[HTTPCLIENT-655] User-Agent string violates RFC

• Type: Bug
• Status: Closed
• Priority: Minor
• Resolution: Fixed
• Affects Version/s: 3.1 RC1
• Fix Version/s: 4.0 Alpha 1
• Component/s: HttpClient (classic)
• Assignee: Unassigned
• Reporter: Ortwin Glueck
• Created: 04/Jun/07 15:13
• Updated: 20/Jul/07 18:36
• Resolved: 03/Jul/07 08:27

Description

Our User-Agent says "Jakarta Commons-HttpClient/3.1-rc1". But space is a reserved character to separate individual products and comments according to RFC 2616, section 14.43. Jakarta is not a product. At the same time we may want to drop the Jakarta name altogether.

We should change this to something more standard like:

"Apache-HttpClient/3.1-rc1 ("+ System.getProperty("os.name") ";" System.getProperty("os.arch") ") "
"Java/"+ System.getProperty("java.vm.version") " (" System.getProperty("java.vm.vendor") +")"

which renders:

"Apache-HttpClient/3.1-rc1 (Windows XP 5.1;x86) Java/1.5.0_08 (Sun Microsystems Inc.)"

Sun's internal Http client uses something like "Java/1.5.0_08".

I am completely ignoring the fact that real-world user agents use almost arbitrary strings.
Some fine examples of misbehaviour from my private logs:

"Jakmpqes dihurxf wfyiupsc" – apparently somebody has to hide something...
"Missigua Locator 1.9"
"Poodle predictor 1.0"
"shelob v1.0"
"ISC Systems iRc Search 2.1"
"ping.blogug.ch aggregator 1.0"
"http://www.uni-koblenz.de/~flocke/robot-info.txt" – ...sigh

I am very tempted to write a User-Agent string validator that prevents misuse of this field in HttpClient.