Custom CDP functions

Reference for Bright Data Browser API custom CDP functions (60+ tools) that extend the standard Chrome DevTools Protocol with unblocking and session controls.

How to solve CAPTCHAs

When navigating a page with Browser API, our integrated CAPTCHA solver automatically solves all CAPTCHAs by default. You can monitor this auto-solving process in your code with the following custom CDP functions.

If you would like to disable CAPTCHA solver entirely through the Control Panel see our feature for Disable Captcha Solver

Once a CAPTCHA is solved, if there is a form to submit, it will be submitted by default.

CAPTCHA Solver - Automatic Solve

Captcha.solve

Use this command to return the status after the captcha was solved, failed, or not detected.

Captcha.solve

Captcha.solve({
    detectTimeout?: number // Detect timeout in millisecond for solver to detect captcha  
    options?: CaptchaOptions[] // Configuration options for captcha solving  
}) : SolveResult

SolveResult : {  
  status: SolveStatus // Detect and solve status  
  type?: string // Detected captcha type  
  error?: string // Error if captcha was not solved  
}

SolveStatus : string enum {  
  "not_detected" // Captcha was not detected  
  "solve_finished" // Captcha successfully solved  
  "solve_failed" // Captcha detected, but was not solved  
  "invalid" // Something goes wrong  
}

Examples

NodeJS - Puppeteer

const page = await browser.newPage();
const client = await page.createCDPSession();
await page.goto('https://site-with-captcha.com/');  

// Note 1: If no captcha was found it will return not_detected status after detectTimeout   
// Note 2: Once a CAPTCHA is solved, if there is a form to submit, it will be submitted by default   
 
const {status} = await client.send('Captcha.solve', {detectTimeout: 30*1000});   
console.log(`Captcha solve status: ${status}`)

page = await browser.new_page()   
client = await page.context.new_cdp_session(page)   
await page.goto('https://site-with-captcha.com/') 
 
# Note 1: If no captcha was found it will return not_detected status after detectTimeout   
# Note 2: Once a CAPTCHA is solved, if there is a form to submit, it will be submitted by default  

solve_result = await client.send('Captcha.solve', { 'detectTimeout': 30*1000 })   
status = solve_result['status']   
print(f'Captcha solve status: {status}') 

var page = await browser.NewPageAsync();
var client = page.Client;
await page.GoToAsync(url);
var result = await client.SendAsync("Captcha.solve", new
{
    detectTimeout = 10 * 1000,
});
var status = result.Value.GetProperty("status").GetString();
Log($"Captcha solve status: {status}");

var page = await browser.NewPageAsync();
var cdpSession = await page.Context.NewCDPSessionAsync(page);
await page.GotoAsync(url);
var result = await cdpSession.SendAsync("Captcha.solve", new Dictionary<string, object>
{
    ["detectTimeout"] = 10 * 1000
});
var status = result.Value.GetProperty("status").GetString();
Log($"Captcha solve status: {status}");

If CAPTCHA-solving fails, please attempt a retry. If the issue persists, submit a support reques detailing the specific problem you encountered.

Custom CDP commands for CAPTCHA status

Use the commands below to pinpoint a more specific stage in the CAPTCHA solving flow:

Captcha.detected	Browser API has encountered a CAPTCHA and has begun to solve it
Captcha.solveFinished	Browser API successfully solved the CAPTCHA
Captcha.solveFailed	Browser API failed in solving the CAPTCHA
Captcha.waitForSolve	Browser API waits for CAPTCHA solver to finish

Examples

Asynchronous

The following code sets up a CDP session, listens for CAPTCHA events, and handles timeouts:

NodeJS - Puppeteer

// Node.js - Puppeteer - waiting for CAPTCHA solving events  
const client = await page.target().createCDPSession();   
await new Promise((resolve, reject)=>{   
  client.on('Captcha.solveFinished', resolve);   
  client.on('Captcha.solveFailed', ()=>reject(new Error('Captcha failed')));   
  setTimeout(reject, 5 * 60 * 1000, new Error('Captcha solve timeout'));  
});

# Python - Playwright - waiting for CAPTCHA solving events  
client = await page.context.new_cdp_session(page)  
client.on('Captcha.detected', lambda c: print('Captcha detected', c))   
client.on('Captcha.solveFinished', lambda _: print('Captcha solved!'))   
client.on('Captcha.solveFailed', lambda _: print('Captcha failed!'))

Synchronous

Selenium doesn’t support asynchronous server-driven events like Puppeteer and Playwright.

The Captcha.waitForSolve command waits for Browser API’s CAPTCHA solver to finish.

Python - Selenium

# Python Selenium - Waiting for Captcha to auto-solve after navigate  
driver.execute('executeCdpCommand', {  
    'cmd': 'Captcha.waitForSolve',  
    'params': {},  
})

CAPTCHA Solver - Manual Control

If you would like to either manually configure or fully disable our default CAPTCHA solver and instead call the solver manually or solve on your own, see the following CDP commands and functionality.

Captcha.setAutoSolve

This command is used to control the auto-solving of a CAPTCHA. You can disable auto-solve or configure algorithms for different CAPTCHA types and manually trigger this:

Captcha.setAutoSolve

Captcha.setAutoSolve({  
  autoSolve: boolean // Whether to automatically solve captcha after navigate  
  options?: CaptchaOptions[] // Configuration options for captcha auto-solving  
}) : void

CaptchaOptions : {  
  type: string // Captcha type  
  disabled?: boolean // Disable detect and solve for specified captcha  
  ... // additinal options related to captcha type  
}

Examples of CDP commands to disable auto-solver completely within the session:

NodeJS - Puppeteer

// Node.js Puppeteer - Disable Captcha auto-solver completely  
const page = await browser.newPage();  
const client = await page.target().createCDPSession();  
await client.send('Captcha.setAutoSolve', { autoSolve: false })

# Python Playwright - Disable Captcha auto-solver completely  
page = await browser.new_page()  
client = await page.context.new_cdp_session(page)  
await client.send('Captcha.setAutoSolve', {'autoSolve': False})

# Python Selenium - Disable Captcha auto-solver completely  
driver.execute('executeCdpCommand', {  
    'cmd': 'Captcha.setAutoSolve',  
    'params': {'autoSolve': False},  
})

Disable auto-solver for a specific CAPTCHA type only - Examples

NodeJS - Puppeteer

// Node.js Puppeteer - Disable Captcha auto-solver for ReCaptcha only  
const page = await browser.newPage();  
const client = await page.target().createCDPSession();  
await client.send('Captcha.setAutoSolve', {  
    autoSolve: true,  
    options: [{  
        type: 'usercaptcha',  
        disabled: true,  
    }],  
});

# Python Playwright - Disable Captcha auto-solver for ReCaptcha only  
page = await browser.new_page()  
client = await page.context.new_cdp_session(page)  
await client.send('Captcha.setAutoSolve', {  
    'autoSolve': True,  
    'options': [{  
        'type': 'usercaptcha',  
        'disabled': True,  
    }],  
})

Manually solving CAPTCHAs - Examples

NodeJS - Puppeteer

// Node.js Puppeteer - manually solving CAPTCHA after navigation  
const page = await browser.newPage();  
const client = await page.target().createCDPSession();  
await client.send('Captcha.setAutoSolve', { autoSolve: false });  
await page.goto('https://site-with-captcha.com', { timeout: 2*60*1000 });  
const {status} = await client.send('Captcha.solve', { detectTimeout: 30*1000 });  
console.log('Captcha solve status:', status);

# Python Playwright- manually solving CAPTCHA after navigation  
page = await browser.new_page()  
client = await page.context.new_cdp_session(page)  
await client.send('Captcha.setAutoSolve', {'autoSolve': False})  
await page.goto('https://site-with-captcha.com', timeout=2*60_000)  
solve_result = await client.send('Captcha.solve', {'detectTimeout': 30_000})  
print('Captcha solve status:', solve_result['status'])

# Python Selenium - manually solving CAPTCHA after navigation  
driver.execute('executeCdpCommand', {  
    'cmd': 'Captcha.setAutoSolve',  
    'params': {'autoSolve': False},  
})  
driver.get('https://site-with-captcha.com')  
solve_result = driver.execute('executeCdpCommand', {  
    'cmd': 'Captcha.solve',  
    'params': {'detectTimeout': 30_000},  
})  
print('Captcha solve status:', solve_result['value']['status'])

CaptchaOptions for other Captcha types

For the following three CAPTCHA types we support the following additional options to control and configure our auto-solving algorithm.

CF Challenge

CF Challenge

timeout: 40000  
selector: '#challenge-body-text, .challenge-form'  
check_timeout: 300  
error_selector: '#challenge-error-title'  
success_selector: '#challenge-success[style*=inline]'  
check_success_timeout: 300  
btn_selector: '#challenge-stage input[type=button]'  
cloudflare_checkbox_frame_selector: '#turnstile-wrapper iframe'  
checkbox_area_selector: '.ctp-checkbox-label .mark'  
wait_timeout_after_solve: 500  
wait_networkidle: {timeout: 500}

HCaptcha

HCaptcha

detect_selector:  
  '#cf-hcaptcha-container, #challenge-hcaptcha-wrapper .hcaptcha-box, .h-captcha'  
pass_proxy: true  
submit_form: true  
submit_selector: '#challenge-form body > form[action*="internalcaptcha/captchasubmit"]  
value_selector: '.h-captcha textarea[id^="h-captcha-response"]'  
  

usercaptcha (reCAPTCHA)

UserCaptcha (reCAPTCHA)

{ // configuration keys and default values for reCAPTCHA (type=usercaptcha)  
  type: 'usercaptcha',  
  // selector to retrieve sitekey and/or action  
  selector: '.g-recaptcha, .recaptcha',  
  // attributes to search for sitekey  
  sitekey_attributes: ['data-sitekey', 'data-key'],  
  // attributes to search for action  
  action_attributes: ['data-action'],  
  // detect selectors  
  detect_selector: `  
    .g-recaptcha[data-sitekey] > *,  
    .recaptcha > *,  
    iframe[src*="[www.google.com/recaptcha/api2](http://www.google.com/recaptcha/api2)"],  
    iframe[src*="[www.recaptcha.net/recaptcha/api2](http://www.recaptcha.net/recaptcha/api2)"],  
    iframe[src*="[www.google.com/recaptcha/enterprise](http://www.google.com/recaptcha/enterprise)"]`,  
  // element to type response code into  
  reponse_selector: '#g-recaptcha-response, .g-recaptcha-response',  
  // should solver submit form automatically after captcha solved  
  submit_form: true,  
  // selector for submit button  
  submit_selector: '[type=submit]',  
}

How to emulate devices

Emulation.getSupportedDevices

Use this command to get a list of all possible devices that can be emulated. This method returns an array of device options that can be used with the setDevice command.

Example

const devices = await client.send("Emulation.getSupportedDevices");
console.log(devices);

Emulation.setDevice

Once you’ve received the list above of supported devices, you can emulate a specific device using the Emulation.setDevice command. This command changes the screen width, height, userAgent, and devicePixelRatio to match the specified device.

Usage

await client.send("Emulation.setDevice", { device: "[device_name]" });

await client.send("Emulation.setDevice", { device: "Vivo X200 Pro" });

Landscape mode

If you wish to change the orientation to landscape (for devices that support it), add the string landscape after the device_name.

Example

await client.send("Emulation.setDevice", { device: "Vivo X200 Pro landscape" });

How to block ads

Enabling our AdBlock feature can help reduce bandwidth usage and improve performance on ad-heavy websites.

Ad blocker CDP commands

• Unblocker.enableAdBlock – Enables ad blocker (default: off)
• Unblocker.disableAdBlock – Disables ad blocker

We recommend enabling ad blocking before navigating to the target page.

Example

// Enable ad blocking before navigating
const client = await page.createCDPSession();

try {
    await client.send('Unblocker.enableAdBlock');
} catch (e) {
    console.error(e.stack || e);
}

await page.goto('https://www.w3schools.com/html/html_forms.asp');

See the full ad blocker example script.

How to persist sessions

Use this command to reuse the same proxy peer across multiple browsing sessions. This is useful for scenarios where maintaining a consistent session is required, such as preserving browser states or IP-based continuity.

Session persistence CDP commands

• Proxy.useSession – Associates a session with a specific session ID.
• sessionId – A unique string that identifies your session.

Use the CDP command before navigation to the target page.

Example

const client = await page.createCDPSession();
await client.send('Proxy.useSession', { sessionId });
await page.goto('https://geo.brdtest.com/mygeo.json');

See the full session persistence example script.

Getting Session ID

Use this command to retrieve the unique ID of your current browser session. This is useful when you need to look up session logs via the Session Logs API, such as investigating errors, unexpected behavior, or high bandwidth usage.

Session ID CDP command

• Browser.getSessionId

Example (Puppeteer)

const page = await browser.newPage();
const client = await page.target().createCDPSession();
const result = await client.send('Browser.getSessionId');
const sessionId = result.sessionId;
console.log('Current session ID:', sessionId);

Returns

{
  "sessionId": "XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXX"
}

How to download files

You can automate file downloads in your Browser API flows using the custom Download CDP domain. This is useful for workflows that require downloading files (e.g., CSV, PDF) directly during browser automation.

File download CDP commands

• Download.enable – Enables file downloads for specified content types.
• Download.downloadRequest – Fires when request results in download.
• Download.getLastCompleted – Retrieves information about the last completed download.
• Download.getDownloadedBody – Gets the actual downloaded file content.

Example

const client = await page.createCDPSession();

// Enable downloads for binary files like CSV
await client.send('Download.enable', { allowedContentTypes: ['application/octet-stream'] });

// initiate download file
await Promise.all([
  new Promise(resolve => client.once('Download.downloadRequest', resolve)),
  page.click(selector),
]);

// After download completes:
const { id } = await client.send('Download.getLastCompleted');
const { body, base64Encoded } = await client.send('Download.getDownloadedBody', { id });
const fs = require('fs');
fs.writeFileSync('./downloaded_file.csv', base64Encoded ? Buffer.from(body, 'base64') : body);

See the full file download example script.

Faster Text Input

For scenarios that need rapid or bulk text input, use the custom Input.type CDP command. This approach is much faster than standard CDP text input methods, making it well suited for automation tasks requiring high-speed typing or handling large volumes of text.

Faster text input CDP commands

• Input.type - Sends keystrokes or simulates typing the specified text into the currently focused element.

Example

const client = await page.createCDPSession();

// Focus the input element
await page.focus('input');

// Type a message
await client.send('Input.type', {
  text: 'what is the best place to try pizza and pasta?'
});

Custom Client SSL/TLS Certificates

Use this command to install custom client SSL/TLS certificates where required for specific domain authentication. These certificates are applied for the duration of a single Browser API session and are automatically removed once the session ends.

Browser.addCertificate

Browser.addCertificate(params: {
  cert: string // base64 encoded certificate file
  pass: string // password for the certificate
}) : void

Code examples

• Replace the example values SBR_ZONE_FULL_USERNAME:SBR_ZONE_PASSWORD with your valid Browser API credentials.

• Replace client.pfx with the actual path to your certificate file. This file should be a valid SSL/TLS client certificate in .pfx format.

• Replace secret with the actual password for the certificate.

  NodeJS - Puppeteer

  const puppeteer = require('puppeteer-core');
  const fs = require('fs/promises');
  const {
    AUTH = 'SBR_ZONE_FULL_USERNAME:SBR_ZONE_PASSWORD',
    TARGET_URL = 'https://example.com',
    CERT_FILE = 'client.pfx',
    CERT_PASS = 'secret',
  } = process.env;
  
  async function scrape(url = TARGET_URL, file = CERT_FILE, pass = CERT_PASS) {
    if (AUTH == 'SBR_ZONE_FULL_USERNAME:SBR_ZONE_PASSWORD') {
      throw new Error(`Provide Browser API credentials in AUTH`
          + ` environment variable or update the script.`);
    }
    console.log(`Connecting to Browser...`);
    const browserWSEndpoint = `wss://${AUTH}@brd.superproxy.io:9222`;
    const browser = await puppeteer.connect({ browserWSEndpoint });
    try {
      console.log(`Connected! Installing ${file} certificate...`);
      const page = await browser.newPage();
      const client = await page.createCDPSession();
      const cert = (await fs.readFile(CERT_FILE)).toString('base64');
      await client.send('Browser.addCertificate', { cert, pass });
      console.log(`Installed! Navigating to ${url}...`);
      await page.goto(url, { timeout: 2 * 60 * 1000 });
      console.log(`Navigated! Scraping page content...`);
      const data = await page.content();
      console.log(`Scraped! Data: ${data}`);
    } finally {
      await browser.close();
    }
  }
  
  scrape();
  

  from os import environ
  from base64 import standard_b64encode
  from selenium.webdriver import Remote, ChromeOptions as Options
  from selenium.webdriver.chromium.remote_connection import ChromiumRemoteConnection as Connection
  
  AUTH = environ.get('AUTH', default='SBR_ZONE_FULL_USERNAME:SBR_ZONE_PASSWORD')
  TARGET_URL = environ.get('TARGET_URL', default='https://example.com')
  CERT_FILE = environ.get('CERT_FILE', default='client.pfx')
  CERT_PASS = environ.get('CERT_PASS', default='secret')
  
  def scrape(url=TARGET_URL, file=CERT_FILE, pswd=CERT_PASS):
      if AUTH == 'SBR_ZONE_FULL_USERNAME:SBR_ZONE_PASSWORD':
      raise Exception('Provide Browser API credentials in AUTH '
                      'environment variable or update the script.')
      print('Connecting to Browser...')
      server_addr = f'https://{AUTH}@brd.superproxy.io:9515'
      connection = Connection(server_addr, 'goog', 'chrome')
      driver = Remote(connection, options=Options())
      try:
          print(f'Connected! Installing {file} certificate...')
          with open(file, 'rb') as f:
              cert = standard_b64encode(f.read()).decode()
          driver.execute('executeCdpCommand', {
              'cmd': 'Browser.addCertificate',
              'params': {'cert': cert, 'pass': pswd},
          })
          print(f'Installed! Navigating to {url}...')
          driver.get(url)
          print('Navigated! Scraping page content...')
          data = driver.page_source
          print(f'Scraped! Data: {data}')
      finally:
          driver.quit()
  
  scrape()