Default request limits per minute, hour and day, sized for API use (closes #176)
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The default request limits now suit programmatic use of an API, such
as an automation fleet on another host, and still catch abusive bots:

- per minute: 500, room for a fleet's busiest minute and a few first
  visits with an empty cache, and passed within seconds by a client
  firing as fast as it can;
- per hour: 20000, passed by a client that keeps up 6 a second;
- per day: 300000, passed by a scraper that keeps up 4 a second.

The byte limits and ban lengths are unchanged. SPEC.md, README.md and
docs/settings.md give the reasons; docs/gitea.md redoes the Actions
runner sums.

Judgement call: the docs/alerts.md ban example shows the minute limit.

Model: opus-5-5
This commit was merged in pull request #179.
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2026-11-04 23:02:39 +01:00
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@@ -17,11 +17,20 @@ reference documents under [`docs/`](docs/) are listed under "Documents" below.
## What it protects against
- Scrapers that fetch every page of a site, all day. Rate limiting gives each
client 6000 requests a minute, 100,000 an hour and 1,000,000 a day. Byte
limits give it 4 GiB a minute, 20 GiB an hour and 200 GiB a day. A client over
a limit is refused and banned. The first ban lasts an hour. Each repeat within
a day makes the next ban three times as long. A ban that would last more than
seven days is permanent.
client 500 requests a minute, 20,000 an hour and 300,000 a day. That leaves
room for programmatic use of an API, such as an automation fleet on another
host. A fleet of about 20 agents makes about 120 requests a minute at its
busiest. A gitea page opened with an empty cache loads about 40 files, so a
few such first visits fit in the minute limit too. The minute limit catches,
within seconds, a client firing requests as fast as it can. The hour limit
catches a client that keeps up more than about 5.5 a second for an hour. The
day limit catches a client that keeps up 4 a second around the clock. Counting
cannot catch a client that stays under all three limits, such as one that
keeps up 3 a second; only the protections below can. Byte limits give each
client 4 GiB a minute, 20 GiB an hour and 200 GiB a day. A client over a limit
is refused and banned. The first ban lasts an hour. Each repeat within a day
makes the next ban three times as long. A ban that would last more than seven
days is permanent.
- Scanners that probe for secrets, such as `/.env` or `/.git/config`. The
default rule file bans such a client for seven days at its first probe. Its
next request during the ban makes the ban permanent. The default rule file