-Apache will return 403 (Forbidden) instead of 404 (Not Found) if the `Indexes` option is turned off. This is because with `Indexes` turned on, it considers it something it *might* be able to serve in the future. With `Indexes` off, it will never serve that page in the future (unless `Indexes` is turned back on).
+Apache will return 403 (Forbidden) instead of 404 (Not Found) if the
+`Indexes` option is turned off. This is because with `Indexes` turned on,
+it considers it something it *might* be able to serve in the future. With
+`Indexes` off, it will never serve that page in the future (unless
+`Indexes` is turned back on).
The [[404 plugin|plugins/404]] code only checks for 404, not 403. It should check for both.
+> There are plenty of reasons a web server might 403. In most of those
+> cases, trying to create a page where the forbidden content is is not the
+> right thing for ikiwiki to do. --[[Joey]]
+
See Also:
* [StackOverflow: 404-vs-403](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/5075300/404-vs-403-when-directory-index-is-missing)