The HTTP Archive format, known as HAR, is a JSON-formatted archive file format used to log a web browser’s interactions with a website.
To save a HAR file in Chrome, open the Developer Console. The HAR file contains everything, including cookies and sessions, which can be considered secrets. Remember to be careful with whom you share this file. This can be useful if a website encounters an error condition. It can be a valuable way to debug rendering issues.
Create HAR in Chrome
When you open Chrome, open the developer toolbar. You may or may not use the ‘preserve log’ option, depending on whether you only need the current page or a series of page loads in your HAR log file.
You can download the HTTP Watch Studio to analyze and review the HAR file. The free edition allows analysis of a few websites for free.
https://www.httpwatch.com/editions.aspx
HttpWatch Studio v15
One started and a har file loaded.
HttpWatch Studio Editions
Certain functions in HttpWatch Basic Edition are restricted to sites in the Alexa Top 20 or one of the following – amazon.com, ebay.com, httpwatch.com & slashdot.org
The last Alexda Top 20 which was published. The service was discontinued on May 1, 2022.
- Google.com
- YouTube.com
- baidu.com
- bilibili.com
- Facebook.com
- qq.com
- Twitter.com
- zhihu.com
- wikipedia.org
- Amazon.com
- instagram.com
- linkedin.com
- ReddIt.com
- WhatsApp.com
- OpenAi.com
- Yahoo.com
- Bing.com
- taobao.com
- 163.com
- yandex.ru
HttpWatch Studio Comparision
The current version as of May 2024 is Version 15. I know that Version 13.1 was released on January 8, 2021, but I couldn’t find any reference indicating when Version 15 was released.
The analysis can be quick and easy. The main benefit of this tool is that it will run locally on your device.
Alternative Google Toolbox
https://toolbox.googleapps.com/apps/har_analyzer
There is a specific warning and a hint to redact secrets from your file using a text editor. This is an option but may be difficult to achieve depending on which secrets you would like to remove.
Once a HAR was loaded
The view is also good and shows all relevant information, but you had to submit it on the Google page. If you feel comfortable with this, it can be a valuable alternative.
