Request to add follow redirect and maximum redirect options

[ElleshaHackett]

What is the purpose of this issue?

• Bug report (encountered problems with youtube-dl)
• Site support request (request for adding support for a new site)
• Feature request (request for a new functionality)
• Question
• Other

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Description of the suggested feature

It would be nice add a feature that allows to follow HTTP redirects and to add a maximum to that. In a similar way CURL has with the options:

• CURLOPT_MAXREDIRS
• CURLOPT_FOLLOWLOCATION

I use youtube-dl in a script used in a IPTV setup. Where youtube-dl fetches the m3u8 URL's from YouTube livestreams. Other then YouTube the general method of youtube-dl works fine on plenty of other websites. Some of this websites have moved their page and so redirect the user using an HTTP 301 or 302 status.

It could be great to have to flags that allows youtube-dl to follow those redirects (with a default maximum that can be altered similar to the two mentioned CURL options). This way the chance of getting a valid m3u8 stream back will improve, since the website is redirecting for a reason. It might still fail, but the changes are at least better.