10/18/23, 12:31 PM Tutorial: How to log into a website - Cyotek WebCopy Help

Tutorial: How to log into a website

docs.cyotek.com/cyowcopy/current/tutorialformsauthentication.html

Many websites have private areas only available to authenticated users. WebCopy
supports two methods of authenticating with such websites, form based and challenge
based. This tutorial will demonstrate how to use forms authentication.

Important

WebCopy is unable to automatically log into web sites using two-factor authentication
(2FA), multi-factor authentication (MFA), or that require client side JavaScript to be
executed as part of the login process. You can use External Authentication or cookies to
manually log into a target website prior to copying.

Capturing a form automatically using the Capture Form tool

The simplest way to add a form definition t WebCopy is to use the built in capture tool.

Ensure you have entered the address of the site you want to copy, for example
https://demo.cyotek.com
Select Capture Form from the Tools menu
Using the embedded browser window, navigate the website until you reach the login
page
WebCopy will list any forms in a list in the top right window. Select the most
appropriate form (if multiple forms are present)
You can also fill in the form in the embedded web browser - but do not submit! Once
you have filled in the appropriate values, click the Scan Forms button to detect
the values you have entered
All non-hidden parameters will be automatically selected for inclusion in the form
definition. The hidden parameters are often still required, but WebCopy will
automatically read them from the website and use them each time it is posted. This
means that forms using dynamic values such as anti-forgery tokens can be submitted
easily
Click the Create Form button. This will automatically create a definition pointing to the
correct URL for posting the form, along with the parameters you defined, and then
close the tool.

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10/18/23, 12:31 PM Tutorial: How to log into a website - Cyotek WebCopy Help

Important

Password and form data is stored in plain text within a WebCopy project file.

Copying the web site

When copying a web site, WebCopy will submit any form definitions before copying
commences after which the copy will progress as normal. If you followed this tutorial using
the WebCopy demonstration website, a number of additional pages will be present, such as
authenticationprofile.php.

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