What is a Websocket?

Websockets are a communication protocol that enables real-time, two-way interaction between a client and a server over a single, long-lived connection. It’s designed to overcome a crucial limitation of HTTP—that the client must initiate every request, preventing instantaneous access to new data from the server.

Websockets are the backbone of communication with headless browsers, providing a direct link between your automation’s directions and the results. For example, you’re code can watch for the appearance of a pop-up modal, immediately be notified, and take some action on it. You also might integrate a Generative AI agent into a collaborative document setting, with instructions to offer comments on new text as it’s added to the page.

Websocket browser connections are only supported by modern automation libraries such as Playwright and Puppeteer. Luckily, BrowserCat supports both!

How can BrowserCat help with websocket browser connections?

BrowserCat supports long-running websocket connections to our fleet of headless browsers for fractions of a penny. Whether you have crawler jobs that run all day or have to respond seamlessly to traffic spikes, we’re an excellent choice for your next project.

Try BrowserCat today!