sites
if i download something, sometimes it will say 'mirrors at'.... what is a mirror? are they a good or a bad thing?
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Mirror sites are simply duplicates of the principal ones. They exist to share the load more evenly across connections.
For example, you might want to download something from a US site but, when you go to that site, you're offered the choice of downloading from a mirror site in, say, France. Both sites have exactly the same file available but the closer site might provide a faster download.
In other cases your request for a file might be automatically redirected to a mirror site, either because the main server recognises your location and connects you to a closer server or simply because the main server is already very busy.
Chris
For example, you might want to download something from a US site but, when you go to that site, you're offered the choice of downloading from a mirror site in, say, France. Both sites have exactly the same file available but the closer site might provide a faster download.
In other cases your request for a file might be automatically redirected to a mirror site, either because the main server recognises your location and connects you to a closer server or simply because the main server is already very busy.
Chris
1 to 3 of 3
