Why can I not download a file larger than 1.0 GB using my browser?

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I have attempted to download a 2.5 GB ZIP backup file from my hosting provider and the size of the resultant downloaded file is always around 1.0 GB. The download just stops. I see no errors displayed. The file is, of course, corrupt since it did not finish loading. I have used the latest versions of Firefox, Chrome and IE with the same result. My hosting provider and my ISP state they do not place any limits on the size of downloaded files. I have downloaded this size file using this machine from the same hosting provider for the past 3 years with no problems. The last time I performed this download was in December of 2014 (worked fine).

I am running an Apache server on my WIN7 machine so I used the following script to see if I can simulate the problem locally (all files are located on the same computer). The same results were observed (size limited to around 1.0 GB) so it can’t be my hosting provider or my ISP.

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I used SFTP to download the same file from my hosting provider and it downloaded properly.

I am running the latest version of WIN7 with an Intel i7 CPU (64 bit) with 12.0 GB of RAM.

Any ideas on how to solve this problem? Since it worked in the past, it must have been some WIN7 update that caused the problem.

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As a diagnostic can you download any other large file from a different Web site? I’d try this .iso file at about 1.5GB:
http://downloads.solydxk.com/solydk/solydk64_201506.iso
This one is over 2GB:
http://calculate.mirror.garr.it/mirrors/calculate/CLD/14.16.2/x86_64/cld-14.16.2-x86_64.iso

Is the problem only with .zip files? A possibility could be a corrupted source file on the server.

I’d be willing to try your download if you’d like but will be gone lunchtime for about 7 hours tomorrow.

Before you wonder "Am I doing things right," ask "Am I doing the right things?"

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Thanks for the sources for the large files. Here are the results:

The 1.5 GB file downloaded completely in 11 minutes.

The 2.0 GB file stopped at 651,979 KB. It had been downloading for 7 minutes. I’ll repeat the 2.0 GB file and see if I get the same results.

My original problem can’t be a corrupt source file on the server because I can download it using SFTP and then successfully extract the files. Also, after downloading it using SFTP, I loaded it on my local (Apache) server and got the same results.

Thanks for the offer to download the ZIP file from my server but I can’t because the ZIP file contains some private information.

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I downloaded the 2.2 GB file two more times and both times the download completed properly. The previous failure must have been a fluke. I did notice a difference between the downloads of the ISO files from the servers you recommended and the download from my hosting provider and the test on my local server. On the servers you recommended, the browser client knows the size of the file being downloaded and shows progress of ( xx minutes remaining, 0.5 GB of 2.5 GB). On my hosting provider and my test setup the browser client does not know the size of the file being downloaded. It will just display (time remaining unknown, 0.5 GB). I modified my test setup and used a different method for the download and now the 2.5 GB zip file downloads properly (on my local test server) and displays the time remaining.

I’ll run the same test from my hosting provider’s server tomorrow to see how that works. It will take me a quite a while to upload a 2.5 GB file to my hosting provider account as my upload speed is limited to 6.0 Mbps.

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I have verified if I access the 2.5 GB file directly (http://www.mydomain.com/zip_test.zip) at my hosting provider then I can successfully download a 2.5 GB file. The correct file size is shown in the progress section on the browser.

I did this as a test. Unfortunately I cannot directly access the backup (ZIP) file at my hosting provider. They possibly use some type of program to dynamically generate the file on the fly. I’ll need to work with my hosting provider on the problem.

Does anyone know if it is a fact that the download will terminate after a transfer of about 1.0 GB if the browser is not aware of the size of the file. Files less than 1.0 GB will completely download even if the browser is not aware of the file size.

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