diff --git a/include/libtorrent/aux_/session_impl.hpp b/include/libtorrent/aux_/session_impl.hpp
index 6ebfbffbc..40747feb4 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/aux_/session_impl.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/aux_/session_impl.hpp
@@ -635,7 +635,9 @@ namespace libtorrent
 			void update_connection_speed();
 			void update_queued_disk_bytes();
 			void update_alert_queue_size();
+#ifndef TORRENT_NO_DEPRECATE
 			void update_dht_upload_rate_limit();
+#endif
 			void update_disk_threads();
 			void update_network_threads();
 			void update_cache_buffer_chunk_size();
@@ -1031,7 +1033,7 @@ namespace libtorrent
 			// but for the udp port used by the DHT.
 			int m_external_udp_port;
 
-			rate_limited_udp_socket m_udp_socket;
+			udp_socket m_udp_socket;
 			libtorrent::utp_socket_manager m_utp_socket_manager;
 
 #ifdef TORRENT_USE_OPENSSL
diff --git a/include/libtorrent/kademlia/dht_tracker.hpp b/include/libtorrent/kademlia/dht_tracker.hpp
index 7474b6204..d3e35cf76 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/kademlia/dht_tracker.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/kademlia/dht_tracker.hpp
@@ -66,12 +66,12 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 {
 	struct dht_tracker;
 
-	struct dht_tracker TORRENT_FINAL
+	struct TORRENT_EXTRA_EXPORT dht_tracker TORRENT_FINAL
 		: udp_socket_interface
 		, udp_socket_observer
 		, boost::enable_shared_from_this<dht_tracker>
 	{
-		dht_tracker(dht_observer* observer, rate_limited_udp_socket& sock
+		dht_tracker(dht_observer* observer, udp_socket& sock
 			, dht_settings const& settings, counters& cnt
 			, dht_storage_constructor_type storage_constructor
 			, entry const& state);
@@ -144,9 +144,8 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 		void refresh_key(error_code const& e);
 
 		// implements udp_socket_interface
-		virtual bool has_quota();
-		virtual bool send_packet(libtorrent::entry& e, udp::endpoint const& addr
-			, int send_flags);
+		virtual bool has_quota() TORRENT_OVERRIDE;
+		virtual bool send_packet(libtorrent::entry& e, udp::endpoint const& addr) TORRENT_OVERRIDE;
 
 		// this is the bdecode_node DHT messages are parsed into. It's a member
 		// in order to avoid having to deallocate and re-allocate it for every
@@ -155,7 +154,7 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 
 		counters& m_counters;
 		node m_dht;
-		rate_limited_udp_socket& m_sock;
+		udp_socket& m_sock;
 		dht_logger* m_log;
 
 		std::vector<char> m_send_buf;
@@ -170,6 +169,10 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 
 		// used to resolve hostnames for nodes
 		udp::resolver m_host_resolver;
+
+		// state for the send rate limit
+		int m_send_quota;
+		time_point m_last_tick;
 	};
 }}
 
diff --git a/include/libtorrent/kademlia/dos_blocker.hpp b/include/libtorrent/kademlia/dos_blocker.hpp
index 830950202..44c0f8008 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/kademlia/dos_blocker.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/kademlia/dos_blocker.hpp
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 		}
 
 	private:
-	
+
 		// used to ignore abusive dht nodes
 		struct node_ban_entry
 		{
diff --git a/include/libtorrent/kademlia/node.hpp b/include/libtorrent/kademlia/node.hpp
index c55503e98..8fa0ace9b 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/kademlia/node.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/kademlia/node.hpp
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ public:
 struct udp_socket_interface
 {
 	virtual bool has_quota() = 0;
-	virtual bool send_packet(entry& e, udp::endpoint const& addr, int flags) = 0;
+	virtual bool send_packet(entry& e, udp::endpoint const& addr) = 0;
 protected:
 	~udp_socket_interface() {}
 };
diff --git a/include/libtorrent/performance_counters.hpp b/include/libtorrent/performance_counters.hpp
index 09c8d0278..e3ee9aafe 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/performance_counters.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/performance_counters.hpp
@@ -217,6 +217,7 @@ namespace libtorrent
 			recv_redundant_bytes,
 
 			dht_messages_in,
+			dht_messages_in_dropped,
 			dht_messages_out,
 			dht_messages_out_dropped,
 			dht_bytes_in,
diff --git a/include/libtorrent/session_settings.hpp b/include/libtorrent/session_settings.hpp
index a65b73826..e69b8208c 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/session_settings.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/session_settings.hpp
@@ -1406,6 +1406,7 @@ namespace libtorrent
 			, block_ratelimit(5)
 			, read_only(false)
 			, item_lifetime(0)
+			, upload_rate_limit(8000)
 		{}
 
 		// the maximum number of peers to send in a reply to ``get_peers``
@@ -1507,6 +1508,11 @@ namespace libtorrent
 		// the number of seconds a immutable/mutable item will be expired.
 		// default is 0, means never expires.
 		int item_lifetime;
+
+		// the number of bytes per second (on average) the DHT is allowed to send.
+		// If the incoming requests causes to many bytes to be sent in responses,
+		// incoming requests will be dropped until the quota has been replenished.
+		int upload_rate_limit;
 	};
 
 
diff --git a/include/libtorrent/settings_pack.hpp b/include/libtorrent/settings_pack.hpp
index 9531ecb9c..7575ab887 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/settings_pack.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/settings_pack.hpp
@@ -1248,11 +1248,15 @@ namespace libtorrent
 			deprecated4,
 #endif
 
+#ifndef TORRENT_NO_DEPRECATE
 			// ``dht_upload_rate_limit`` sets the rate limit on the DHT. This is
 			// specified in bytes per second and defaults to 4000. For busy boxes
 			// with lots of torrents that requires more DHT traffic, this should
 			// be raised.
 			dht_upload_rate_limit,
+#else
+			deprecated7,
+#endif
 
 			// ``unchoke_slots_limit`` is the max number of unchoked peers in the
 			// session. The number of unchoke slots may be ignored depending on
diff --git a/include/libtorrent/udp_socket.hpp b/include/libtorrent/udp_socket.hpp
index 1b21cde01..54dc6d755 100644
--- a/include/libtorrent/udp_socket.hpp
+++ b/include/libtorrent/udp_socket.hpp
@@ -73,10 +73,9 @@ namespace libtorrent
 		~udp_socket();
 
 		enum flags_t {
-			dont_drop = 1
-			, peer_connection = 2
-			, tracker_connection = 4
-			, dont_queue = 8
+			peer_connection = 1
+			, tracker_connection = 2
+			, dont_queue = 4
 		};
 
 		bool is_open() const
@@ -309,21 +308,6 @@ namespace libtorrent
 		int m_outstanding_socks;
 #endif
 	};
-
-	struct rate_limited_udp_socket : public udp_socket
-	{
-		rate_limited_udp_socket(io_service& ios);
-		void set_rate_limit(int limit) { m_rate_limit = limit; }
-		bool send(udp::endpoint const& ep, char const* p, int len
-			, error_code& ec, int flags = 0);
-		bool has_quota();
-
-	private:
-
-		int m_rate_limit;
-		int m_quota;
-		time_point m_last_tick;
-	};
 }
 
 #endif
diff --git a/simulation/Jamfile b/simulation/Jamfile
index 3fe4f3b0a..2c56e4852 100644
--- a/simulation/Jamfile
+++ b/simulation/Jamfile
@@ -37,5 +37,6 @@ alias libtorrent-sims :
 	[ run test_trackers_extension.cpp ]
 	[ run test_tracker.cpp ]
 	[ run test_ip_filter.cpp ]
+	[ run test_dht_rate_limit.cpp ]
 	;
 
diff --git a/simulation/setup_dht.cpp b/simulation/setup_dht.cpp
index 64bce3385..6af902673 100644
--- a/simulation/setup_dht.cpp
+++ b/simulation/setup_dht.cpp
@@ -52,6 +52,8 @@ namespace lt = libtorrent;
 using namespace sim;
 using namespace libtorrent;
 
+#ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+
 namespace {
 
 	lt::time_point start_time;
@@ -155,7 +157,7 @@ struct dht_node final : lt::dht::udp_socket_interface
 	}
 
 	bool has_quota() override { return true; }
-	bool send_packet(entry& e, udp::endpoint const& addr, int flags) override
+	bool send_packet(entry& e, udp::endpoint const& addr) override
 	{
 		// since the simulaton is single threaded, we can get away with allocating
 		// just a single send buffer
@@ -329,4 +331,5 @@ void dht_network::stop()
 	for (auto& n : m_nodes) n.stop();
 }
 
+#endif // TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
 
diff --git a/simulation/test_dht.cpp b/simulation/test_dht.cpp
index b671ece3e..85e20665c 100644
--- a/simulation/test_dht.cpp
+++ b/simulation/test_dht.cpp
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ namespace lt = libtorrent;
 
 TORRENT_TEST(dht_bootstrap)
 {
+#ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
 	sim::default_config cfg;
 	sim::simulation sim{cfg};
 
@@ -124,5 +125,7 @@ TORRENT_TEST(dht_bootstrap)
 
 	sim.run();
 
+#endif // TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+
 }
 
diff --git a/simulation/test_dht_rate_limit.cpp b/simulation/test_dht_rate_limit.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fdf1be94c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/simulation/test_dht_rate_limit.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,185 @@
+/*
+
+Copyright (c) 2015, Steven Siloti
+All rights reserved.
+
+Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
+modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
+are met:
+
+    * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
+      notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
+    * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
+      notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in
+      the documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
+    * Neither the name of the author nor the names of its
+      contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived
+      from this software without specific prior written permission.
+
+THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS IS"
+AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
+IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE
+ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR CONTRIBUTORS BE
+LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR
+CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF
+SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS
+INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN
+CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE)
+ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE
+POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
+
+*/
+
+#if !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+
+#include "test.hpp"
+
+#include "simulator/simulator.hpp"
+
+#include "libtorrent/udp_socket.hpp"
+#include "libtorrent/kademlia/dht_tracker.hpp"
+#include "libtorrent/performance_counters.hpp"
+#include "libtorrent/entry.hpp"
+#include "libtorrent/session_settings.hpp"
+#include "libtorrent/kademlia/dht_observer.hpp"
+
+#include <functional>
+#include <cstdarg>
+
+using namespace libtorrent;
+namespace lt = libtorrent;
+using namespace sim;
+
+struct obs : dht::dht_observer
+{
+	virtual void set_external_address(address const& addr
+		, address const& source) TORRENT_OVERRIDE
+	{}
+	virtual address external_address() TORRENT_OVERRIDE
+	{ return address_v4::from_string("40.30.20.10"); }
+	virtual void get_peers(sha1_hash const& ih) TORRENT_OVERRIDE {}
+	virtual void outgoing_get_peers(sha1_hash const& target
+		, sha1_hash const& sent_target, udp::endpoint const& ep) TORRENT_OVERRIDE {}
+	virtual void announce(sha1_hash const& ih, address const& addr, int port) TORRENT_OVERRIDE {}
+	virtual void log(dht_logger::module_t l, char const* fmt, ...) TORRENT_OVERRIDE
+	{
+		va_list v;
+		va_start(v, fmt);
+		vprintf(fmt, v);
+		va_end(v);
+		puts("\n");
+	}
+	virtual void log_packet(message_direction_t dir, char const* pkt, int len
+		, udp::endpoint node) TORRENT_OVERRIDE {}
+	virtual bool on_dht_request(char const* query, int query_len
+		, dht::msg const& request, entry& response) TORRENT_OVERRIDE { return false; }
+};
+
+#endif // #if !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+
+TORRENT_TEST(dht_rate_limit)
+{
+#if !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+
+	default_config cfg;
+	simulation sim(cfg);
+	asio::io_service dht_ios(sim, address_v4::from_string("40.30.20.10"));
+
+	// receiver (the DHT under test)
+	lt::udp_socket sock(dht_ios);
+	obs o;
+	error_code ec;
+	sock.bind(udp::endpoint(address_v4::from_string("40.30.20.10"), 8888), ec);
+	dht_settings dhtsett;
+	dhtsett.block_ratelimit = 100000; // disable the DOS blocker
+	dhtsett.ignore_dark_internet = false;
+	dhtsett.upload_rate_limit = 400;
+	float const target_upload_rate = 400;
+	int const num_packets = 2000;
+
+	counters cnt;
+	entry state;
+	boost::shared_ptr<lt::dht::dht_tracker> dht = boost::make_shared<lt::dht::dht_tracker>(
+		&o, sock, dhtsett, cnt, dht::dht_default_storage_constructor, state);
+	sock.subscribe(dht.get());
+
+	// sender
+	int num_packets_sent = 0;
+	asio::io_service sender_ios(sim, address_v4::from_string("10.20.30.40"));
+	udp::socket sender_sock(sender_ios);
+	sender_sock.open(udp::v4());
+	sender_sock.bind(udp::endpoint(address_v4(), 4444));
+	sender_sock.io_control(udp::socket::non_blocking_io(true));
+	asio::high_resolution_timer timer(sender_ios);
+	std::function<void(error_code const&)> sender_tick = [&](error_code const& ec)
+	{
+		if (num_packets_sent == num_packets)
+		{
+			// we're done. shut down (a second from now, to let the dust settle)
+			timer.expires_from_now(chrono::seconds(1));
+			timer.async_wait([&](error_code const& ec)
+			{
+				dht->stop();
+				sock.unsubscribe(dht.get());
+				sender_sock.close();
+				sock.close();
+			});
+			return;
+		}
+
+		char const packet[] = "d1:ad2:id20:ababababababababababe1:y1:q1:q4:pinge";
+		sender_sock.send_to(asio::const_buffers_1(packet, sizeof(packet)-1)
+			, udp::endpoint(address_v4::from_string("40.30.20.10"), 8888));
+		++num_packets_sent;
+
+		timer.expires_from_now(chrono::milliseconds(10));
+		timer.async_wait(sender_tick);
+	};
+	timer.expires_from_now(chrono::milliseconds(10));
+	timer.async_wait(sender_tick);
+
+	udp::endpoint from;
+	int num_bytes_received = 0;
+	int num_packets_received = 0;
+	char buffer[1500];
+	std::function<void(error_code const&, std::size_t)> on_receive
+		= [&](error_code const& ec, std::size_t bytes)
+	{
+		if (ec) return;
+
+		num_bytes_received += bytes;
+		++num_packets_received;
+
+		sender_sock.async_receive_from(asio::mutable_buffers_1(buffer, sizeof(buffer))
+			, from, on_receive);
+	};
+	sender_sock.async_receive_from(asio::mutable_buffers_1(buffer, sizeof(buffer))
+		, from, on_receive);
+
+	// run simulation
+	lt::clock_type::time_point start = lt::clock_type::now();
+	sim.run();
+	lt::clock_type::time_point end = lt::clock_type::now();
+
+	// subtract one target_upload_rate here, since we initialize the quota to one
+	// full second worth of bandwidth
+	float const average_upload_rate = (num_bytes_received - target_upload_rate)
+		/ (duration_cast<chrono::milliseconds>(end - start).count() * 0.001f);
+
+	printf("send %d packets. received %d packets (%d bytes). average rate: %f (target: %f)\n"
+		, num_packets_sent, num_packets_received, num_bytes_received
+		, average_upload_rate, target_upload_rate);
+
+	// the actual upload rate should be within 5% of the target
+	TEST_CHECK(std::abs(average_upload_rate - target_upload_rate) < target_upload_rate * 0.05);
+
+	TEST_EQUAL(cnt[counters::dht_messages_in], num_packets);
+
+	// the number of dropped packets + the number of received pings, should equal
+	// exactly the number of packets we sent
+	TEST_EQUAL(cnt[counters::dht_messages_in_dropped]
+		+ cnt[counters::dht_ping_in], num_packets);
+
+#endif // #if !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS && !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+}
+
diff --git a/simulation/test_dht_storage.cpp b/simulation/test_dht_storage.cpp
index f45f2f4f3..e0b947992 100644
--- a/simulation/test_dht_storage.cpp
+++ b/simulation/test_dht_storage.cpp
@@ -52,6 +52,8 @@ using namespace sim::asio;
 using sim::simulation;
 using sim::default_config;
 
+#ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+
 namespace
 {
 	dht_settings test_settings() {
@@ -98,8 +100,11 @@ void test_expiration(high_resolution_clock::duration const& expiry_time
 	sim.run(ec);
 }
 
+#endif // TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+
 TORRENT_TEST(dht_storage_counters)
 {
+#ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
 	dht_settings sett = test_settings();
 	boost::shared_ptr<dht_storage_interface> s(dht_default_storage_constructor(node_id(0), sett));
 
@@ -151,5 +156,6 @@ TORRENT_TEST(dht_storage_counters)
 	c.immutable_data = 0;
 	c.mutable_data = 0;
 	test_expiration(hours(1), s, c); // test expiration of everything after 3 hours
+#endif // TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
 }
 
diff --git a/src/kademlia/dht_tracker.cpp b/src/kademlia/dht_tracker.cpp
index 2f8d7e67c..529d0d516 100644
--- a/src/kademlia/dht_tracker.cpp
+++ b/src/kademlia/dht_tracker.cpp
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 #include "libtorrent/version.hpp"
 #include "libtorrent/time.hpp"
 #include "libtorrent/performance_counters.hpp" // for counters
+#include "libtorrent/aux_/time.hpp"
 
 #include "libtorrent/aux_/disable_warnings_push.hpp"
 
@@ -89,7 +90,7 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 	// class that puts the networking and the kademlia node in a single
 	// unit and connecting them together.
 	dht_tracker::dht_tracker(dht_observer* observer
-		, rate_limited_udp_socket& sock
+		, udp_socket& sock
 		, dht_settings const& settings
 		, counters& cnt
 		, dht_storage_constructor_type storage_constructor
@@ -104,7 +105,11 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 		, m_settings(settings)
 		, m_abort(false)
 		, m_host_resolver(sock.get_io_service())
+		, m_send_quota(settings.upload_rate_limit)
+		, m_last_tick(aux::time_now())
 	{
+		m_blocker.set_block_timer(m_settings.block_timeout);
+		m_blocker.set_rate_limit(m_settings.block_ratelimit);
 #ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_LOGGING
 		m_log->log(dht_logger::tracker, "starting DHT tracker with node id: %s"
 			, to_hex(m_dht.nid().to_string()).c_str());
@@ -316,11 +321,17 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 
 			int num = sizeof(class_a)/sizeof(class_a[0]);
 			if (std::find(class_a, class_a + num, b[0]) != class_a + num)
+			{
+				m_counters.inc_stats_counter(counters::dht_messages_in_dropped);
 				return true;
+			}
 		}
 
 		if (!m_blocker.incoming(ep.address(), clock_type::now(), m_log))
+		{
+			m_counters.inc_stats_counter(counters::dht_messages_in_dropped);
 			return true;
+		}
 
 		using libtorrent::entry;
 		using libtorrent::bdecode;
@@ -332,6 +343,7 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 		int ret = bdecode(buf, buf + size, m_msg, err, &pos, 10, 500);
 		if (ret != 0)
 		{
+			m_counters.inc_stats_counter(counters::dht_messages_in_dropped);
 #ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_LOGGING
 			m_log->log_packet(dht_logger::incoming_message, buf, size, ep);
 #endif
@@ -406,10 +418,22 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 
 	bool dht_tracker::has_quota()
 	{
-		return m_sock.has_quota();
+		time_point now = clock_type::now();
+		time_duration delta = now - m_last_tick;
+		m_last_tick = now;
+
+		// add any new quota we've accrued since last time
+		m_send_quota += boost::uint64_t(m_settings.upload_rate_limit)
+			* total_microseconds(delta) / 1000000;
+
+		// allow 3 seconds worth of burst
+		if (m_send_quota > 3 * m_settings.upload_rate_limit)
+			m_send_quota = 3 * m_settings.upload_rate_limit;
+
+		return m_send_quota > 0;
 	}
 
-	bool dht_tracker::send_packet(libtorrent::entry& e, udp::endpoint const& addr, int send_flags)
+	bool dht_tracker::send_packet(libtorrent::entry& e, udp::endpoint const& addr)
 	{
 		using libtorrent::bencode;
 		using libtorrent::entry;
@@ -420,10 +444,15 @@ namespace libtorrent { namespace dht
 
 		m_send_buf.clear();
 		bencode(std::back_inserter(m_send_buf), e);
-		error_code ec;
 
-		bool ret = m_sock.send(addr, &m_send_buf[0], int(m_send_buf.size()), ec, send_flags);
-		if (!ret || ec)
+		// update the quota. We won't prevent the packet to be sent if we exceed
+		// the quota, we'll just (potentially) block the next incoming request.
+
+		m_send_quota -= m_send_buf.size();
+
+		error_code ec;
+		m_sock.send(addr, &m_send_buf[0], int(m_send_buf.size()), ec, 0);
+		if (ec)
 		{
 			m_counters.inc_stats_counter(counters::dht_messages_out_dropped);
 #ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_LOGGING
diff --git a/src/kademlia/node.cpp b/src/kademlia/node.cpp
index efeb77016..debd81c9d 100644
--- a/src/kademlia/node.cpp
+++ b/src/kademlia/node.cpp
@@ -252,7 +252,7 @@ void node::incoming(msg const& m)
 		// want to open up a magnification opportunity
 //		entry e;
 //		incoming_error(e, "missing 'y' entry");
-//		m_sock.send_packet(e, m.addr, 0);
+//		m_sock.send_packet(e, m.addr);
 		return;
 	}
 
@@ -303,9 +303,15 @@ void node::incoming(msg const& m)
 			// responds to 'query' messages that it receives.
 			if (m_settings.read_only) break;
 
+			if (!m_sock->has_quota())
+			{
+				m_counters.inc_stats_counter(counters::dht_messages_in_dropped);
+				return;
+			}
+
 			entry e;
 			incoming_request(m, e);
-			m_sock->send_packet(e, m.addr, 0);
+			m_sock->send_packet(e, m.addr);
 			break;
 		}
 		case 'e':
@@ -775,9 +781,6 @@ void TORRENT_EXTRA_EXPORT write_nodes_entry(entry& r, nodes_t const& nodes)
 // build response
 void node::incoming_request(msg const& m, entry& e)
 {
-	if (!m_sock->has_quota())
-		return;
-
 	e = entry(entry::dictionary_t);
 	e["y"] = "r";
 	e["t"] = m.message.dict_find_string_value("t");
diff --git a/src/kademlia/rpc_manager.cpp b/src/kademlia/rpc_manager.cpp
index 63aaa4a8d..7d58c857a 100644
--- a/src/kademlia/rpc_manager.cpp
+++ b/src/kademlia/rpc_manager.cpp
@@ -297,7 +297,7 @@ bool rpc_manager::incoming(msg const& m, node_id* id)
 		// attack.
 //		entry e;
 //		incoming_error(e, "invalid transaction id");
-//		m_sock->send_packet(e, m.addr, 0);
+//		m_sock->send_packet(e, m.addr);
 		return false;
 	}
 
@@ -473,7 +473,7 @@ bool rpc_manager::invoke(entry& e, udp::endpoint target_addr
 		, print_endpoint(target_addr).c_str());
 #endif
 
-	if (m_sock->send_packet(e, target_addr, 1))
+	if (m_sock->send_packet(e, target_addr))
 	{
 		m_transactions.insert(std::make_pair(tid, o));
 #if TORRENT_USE_ASSERTS
diff --git a/src/session.cpp b/src/session.cpp
index adacc0eb5..f89724a69 100644
--- a/src/session.cpp
+++ b/src/session.cpp
@@ -204,10 +204,6 @@ namespace libtorrent
 		// unchoke many peers
 		set.set_int(settings_pack::unchoke_slots_limit, 2000);
 
-		// we need more DHT capacity to ping more peers
-		// candidates before trying to connect
-		set.set_int(settings_pack::dht_upload_rate_limit, 20000);
-
 		// use 1 GB of cache
 		set.set_int(settings_pack::cache_size, 32768 * 2);
 		set.set_bool(settings_pack::use_read_cache, true);
diff --git a/src/session_impl.cpp b/src/session_impl.cpp
index fc128f79c..9b9fc0ab0 100644
--- a/src/session_impl.cpp
+++ b/src/session_impl.cpp
@@ -438,7 +438,6 @@ namespace aux {
 #if TORRENT_USE_ASSERTS
 		m_posting_torrent_updates = false;
 #endif
-		m_udp_socket.set_rate_limit(m_settings.get_int(settings_pack::dht_upload_rate_limit));
 
 		m_udp_socket.subscribe(&m_utp_socket_manager);
 		m_udp_socket.subscribe(this);
@@ -6067,10 +6066,15 @@ retry:
 			|| m_settings.get_int(settings_pack::unchoke_slots_limit) < 0;
 	}
 
+#ifndef TORRENT_NO_DEPRECATE
 	void session_impl::update_dht_upload_rate_limit()
 	{
-		m_udp_socket.set_rate_limit(m_settings.get_int(settings_pack::dht_upload_rate_limit));
+#ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
+		m_dht_settings.upload_rate_limit
+			= m_settings.get_int(settings_pack::dht_upload_rate_limit);
+#endif
 	}
+#endif
 
 	void session_impl::update_disk_threads()
 	{
diff --git a/src/session_stats.cpp b/src/session_stats.cpp
index 8bcf801a2..d35219d43 100644
--- a/src/session_stats.cpp
+++ b/src/session_stats.cpp
@@ -422,6 +422,16 @@ namespace libtorrent
 		METRIC(dht, dht_messages_in)
 		METRIC(dht, dht_messages_out)
 
+		// the number of incoming DHT requests that were dropped. There are a few
+		// different reasons why incoming DHT packets may be dropped:
+		// 
+		// 1. there wasn't enough send quota to respond to them.
+		// 2. the Denial of service logic kicked in, blocking the peer
+		// 3. ignore_dark_internet is enabled, and the packet came from a
+		//    non-public IP address
+		// 4. the bencoding of the message was invalid
+		METRIC(dht, dht_messages_in_dropped)
+
 		// the number of outgoing messages that failed to be
 		// sent
 		METRIC(dht, dht_messages_out_dropped)
diff --git a/src/settings_pack.cpp b/src/settings_pack.cpp
index 9d34fa9f6..dabcb5e8b 100644
--- a/src/settings_pack.cpp
+++ b/src/settings_pack.cpp
@@ -297,7 +297,7 @@ namespace libtorrent
 		SET(download_rate_limit, 0, &session_impl::update_download_rate),
 		DEPRECATED_SET(local_upload_rate_limit, 0, &session_impl::update_local_upload_rate),
 		DEPRECATED_SET(local_download_rate_limit, 0, &session_impl::update_local_download_rate),
-		SET(dht_upload_rate_limit, 4000, &session_impl::update_dht_upload_rate_limit),
+		DEPRECATED_SET(dht_upload_rate_limit, 4000, &session_impl::update_dht_upload_rate_limit),
 		SET(unchoke_slots_limit, 8, &session_impl::update_unchoke_limit),
 		DEPRECATED_SET(half_open_limit, 0, 0),
 		SET(connections_limit, 200, &session_impl::update_connections_limit),
diff --git a/src/udp_socket.cpp b/src/udp_socket.cpp
index c3726b5ca..92586fc4e 100644
--- a/src/udp_socket.cpp
+++ b/src/udp_socket.cpp
@@ -1413,44 +1413,3 @@ void udp_socket::drain_queue()
 	}
 }
 
-rate_limited_udp_socket::rate_limited_udp_socket(io_service& ios)
-	: udp_socket(ios)
-	, m_rate_limit(8000)
-	, m_quota(8000)
-	, m_last_tick(aux::time_now())
-{
-}
-
-bool rate_limited_udp_socket::has_quota()
-{
-	time_point now = clock_type::now();
-	time_duration delta = now - m_last_tick;
-	m_last_tick = now;
-	// add any new quota we've accrued since last time
-	m_quota += boost::uint64_t(m_rate_limit) * total_microseconds(delta) / 1000000;
-	return m_quota > 0;
-}
-
-bool rate_limited_udp_socket::send(udp::endpoint const& ep, char const* p
-	, int len, error_code& ec, int flags)
-{
-	time_point now = clock_type::now();
-	time_duration delta = now - m_last_tick;
-	m_last_tick = now;
-
-	// add any new quota we've accrued since last time
-	m_quota += boost::uint64_t(m_rate_limit) * total_microseconds(delta) / 1000000;
-
-	// allow 3 seconds worth of burst
-	if (m_quota > 3 * m_rate_limit) m_quota = 3 * m_rate_limit;
-
-	// if there's no quota, and it's OK to drop, just
-	// drop the packet
-	if (m_quota < 0 && (flags & dont_drop) == 0) return false;
-
-	m_quota -= len;
-	if (m_quota < 0) m_quota = 0;
-	udp_socket::send(ep, p, len, ec, flags);
-	return true;
-}
-
diff --git a/test/test_dht.cpp b/test/test_dht.cpp
index f7afa9775..d95a8e4e8 100644
--- a/test/test_dht.cpp
+++ b/test/test_dht.cpp
@@ -95,10 +95,10 @@ static void nop(void* userdata, libtorrent::dht::node_entry const& n) {}
 
 std::list<std::pair<udp::endpoint, entry> > g_sent_packets;
 
-struct mock_socket : udp_socket_interface
+struct mock_socket TORRENT_FINAL : udp_socket_interface
 {
-	bool has_quota() { return true; }
-	bool send_packet(entry& msg, udp::endpoint const& ep, int flags)
+	bool has_quota() TORRENT_OVERRIDE { return true; }
+	bool send_packet(entry& msg, udp::endpoint const& ep) TORRENT_OVERRIDE
 	{
 		// TODO: ideally the mock_socket would contain this queue of packets, to
 		// make tests independent
diff --git a/test/test_direct_dht.cpp b/test/test_direct_dht.cpp
index c0887d067..206be5c65 100644
--- a/test/test_direct_dht.cpp
+++ b/test/test_direct_dht.cpp
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 
 #include "test.hpp"
 
-#ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS
+#if !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS && !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
 
 #include "libtorrent/config.hpp"
 #include "libtorrent/session.hpp"
@@ -85,11 +85,11 @@ dht_direct_response_alert* get_direct_response(lt::session& ses)
 
 }
 
-#endif // #ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS
+#endif // #if !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS && !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
 
 TORRENT_TEST(direct_dht_request)
 {
-#ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS
+#if !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS && !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
 	settings_pack sp;
 	sp.set_bool(settings_pack::enable_lsd, false);
 	sp.set_bool(settings_pack::enable_natpmp, false);
@@ -134,5 +134,5 @@ TORRENT_TEST(direct_dht_request)
 		TEST_EQUAL(ra->response().type(), bdecode_node::none_t);
 		TEST_EQUAL(ra->userdata, (void*)123456);
 	}
-#endif // #ifndef TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS
+#endif // #if !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_EXTENSIONS && !defined TORRENT_DISABLE_DHT
 }