Dandello wrote on Oct 3
rd, 2014 at 9:41pm:
We're currently testing a "three-strikes you're out" auto-ban function for 'guest' IPs throwing repeated errors in a very short time. This is an idea JonB and I have talked about - especially in light of the DOS attacks that have been aimed at YaBBForum.com.
These aren't things caught by Guardian as we're looking at the same IP throwing errors in an inhumanly short time..
Jon's probably just realizing this because he's evidently operating that forum on a server he himself manages versus having it operated, and managed by a host. DOS attacks routinely hit servers all the time, but they're only noticed when a host is unable to stop the attacks. These days, the better hosts have a good handle on how to effectively manage a DOS attack when it happens so that their clients aren't adversely affected.
In any case, an auto-ban function as you described it seems to be a good thing for YaBB to have, especially if a forum is hosted by a company that doesn't have the experience to manage DOS attacks effectively. The thing is, an inexperienced host will likely have access to their servers denied, so even though the servers themselves may very well remain operational, it won't do any good if access to them is cut off.
As for those bots causing errors in such a speedy fashion, I know from seeing it myself that
The Guardian™ does catch all of them if spam-bot attempts are being made to access the forum. This is one of the reasons that I stopped having email notifications about those errors sent to me ... many hundreds, and sometimes thousands a day, of which I didn't need to see every single one of them.
By the way, even with this kind of auto-ban feature in effect, this won't stop DOS attacks from happening. Those attacks have to be stopped at levels
before the server level. More accurately, they can never really be stopped; just bounced away from the intended target, i.e., the host. It's also not uncommon for a hosting company to need help from levels above them.
DOS attacks are a nasty business.