Many modern web services use redirects for load balancing, CDN routing, or version control. For instance, a "latest" link often redirects to a specific versioned URL (e.g., v1.2.3.zip ). Without the -L flag, curl will simply output the HTML message of the 3xx redirect page rather than the file content you need.
If your downloaded file is 0KB, check if you forgot the -L flag. curl likely "downloaded" the redirect instruction instead of the file. curl follow redirect download
The most critical flag for managing redirects in curl is -L . When you include this option, curl will redo the request to the new address provided by the server in the Location: header. Basic Syntax curl -L [URL] Use code with caution. Many modern web services use redirects for load
📍 Use curl -I first to see the headers and determine if a redirect is occurring before running your full download command. Advanced Redirect Scenarios 1. Handling Authentication Across Redirects If your downloaded file is 0KB, check if
Understanding how to handle redirects is a fundamental skill when working with curl . Whether you are automating backups, scraping data, or downloading software packages, servers often move content using HTTP status codes like 301 (Permanent) or 302 (Found). By default, curl does not follow these paths, which can lead to empty files or unexpected errors.
To make your downloads more robust, tell me if you'd like to explore: (using -C - ) Downloading multiple files in a single command Using curl within a shell script for automation