script for timed website

tfinch · #1 (**permalink**) 04-06-2004, 04:08 PM

Hello, I really enjoy reading the messages posted here. I am wondering if someone can help me. I have a password protect area on a web site (created with Front Page) and I want this site to close all windows after a certain amount of time. I now have a redirect after 5 minutes but someone can easily hit the back button and get right back to the "secured" area.
What I want to do is close the site after so much inactivity... like 2 minutes. But I can't find a script for that. I think closing the window will work just as well but the browser always asks if I want to close using a javascript (window.close). Any assistance is much appreciated.

sijpie · #2 (**permalink**) 04-07-2004, 06:51 AM

If you use asp or php, then you can access the server session. On one of my sites I login, and I set a session variable. The server will time out the session, and delete the set variable after a certain amount of time (default is usually between 7-10 minutes) which you can set.

Note though that if you set it short (2 min) there is a penalty for any user on the site, as after two minutes, a new connection needs to be made to the site, costing some traffic and a short delay, nothing serious though.

The only other not using php or asp would be thorugh javascript set cookies, where you can read the time the cookie was updated, but I am not sure if that is an elegant method either. And I find it very hard to work with cookies...

swstyles · #3 (**permalink**) 04-07-2004, 05:33 PM

I have been asked this question before.
bank of america uses a javascript timer. I you stay on a page longer than 10 minutes, you get a javascript pop message that asks you if you want to continue your session. If you don't reply within a certain time, like 1 minute, then you are redirected to a page that kills the session and logs you out.

Very simple.

Nargule · #4 (**permalink**) 04-08-2004, 04:56 PM

There are lots of ways to do this with server side scripting, but I am assuming you want a client side solution. I will mention that I am not sure how Frontpage password protection works.

When someone accesses your password protected pages, set a cookie with a time of 120 seconds. Make the cookie renew everytime the page is reloaded within the 120 seconds. Put a meta refresh tag on the page to redirect in 120 seconds. Write some JavaScript on the secure pages that redirects to a "Session Timed Out" page if the cookie is expired.

joshnabbott · #5 (**permalink**) 06-22-2004, 02:25 AM

If you just want a window that will close itself after a set amount of time, place this code someplace in the <head></head> tags:

<script>
var closeAfter = 300000;
t = null;
function closeWin(){
t = setTimeout("self.close()",closeAfter);
}
</script>

and instead of the <body> tag, use this:

<body onload="closeWin();self.focus()">

howLong is the time in milliseconds so 30000 is actually 30 seconds and I guess 300000 would be five mintues... I was never much good for math.

Hope this helps.[/b]