Skip to main content

Block or allow specific videos

Updated
This article applies to all setups: Cloud-only, On-Premise Appliance-only and Hybrid setups (both On-Premise Appliance and Cloud).

 

You can block or allow access to specific videos using the URL (using Cloud Filter) or the video ID (found near or at the end of the video’s URL):

  • An eleven-character YouTube video ID. For example, in the URL https://youtu.be/IDDkcQFrhLk?feature=shared&t=60, the video ID is 'IDDkcQFrhLk'.
  • A nine-character Vimeo video ID.
  • A seven-character DailyMotion video ID.

  Important

Video filtering may not work for videos hosted on platforms other than YouTube, Vimeo or DailyMotion.

 

Alternatively, you can also block or allow playlists.

 

Where the videos are blocked

When filtering is applied using On-Premise Appliance, videos are blocked everywhere.

When filtering is applied using Cloud Filter Extension, devices must use Version 3.1.0 or higher to block videos.

When filtering is applied using Smoothwall Browser, videos:

  • Are blocked when users attempt to access the video using the full URL, or on YouTube
  • Can be accessed through Google using the video ID.

When filtering is applied using Android Filter App, videos:

  • Are blocked when users attempt to access the video using the full URL.
  • Can be accessed through YouTube or Google using search or the video ID.

 

Manage your block and allow lists

Hybrid (both On-Premise Appliance and Cloud)

If you have a Hybrid setup, you can manage your Categories and Web Filter Policies in either place.

On-Premise Appliance

  1. Go to Guardian > Policy Objects > Categories and select an existing Category or create a Custom Category.
  2. Select Advanced, paste unique video IDs into the Video ID filtering field, and Save the changes.
  3. Additional step if you block Vimeo: Enter these items in the Domain/URL filtering section:
    • player-telemetry.vimeo.com
    • vimeocdn.com
  4. Additional step if you block YouTube: Create a Web Filter policy for the YouTube Allowed Videos and Playlists Category with Allow as the Action. Don’t edit this category.
  5. Create a Web Filter policy to Block or Allow your Custom Category as required.
  6. Order the new policy above any other policies that cover the website.
  7. Log out of On-Premise Appliance to sync your changes.

Cloud Filter

  1. Go to Filter > Custom Categories and Edit an existing category or select Add category.
  2. Go to the Videos tab, paste an item into the box and select +Add Video Id. You can use:
    • A full video URL.
    • A unique video ID.
  3. In the list, you can see:
    • The thumbnail and title for YouTube videos.
    • The ID for Vimeo and DailyMotion videos, but not the thumbnail or title.
  4. Repeat to add another video.
  5. Additional step if you block Vimeo: Enter these items in the Domain/URL filtering section:
    • player-telemetry.vimeo.com
    • vimeocdn.com
  6. Create a Web Filter policy to Block or Allow the Custom Category as required.
  7. Order the new policy above any other policies that cover the website.
  8. Go to Filter > Publishing and select Publish to sync your changes.