Configuring HTTP and HTTPS Fallback

HTTP Fallback serves as a secondary transfer method when the Internet connectivity required for Aspera accelerated transfers (i.e., UDP port 33001, by default) is unavailable. When HTTP Fallback is enabled and UDP connectivity is lost or cannot be established, the transfer will continue over the HTTP protocol.

Note: This feature requires configuring your settings in IBM Aspera Connect Server. For details on how to perform these tasks, see the "Configuring HTTP and HTTPS Fallback" topic in your Connect Server Administrator Guide.

You may configure HTTP/HTTPS Fallback in the IBM Aspera Connect Server GUI or modify aspera.conf. To edit your settings within the GUI, launch Connect Server and go to Configuration > Global (tab in left pane) > HTTP Fallback (tab in right pane).

After modifying aspera.conf, run the following command (from Enterprise Server's bin directory) to validate your updated configuration file:
$ /opt/aspera/bin/asuserdata -v
Changing your HTTP Fallback port number:
In the event that you need to modify your HTTP Fallback port number, configure the following section In your aspera.conf file (replacing <port> with your new port number):
<http_server>
	<http_port><port></http_port>
	<https_port><port></https_port>
	<enable_http>true</enable_http>
	<enable_https>true</enable_https>
</http_server>
Warning: If IBM Aspera Shares is set to use Encryption-at-Rest, downloading unencrypted content through HTTP Fallback will fail with the following errors:
  • Downloading unencrypted file(s) or folder(s) will fail with the "Insufficient permissions" error.
  • Downloading a mix of encrypted and unencrypted files or folders together will fail with the "Connection lost" error.
  • Downloading a mix of folders, some folders with only encrypted files and other folders with only unencrypted files, will fail with the "Server refused request" error.
  • Downloading encrypted file(s) or folder(s) with the wrong passphrase entered will fail with the "File decryption error, bad passphrase" error.