Web Crawling with PHP: CURL Efficient Data Collection Tutorial

Getting your IP blocked for data crawling, try this life-saving trick!

Do data collection of the old iron should have encountered this situation: just grab two pages of data, the server will give you IP black. At this time, you have to pull out the proxy IP this killer, especially like ipipgo this reliable service provider, can let you like open plug-in continuous data collection.

// Basic curl configuration
$ch = curl_init();
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, "destination site");
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);

// Load the ipipgo proxy
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_PROXY, 'proxy IP:port'); // e.g. 1.2.3.4:8080
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_PROXYUSERPWD, 'Account:Password'); ;// e.g. 1.2.3.4:8080

$result = curl_exec($ch);

Proxy IP practical three axes

First move:Random cuts for vestsThe following is an example of how you can use the same IP. Don't always use the same IP, ipipgo's IP pool is large enough to randomly change IPs with each request so that the target site thinks it's being visited by a normal user.

Second move:Be flexible with timeout settings. It is recommended to set the timeout between 3-8 seconds, too short for easy misjudgment and too long for efficiency.

// Timeout configuration example
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_TIMEOUT, 5); curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_CONNECTTIMEOUT, 3); // Timeout configuration example
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_CONNECTTIMEOUT, 3); curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_CONNECTTIMEOUT, 3);

Third move:Fake Browser Header. Many sites detect request headers and it is safer to use the UA of common browsers.

Common Rollover Scene QA

Q：Why is it still blocked even though I've used a proxy?
A: may encounter three situations: 1. proxy IP quality is not good 2. request frequency is too high 3. request characteristics are too obvious. It is recommended to use ipipgo's high stash of proxies with the random delay function.

Q: What should I do if I can't connect to the proxy IP often?
A: This happens more often than not with free proxies. ipipgo's survival rate can reach 99%, and it also comes with the function of automatic switching of invalid IPs.

Essential Tips for Advanced Players

1. Concurrent acquisition should be throttled: Although ipipgo supports high concurrency, but it is recommended to control within 50 threads, too fierce easy to be anti-crawler target.

2. Intelligent Switching Protocol: Choose http/https proxy according to the target website, ipipgo's proxy supports full protocol auto adaption.

3. Abnormal auto retry: Automatically retry when encountering network fluctuations, remember to set the maximum number of retries to avoid a dead loop.

// Example of an intelligent retry mechanism
$retry = 3; while($retry--) {
while($retry--) {
    $result = curl_exec($ch); if(!curl_errno($ch)) break; if(!
    if(!curl_errno($ch)) break;
    sleep(1); // retry after 1 second interval
}

Why do you recommend ipipgo?

Having tested seven or eight proxy services on the market, ipipgo has three hardcore advantages:

1. 30+ server room nodes nationwide, latency basically within 50ms
2. Exclusive IP pool without serial number, cleaner data collection
3. Professional technical support 7 × 24 hours online, out of the problem of second response

Especially to do e-commerce price comparison, public opinion monitoring of these projects that require long-term collection, with ordinary agents three days out of the problem, ipipgo can save a lot of worry. New user registration also send experience package, you can try before you buy.

Guide to avoiding the pit

One final note for newbies:
1. Don't try to use a free proxy, data security is not guaranteed!
2. Always buy commercial packages for important items; ipipgo's monthly packages are more cost-effective than volume-based billing
3. Regularly check the anonymity of proxy IPs to prevent backtracking

Mastering these techniques, along with the assistance of ipipgo, can basically take care of 90%'s collection needs. Next time you encounter a difficult website, remember to change the proxy IP first to try, don't fight hard with the target site.