Has something changed in Gnutella with "Browse" requests?
 

Ive noticed that a lot of download attempts recently say "File not found" (using Phex 3.2) When I "Browse" the host, I can see that the file is there. I was under the impression that a browse was a direct request for a list of files from the host with the files and did not rely on the Ultra Peer's list which may be out dated.

Is there a reason that the a browse would return a list of files that are not currently being shared?

Thanks
Dave

Not that I know of. It might be a spammer, or it might be a client which doesn't respond correctly.

From which servents do you get the "File not found"? (LimeWire, Phex, gtk-gnutella, ...)

While using Phex 3.2, I get "file not found" responses from Limewire servants. I tested using LW 4.14 and I get a "need another source" response for these same files. Each time I browse I get a list of files from the host. Some files will download but others from the same host are clearly have been moved or deleted from the shared folder. Ive had the same results with mutiple hosts. Im wondering if my "browse" is getting an old list of files from somewhere and not a real time list. They dont appear to be spam.

Maybe they just fail to update their list of shared files...

LimeWire has a feature not to share files which aren't clearly labelled as "free to share", maybe that's what is kicking in.