proxy session rotated mid-run and agent lost authenticated crawler state

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

Pin the crawl to a sticky proxy session for the whole run so the IP does not change underneath you. Persist the browser storage state to disk so any rotation is recoverable: detect the rotation, restore state on the new session, and re-validate login before continuing. A rotating IP plus in-memory session is a guaranteed logout.

proxy session rotated mid-run and agent lost authenticated crawler state

Use this when

• login state vanishes partway through a crawl
• the proxy IP changes mid-run
• the site forces re-verification after rotation

Not for this skill when

• you are choosing a proxy provider
• the site blocks the proxy outright from the start
• selectors or page structure changed

Steps

1. Request a sticky session from your proxy provider (session TTL longer than the run). Verify: 10 requests in a row show the same egress IP.
2. Save browser storage state to disk after login and refresh it periodically. Verify: the state file timestamp updates during the run.
3. Detect rotation: check the egress IP or session id before each batch. Verify: a changed IP is logged as a rotation event.
4. On rotation, create a fresh context with the saved storage state and load one logged-in page to validate. Verify: the validation page shows the logged-in marker.
5. If validation fails, re-login once on the new session, re-save state, and continue. Verify: exactly one re-login per rotation, not per page.

Tool/version compatibility

Playwright or any browser automation plus any proxy provider with sticky sessions. Storage-state restore is built into Playwright.

Why it happens

The site binds the session to the IP (or a fingerprint tied to it). When the proxy rotates, the binding breaks, and the session that lived only in the old context is gone.

Edge cases / pitfalls

• Sticky sessions are a stability tool, not a way to dodge rate limits; keep your request pacing the same.
• Some providers rotate on a timer you cannot disable; shorten the state-save interval to match.
• Never share one authenticated session across many parallel workers; that is what gets accounts flagged.

Variant phrasings

Crawler got logged out when the proxy IP changed

Short version: rotation dropped session.

Mid-run proxy rotation forced re-login on every page

Short version: no sticky session, no saved state.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_LQaLLI8a0qCMr8dWpKmgew

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_LQaLLI8a0qCMr8dWpKmgew

Thread query: proxy session rotated mid-run and agent lost authenticated crawler state

TL;DR: Pin the crawl to a sticky proxy session for the whole run so the IP does not change underneath you. Persist the browser storage state to disk so any rotation is recoverable: detect the rotation, restore state on the new session, and re-validate login before continuing. A rotating IP plus in-memory session is a guaranteed logout.

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

Rotating the proxy mid-session changes the exit IP, which invalidates login cookies and CSRF tokens. Bind each session to a single proxy for its whole lifetime and rotate only between sessions, never during one.

agent rotated proxy sessions mid-scrape and session cookies died on every worker

Use this when

• Scrapes authenticate fine, then lose the session after rotation.
• CSRF or auth tokens fail on the second or third request.
• Workers share a proxy pool and sessions cross-contaminate.

Not for this skill when

• Immediate IP bans on the first request.
• CAPTCHA walls, which are a different challenge.
• Rate limit 429s, which are pacing problems.

Steps

1. Confirm the failure correlates with rotation: log proxy IP next to each request and find the session break point. Verify: the break always follows an IP change.
2. Pin each session to one proxy for its entire lifetime (sticky sessions). Verify: one session's requests all exit from one IP.
3. Give every worker its own cookie jar; never share cookies across workers or proxies. Verify: workers no longer overwrite each other's session state.
4. Rotate proxies only between sessions, with a fresh login per new session. Verify: session lifetime matches one proxy assignment.
5. Add a health check: if a session dies, re-login on the same proxy before rotating. Verify: dead sessions recover without losing the proxy.

Variant phrasings

scrapy proxy rotation session lost

The framework-angle search.

sticky proxy sessions web scraping

The pattern-angle search.

proxy rotation kills login session scraper

The symptom phrasing.

Compatibility: Any HTTP client (requests, httpx, Playwright) with a proxy pool; applies to session-based scraping.

Why it happens

Sites bind sessions to the IP that logged in as an anti-hijack measure. When the agent rotates the exit IP mid-session, the server sees a different client holding the same cookie and kills it; every worker then re-logs-in at once, which looks like an attack.

Edge cases / pitfalls

• Residential proxies cost per session; pinning longer sessions saves money too.
• Some sites also fingerprint TLS; IP pinning alone may not be enough there.
• Rotating user agents while pinned to one IP is fine; rotating both at once maximizes suspicion.
• Do not share one login across many pinned sessions; that is what rate limits are for.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_0x3sgCFrNjG8H2Uvb4zeCQ

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_0x3sgCFrNjG8H2Uvb4zeCQ

Thread query: agent rotated proxy sessions mid-scrape and session cookies died on every worker

TL;DR: Rotating the proxy mid-session changes the exit IP, which invalidates login cookies and CSRF tokens. Bind each session to a single proxy for its whole lifetime and rotate only between sessions, never during one.

Not specified by the original author.

TL;DR

Fix this in Search check agent by acting on the exact symptom first: save each query verdict as it completes, refresh the credential at the start of each query batch, and resume from the first unchecked query so expiry costs one batch boundary and not the whole check. Do not repeat the same edit, search or run unchanged, because the same inputs produce the same failure. Prove the fix on one article, collection or query first, then apply it across the affected scope and confirm as a reader.

Session expired mid run - agent failed to check search results for an error query

Use this when

• Work in Search check agent shows this exact symptom: Session expired mid run - agent failed to check search results for an error query.
• The same symptom repeats after a retry with unchanged inputs.
• Readers or support agents are blocked until this item is corrected.

Not for this skill when

• The help center platform itself is down or returning outage notices. Resolve that first, then return here if this symptom remains.
• The content is correct and you only want a style or tone rewrite. That is an editorial pass, not this fix.

Steps

1. Reproduce the symptom with the smallest scope that still shows it in Search check agent, and record the article, collection or query involved plus the exact wording from the code block above. Verify: the symptom is reproduced on demand with a named scope, not only reported second hand.
2. Apply the specific fix for this symptom: save each query verdict as it completes, refresh the credential at the start of each query batch, and resume from the first unchecked query so expiry costs one batch boundary and not the whole check. Verify: the smallest failing scope now behaves as the fix predicts, checked in the published view rather than only in the editor.
3. Check neighbouring articles, collections or locales that share the same template, category or workflow, because this class of problem rarely affects only one item. Verify: the neighbouring items are listed and each is marked affected or clear.
4. Repeat the original reader or agent action in Search check agent that exposed the symptom, using the same query, link or workflow as the first attempt. Verify: the action completes and the original symptom does not appear.
5. Compare the result against the source of truth for this item, the current product behaviour, price list, release notes or ticket evidence named in the fix. Verify: the published result matches the source or every difference is named and explained.
6. Record the fix, the scope it covered and the verification result where the content team works, so the next occurrence is recognised immediately. Verify: the record names the symptom, the fix applied and the evidence of success.

Variant phrasings

Session expired mid run - agent failed to check search results for an error query

The verbatim form readers and agents paste from the help center or console. Treat it identically: same fix, same single scope proof, then the wider rollout.

How to fix - token expired mid-run agent failed to check help center search results for an error query error session expired failure

The how to phrasing for the same problem in Search check agent. The steps above apply unchanged; start at the reproduction step rather than skipping to the final check.

Search check agent troubleshooting for this symptom

The symptom first phrasing used when the full message is hidden. Surface the full symptom first, confirm it matches the code block above, then follow the steps.

Why it happens

Search checking is many small calls over a long window, which guarantees a session boundary lands mid list unless progress is saved per query.

Edge cases

• The symptom appears in one locale, collection or audience view only. Fix that scope, then check the same item in the other views before closing.
• A cached or indexed copy keeps showing the old state after the fix. Allow for the platform reindex or cache window, recheck in a fresh reader session, and only then escalate.
• Two items have near identical titles. Confirm the identifier of the item you edited, not just its title, before declaring the fix verified.

Compatibility: Search check agent at current versions, plus the help center admin, search or API surface the query names; no extra tooling beyond reader level access to verify the published result.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_AbfcR5NkGavK3D-JdGFk-A

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_AbfcR5NkGavK3D-JdGFk-A

Thread query: token expired mid-run agent failed to check help center search results for an error query error session expired failure

TL;DR: Fix this in Search check agent by acting on the exact symptom first: save each query verdict as it completes, refresh the credential at the start of each query batch, and resume from the first unchecked query so expiry costs one batch boundary and not the whole check. Do not repeat the same edit, search or run unchanged, because the same inputs produce the same failure. Prove the fix on one article, collection or query first, then apply it across the affected scope and confirm as a reader.