Anyone able to access Hulu via a Linode OpenVPN setup?

I'm doing this through a Newark linode and it works like a charm :-).

Have you cleared your cache/cookies/etc and restared your browser before accessing Hulu? Are you sure everything is being routed through the Linode?

I did it a few weeks ago (although I have a nasty openvpn problem at the moment – if you want to see something scary, look at http://www.linode.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=20802).

IIRC, Hulu's plugin checks your local time zone. Fix that, and you should be good to go.

I changed my timezone so it matches the timezone of where the NJ datacenter, is still no luck. What I can't figure out is all other sites with normal US IP Blocks work…

It also appears as if everything is getting routed, as even from a terminal prompt I am coming up with the NJ IP… Hmm, very strange.

I can try again tonight; I'm also in the NJ datacenter

@kitcar:

I changed my timezone so it matches the timezone of where the NJ datacenter, is still no luck. What I can't figure out is all other sites with normal US IP Blocks work…

It also appears as if everything is getting routed, as even from a terminal prompt I am coming up with the NJ IP… Hmm, very strange.

What if you go to, say, http://www.whatismyipaddress.com/ or some other site that shows the IP address your HTTP connection is coming from? Just to make sure the routing isn't weird…

I'm pretty sure Hulu doesn't check your timezone - both my linode and my PC have a GMT timezone, and it's fine.

When I proxy through my Newark Linode, http://www.hulu.com/users/queue always gives me a 403 Forbidden, but I can watch videos if I go straight to a show page.

(I live in NY, but sometimes forget to turn the proxy off)

Sorry, I mixed up hulu with ABC. Hulu doesn't require a time zone.

I had this issue with ESPN 360 when I proxied from my Linode at first, as well. ESPN 360 services college campuses and "preferred providers," and on a whim I tried my brand-new Linode and it didn't work. Two days later, it started working.

I suspect this has something to do with the GeoIP databases in use, and it's quite frustrating. Have you tried just a straight SSH tunnel for WWW traffic, the sorta-SOCKS method? In case the VPN isn't working right?

@jed:

I suspect this has something to do with the GeoIP databases in use, and it's quite frustrating. Have you tried just a straight SSH tunnel for WWW traffic, the sorta-SOCKS method? In case the VPN isn't working right?

That won't work for Hulu and other sites using GeoIP - they use Flash to connect directly to their servers, and Flash does not use your web browsers settings.

@saman007uk:

That won't work for Hulu and other sites using GeoIP - they use Flash to connect directly to their servers, and Flash does not use your web browsers settings.
Hm, worked for me last time I tried. They must have changed it since then. Good point.

@saman007uk:

Flash does not use your web browsers settings.

Uhh…. No. Flash respects my http-proxy setting just fine in Firefox, proven by the fact that I can get to Hulu/YouTube from within $WORK's network (where the only access to the outside is through a Squid box).

This is maybe a dumb suggestion, but could it be cookies?

Maybe you tried to hit from home, it set a cookie, and it's still there.

Thanks for all the replies! I appreciate it.

A few answers:

• Yes, I checked my IP both via web based tools and via the terminal (i'm on OSX here) - both resolve to the LinNode IP, so I know that is working fine.

• Yes, I tried SSH tunnel - no dice :(

• Yes, I cleared cookies - even tried a totally different browser I never use (Safari)

• I also tried via another VPN service, and it worked, so I know the problem is with my LinNode IP specifically

My gut says that Hulu just dosen't like my IP for some reason. Maybe it likes some Linode IP blocks but not others? NBC, Pandora and a few others all work fine, so I assume its a GEOIP database issue as previously mentioned :(

@kitcar:

NBC, Pandora and a few others all work fine, so I assume its a GEOIP database issue as previously mentioned :(
Hulu was convinced my Cox Phoenix IP wasn't in the United States for a long time, so perhaps. Sorry we couldn't help.

when you visit ABC and you are not in the united state, it automatically create a FLASH cookie, that cannot be deleted by conventional means.

So if you try later connecting to your vpn, you are a no go.

You need to go in your flash security center on adobe to clear it.

Maybe Hulu do it too.

Something that I thought about last night… you don't have the reverse DNS set to something obviously non-US, right? I think they'd probably be a little suspicious of a New Jersey IP address that reverses to huluproxy.superpants.co.uk or something like that :-)

If I were them, I'd check that. But I'm not, so you never know.

I have the same problem (though I've only had a linode for 2 days now).

My reverse DNS is configured to resolve to the IP itself (so no wrong TLD).

I found out that when I enter my IP at geoiptool.com (which has worked fine for me so far), it doesn't show any info at all. However, when I enter it at maxmind.com, I get the correct data (except for the city, but at least it's assigned to the US).

I guess there is no way modifying that data though because they accumulate it from multiple sources :?

I didn't know about flash cookies; that is pretty interesting. I found out how to delete them, just go here:

http://www.macromedia.com/support/docum … ger07.html">http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager07.html

That being said, it didn't fix the problem - thanks everyone for the help though!

@mwalling:

Uhh…. No. Flash respects my http-proxy setting just fine in Firefox, proven by the fact that I can get to Hulu/YouTube from within $WORK's network (where the only access to the outside is through a Squid box).

Not exactly what was meant. The Flash plugin can be made to send RTMP packets directly to the internet, without going through the system or browser specific proxy.

With this little trick, services like Hulu actualy get your real IP even if you're using a http proxy like Squid.

@hoopycat:

Something that I thought about last night… you don't have the reverse DNS set to something obviously non-US, right? I think they'd probably be a little suspicious of a New Jersey IP address that reverses to huluproxy.superpants.co.uk or something like that :-)

If I were them, I'd check that. But I'm not, so you never know.

They don't. My fremont IP resolves to a chinese domain, and it works just fine.