Can't download zip files

My first question is: from where do you download it? Cause normally Safari doesn't care what kind of file it downloads, as long as there is a connection. If Firefox gives you a 4Kb file, it also hasn't downloaded anything, just the URL.
If you get a message like this: 0 bytes of ? - POSIX error: Connection reset by peer" it just means that the connection has been shut down by the server you're connected to.

Hi mattor,

Are you using any internet security software such as Intego NetBarrier?

Sometimes the software designed to protect you can protect you too well 🙂

How are you connected to the internet?

Have you tried power cycling your router/modem?

Also, I doubt this will work but can you confirm that using Safari in another user account behaves the same. This will help us to know whether your problem is local to your account or system wide. If you don't have another account you can use System Preferences -> Accounts -> [+] to create a test one (and [-] to remove it if needed)

I have also tried this on a few other OSX computers that I have here. Same problem on all of them.

If it's happening on a variety of Macs then it would seem to be something connected to the cable modem/router/ISP.

I'm able to download the link you posted earlier without any problems for what it's worth. I'm not sure what else to suggest for the moment though - hopefully someone else will jump in with some ideas.

What happens if you Option-Click on the link to download the zip file directly to your computer?

Can you hook up one of your Macs directly to the cable modem, bypassing the router, so you could rule the router out as a problem?

Do you have problems with zip files from all sites? Here are some zip files you can test downloading. They are skins for VLC Player, but they won't work for the Mac version. The content is not the issue, it is downloading and opening the zip file.

I also had no problems downloading and opening the tasktime4 zip file.

Hi mattor,
I Googled round a little looking for this POSIX error thing and I found out it's not a Safari thing, but something in the Unix kernel of OSX. Since I am a complete Unix nitwit, you may need the help of a real expert, though there's something you might try: on this site
http://linux.com.hk/penguin/man/4/ipfw_chains.html I found out that it maybe a firewall problem in the sense that the firewall won't accept certain files, which would explain why you only have problems with zip files. So you may try to remove the firewall and see what happens. I also found on this site an interesting line: ECONNRESET (packet would be accepted using masquerading). If I read this right, you may try to download it with the 'safe as' function and then when it asks you where to put, just rename the .zip in the file to .pdf or .jpg or anything that gives no problem, then start the download and when it's downloaded rename it to .zip. Maybe you can fool things that way. I am curious if this will work.

I just saw you had the same problems with all of your OSX Macs. Are they all behind the same firewall? In that case the firewall is likely to be the culprit.