# Smart Web Scraper — Block Diagnosis & URL Debugger (`wiggly_book/smart-scraper`) Actor Fetches URLs with intelligent fallback strategies and honest block detection. Diagnoses Cloudflare challenges, TLS mismatches, 429s, and JS requirements. Tries direct fetch, TLS downgrade, and archive.org, then reports what worked and why. - **URL**: https://apify.com/wiggly\_book/smart-scraper.md - **Developed by:** [Mack](https://apify.com/wiggly_book) (community) - **Categories:** Developer tools, Automation, SEO tools - **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing $20.00 / 1,000 url diagnoseds This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events. Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event ## What's an Apify Actor? Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows. In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours, and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store. In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server. Actors are written with capital "A". ## How to integrate an Actor? If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects. You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready. The best way to integrate Actors is as follows. In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): ```bash pip install apify-client ``` In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): ````bash # MacOS / Linux curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash # Windows irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex ```bash In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md). If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md). For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below. For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt). # README ## Smart Web Scraper — Diagnose blocks, extract content Why does your scraper break on certain sites? Stop guessing. This actor fetches a URL and tells you exactly what went wrong — Cloudflare challenge, TLS mismatch, rate limit, JS requirement, or just a slow server. It tries three strategies (direct, TLS downgrade, archive.org fallback) and reports what worked. ### What it returns per URL ```json { "url": "https://reddit.com", "status_code": 200, "blocked": true, "blocked_reason": "Cloudflare challenge page (Please wait for verification...)", "source": "direct", "tls_fallback_used": false, "server": "cloudflare", "response_time_ms": 423, "redirect_chain": ["https://reddit.com", "https://www.reddit.com"], "security_headers_found": [], "archive_fallback": {"available": false}, "diagnosis": "Blocked by bot wall: Cloudflare... | Server: cloudflare" } ```` ### Who it's for - Anyone building scrapers who spends time debugging blocks - QA engineers testing whether a site is reachable from different networks - Researchers collecting data from tricky sites - Developers who want a cheap, honest health check for a URL ### Input ```json {"urls": ["https://example.com", "https://reddit.com"]} ``` ### Output per URL | Field | Description | |---|---| | `status_code` | HTTP status or 0 if unreachable | | `blocked` | True if a bot wall was detected | | `blocked_reason` | The detected block pattern | | `source` | `direct`, `archive.org`, or TLS fallback | | `response_time_ms` | Server response time | | `server` | Server header from response | | `security_headers_found` | List of detected security headers | | `archive_fallback` | Whether archive.org had a copy | | `diagnosis` | Plain-English explanation | ### What it does not do - This is a **diagnostic scraper**, not a generic crawler. It fetches one URL at a time with detailed metadata. - It does not execute JavaScript. If a site requires JS, it will report the block reason. - It does not maintain sessions, cookies, or proxies. - It is honest about what it finds. If it can't get through, it tells you why. ### Pricing **$0.02 per URL diagnosed.** # Actor input Schema ## `urls` (type: `array`): List of URLs to diagnose (e.g. https://reddit.com) ## Actor input object example ```json { "urls": [ "https://example.com", "https://reddit.com" ] } ``` # API You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup. ## JavaScript example ```javascript import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client'; // Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token // Replace the '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = { "urls": [ "https://example.com", "https://reddit.com" ] }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("wiggly_book/smart-scraper").call(input); // Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any) console.log('Results from dataset'); console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`); const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems(); items.forEach((item) => { console.dir(item); }); // 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs ``` ## Python example ```python from apify_client import ApifyClient # Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token # Replace '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = { "urls": [ "https://example.com", "https://reddit.com", ] } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("wiggly_book/smart-scraper").call(run_input=run_input) # Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any) print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"]) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item) # 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start ``` ## CLI example ```bash echo '{ "urls": [ "https://example.com", "https://reddit.com" ] }' | apify call wiggly_book/smart-scraper --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=wiggly_book/smart-scraper", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "Smart Web Scraper — Block Diagnosis & URL Debugger", "description": "Fetches URLs with intelligent fallback strategies and honest block detection. Diagnoses Cloudflare challenges, TLS mismatches, 429s, and JS requirements. Tries direct fetch, TLS downgrade, and archive.org, then reports what worked and why.", "version": "1.0", "x-build-id": "coTj19hg7WvHGfJY8" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/wiggly_book~smart-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-wiggly_book-smart-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/wiggly_book~smart-scraper/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-wiggly_book-smart-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK", "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/wiggly_book~smart-scraper/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-wiggly_book-smart-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } } }, "components": { "schemas": { "inputSchema": { "type": "object", "required": [ "urls" ], "properties": { "urls": { "title": "URLs", "type": "array", "description": "List of URLs to diagnose (e.g. https://reddit.com)", "items": { "type": "string" } } } }, "runsResponseSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "data": { "type": "object", "properties": { "id": { "type": "string" }, "actId": { "type": "string" }, "userId": { "type": "string" }, "startedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "finishedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "status": { "type": "string", "example": "READY" }, "meta": { "type": "object", "properties": { "origin": { "type": "string", "example": "API" }, "userAgent": { "type": "string" } } }, "stats": { "type": "object", "properties": { "inputBodyLen": { "type": "integer", "example": 2000 }, "rebootCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "restartCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "resurrectCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "computeUnits": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "options": { "type": "object", "properties": { "build": { "type": "string", "example": "latest" }, "timeoutSecs": { "type": "integer", "example": 300 }, "memoryMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 1024 }, "diskMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 2048 } } }, "buildId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultKeyValueStoreId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultDatasetId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultRequestQueueId": { "type": "string" }, "buildNumber": { "type": "string", "example": "1.0.0" }, "containerUrl": { "type": "string" }, "usage": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 1 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "usageTotalUsd": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "usageUsd": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } } } } } } } } } ```