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Forum Discussion
Embeddable videos without the ability to download
Hi All,
I am working with a Business account of dropbox with the ability to switch off downloads. We are an event company and so we integrate embeddable links into the back end of our event platform to play video content navigable through the event agenda. We are able to get the embeddable links by altering the '?dl=0' to '?raw=1' at the end of each video link but when we disable the downloads this breaks the link.
The content we embed is accessible for a limited period of time on our event platforms and is only for paying attendees, additionally, there are strict controls on our use of this media from the industry professionals who have given it to us. This means that having it downloadable and shareable is a nightmare scenario and could get us into very hot water indeed. I have convinced the company to continue using dropbox for its long term storage capabilities but this factor alone is being viewed very much as a dealbreaker.
I am desperate to find a workaround for this issue or we will need to return to Vimeo for play-back, in which case there isn't much point in archiving the videos in dropbox.
I vastly prefer handling files in dropbox so if there is someway to deal with this issue please do let me know!
JakewVP wrote:
But when I turn off the ability to download in the file sharing settings (File > Share > Settings) the link ending in '?raw=1' doesn't work embedded into the event site or pasted into the browser.
That's likely working as intended.
A link with ?dl=0 will take you to the Dropbox website so the file can be previewed. This has the added bonus of Dropbox being able to remove the download functionality from the page, and since you're just getting a preview, downloading that (since there's no real way to block the download of what you can see in a browser) doesn't get you the original file.
Now with both ?dl=1 and ?raw=1, You're telling Dropbox that the web browser should handle the file, either by downloading it or streaming the raw data. The raw data is the original file, and streaming it is just another method of downloading it, which you've disabled.
I doubt that this is going to work as you intend it to.
- Daphne
Dropbox Staff
Hello there JakewVP, I hope you're having a good day!
Can you clarify for me, is the issue occurring just when you change the link ending and try open the link via the browser, or when you embed the link with the end changed?
Also, are you receiving a specific error? Could you send along a screenshot of this, if so?
Looking forward to hearing back from you!Hi Daphne,
The sharing link works fine either as ?raw=1 or ?dl=0, if I pasted either into my browser they work. I can also successfully embed the link ending with '?raw=1' into the event site, but it has the undesirable option to allow viewers to download. But when I turn off the ability to download in the file sharing settings (File > Share > Settings) the link ending in '?raw=1' doesn't work embedded into the event site or pasted into the browser. In both instances, I get generic error 403. It does work if I revert to the original '?dl=0' link but then that link can't be embedded.
Many Thanks for all your help with this- Rich
Super User II
JakewVP wrote:
But when I turn off the ability to download in the file sharing settings (File > Share > Settings) the link ending in '?raw=1' doesn't work embedded into the event site or pasted into the browser.
That's likely working as intended.
A link with ?dl=0 will take you to the Dropbox website so the file can be previewed. This has the added bonus of Dropbox being able to remove the download functionality from the page, and since you're just getting a preview, downloading that (since there's no real way to block the download of what you can see in a browser) doesn't get you the original file.
Now with both ?dl=1 and ?raw=1, You're telling Dropbox that the web browser should handle the file, either by downloading it or streaming the raw data. The raw data is the original file, and streaming it is just another method of downloading it, which you've disabled.
I doubt that this is going to work as you intend it to.
