What a gateway does
An IPFS gateway lets standard HTTP clients request content by CID. Public gateways are useful for browsers and integrations that do not run their own IPFS node.
HiDHT probes public gateways with metadata-oriented requests. It does not render gateway responses, iframe content, or offer a download path.
Why gateway results differ
Gateways can differ by cache state, timeout policy, rate limits, content policy, and network path to providers.
A gateway failure does not always mean the CID is unavailable everywhere.