Troubleshooting Common Issues in HTTPA Archive Reader

How to Use HTTPA Archive Reader to Inspect Web Archives

What is HTTPA Archive Reader

HTTPA Archive Reader is a tool for opening and inspecting HTTPA-format web archives (HTTP Archive, similar to WARC/har concepts). It parses archived HTTP requests, responses, headers, and payloads so you can analyze page loads, assets, and server behavior.

When to use it

• Debug archived site behavior (cookies, redirects, status codes)
• Extract resources or response bodies for analysis
• Verify archived performance and caching headers
• Investigate security-relevant headers and certificates

Installation

1. Download the latest release for your OS from the project’s releases page or install via the package manager if available.
2. Unpack the binary (or install via pip/npm if the project provides a package).
3. Ensure the binary is executable and on your PATH:
   • macOS/Linux: chmod +x httpa-reader && mv httpa-reader /usr/local/bin/
   • Windows: place the .exe in a folder on PATH.

Opening an archive

1. From the command line:
   • httpa-reader open path/to/archive.htpa
   • Add –json to export parsed records as JSON.
2. From the GUI (if available): File → Open → select the .htpa file.

Inspecting requests and responses

• Use the record list to select individual transactions. Each record shows:
  • Request line (method, URL, HTTP version)
  • Request headers and body
  • Response status and headers
  • Response body (rendered preview for HTML, raw for binary)
• Look for redirects (3xx codes), error responses (4xx/5xx), and unusual content types.
• Use header filters to locate specific headers (e.g., Set-Cookie, Cache-Control, Content-Security-Policy).

Searching and filtering

• Text search: search across URLs, headers, and bodies.
• Filter by status code, MIME type, domain, or time range.
• Combine filters (e.g., status:200 AND mime:text/html) to narrow results.

Extracting assets and bodies

• Right-click a response → Export body to save HTML, images, or scripts.
• Export multiple bodies via batch export (select multiple records → Export).
• Use –export-dir (CLI) to save all response bodies in a folder structure mirroring URLs.

Timeline and performance analysis

• View the timing breakdown for each transaction: DNS, TCP/TLS handshake, TTFB, download.
• Identify slow resources and large payloads.
• Correlate resource timings with page load order to understand render-blocking assets.

Scripting and automation

• CLI supports exporting to JSON/CSV for integration with scripts:
  • httpa-reader export –format json –out records.json path/to/archive.htpa
• Use the JSON output to write parsers that extract headers, calculate statistics, or feed into monitoring tools.

Common troubleshooting

• Corrupt archive: run httpa-reader validate archive.htpa to check integrity.
• Missing bodies: ensure the archive capture included response payloads; some captures may only store headers.
• Large files: use streaming mode (–stream) to avoid high memory usage.

Example workflows

1. Verify a cached page:
   • Filter by URL → inspect Cache-Control/Expires headers → check response status and age.
2. Find broken images:
   • Filter mime:image/* and status!=200 → export list for reporting.
3. Audit security headers:
   • Search Content-Security-Policy, Strict-Transport-Security, X-Frame-Options → list records missing these headers.

Tips

• Use column views for quick overviews: URL, status, MIME, size, time.
• Save frequently used filters as presets.
• Combine the reader with WARC/har tools if you need broader archive compatibility.

Summary

HTTPA Archive Reader lets you open, search, filter, and export archived HTTP transactions to inspect site behavior, performance, and security. Use the CLI for automation and the GUI for interactive exploration.