Go-Rod Browser Automation Master

Detailed Guide

Read [the detailed guide](references/detailed-guide.md) before executing this skill. It retains the complete procedure and reference material. Treat its safety, prerequisites, and validation requirements as mandatory. For focused work, load the relevant sections; for end-to-end work, read the guide completely.

When to Use This Skill

• Use when the user asks to scrape, automate, or test a website using Go.
• Use when the user needs a headless browser for dynamic/SPA content (React, Vue, Angular).
• Use when the user mentions stealth, anti-bot, avoiding detection, Cloudflare, or bot detection bypass.
• Use when the user wants to work with the Chrome DevTools Protocol (CDP) directly from Go.
• Use when the user needs to intercept or hijack network requests in a browser context.
• Use when the user asks about concurrent browser scraping or page pooling in Go.
• Use when the user is migrating from chromedp or Playwright Go and wants a simpler API.

Safety & Risk

Risk Level: 🔵 Safe

• Read-Only by Default: Default behavior is navigating and reading page content (scraping/testing).
• Isolated Contexts: Browser contexts are sandboxed; cookies and storage do not persist unless explicitly saved.
• Resource Cleanup: Designed around Go's defer pattern — browsers and pages close automatically.
• No External Mutations: Does not modify external state unless the script explicitly submits forms or POSTs data.

Examples

See the examples/ directory for complete, runnable Go files:

• examples/basic_scrape.go — Minimal scraping example
• examples/stealth_page.go — Anti-detection with go-rod/stealth
• examples/request_hijacking.go — Intercepting and modifying network requests
• examples/concurrent_pages.go — Page pool for concurrent scraping

Limitations

• CAPTCHAs: Rod does not include CAPTCHA solving. External services (2captcha, etc.) must be integrated separately.
• Extreme Anti-Bot: While go-rod/stealth handles common detection (WebDriver, plugin fingerprints, WebGL), extremely strict systems (some Cloudflare configurations, Akamai Bot Manager) may still detect automation. Additional measures (residential proxies, human-like behavioral patterns) may be needed.
• DRM Content: Cannot interact with DRM-protected media (e.g., Widevine).
• Resource Usage: Each browser instance consumes significant RAM (~100-300MB+). Use PagePool and limit concurrency on memory-constrained systems.
• Extensions in Headless: Chrome extensions do not work in headless mode. Use Headless(false) with XVFB for server environments.
• Platform: Requires a Chromium-compatible browser. Does not support Firefox or Safari.