Before scraping data related to Instagram, we need to understand how its pages are rendered. Does Instagram use server-side rendering to deliver content directly to the front end, or does it employ another method?
Instagram usesa hybrid approach combining Client-Side Rendering (CSR) and Server-Side Rendering (SSR). This article will explore these two rendering methods and offer suggestions for scraping Instagram based on this knowledge.
CSR – The "Raw Materials"
CSR – Client-Side Rendering – is a common front-end rendering pattern. The page's HTML and JavaScript are sent to the client together, and the page content is generated within the user's browser. Essentially, the content is "generated live" on the user's device.
An analogy would be going to a library to look up "unbound raw materials." First, you find the index for the raw materials (the page framework), then you go to different shelves to find the corresponding materials (the data), and finally, you assemble the found materials into a complete booklet (rendering the page).
SSR – The "Prepared Materials"
SSR – Server-Side Rendering – involves generating the HTML on the server and sending it to the client for display. This means the content is "generated live" on the website's server before being sent to the user. This rendering mode typically uses a Node.js runtime on the server to execute the rendering logic and returns complete HTML to the client's browser.
An analogy for this is asking a librarian to "prepare the materials" for you. You tell the librarian what type of information you need (access the page), they search the repository for the relevant content (data), and finally, they hand you the information already compiled (the complete page), so you don't have to assemble it yourself.
What Are the Advantages of Combining Both?
From the user's interaction flow perspective, CSR and SSR can be combined very effectively.
For the initial page load, the SSR approach is used: regardless of which page a user directly accesses (homepage, secondary, or tertiary page), they benefit from the fastest possible display speed thanks to SSR. For subsequent navigations within the site, CSR takes over: page transitions during user interactions load new content seamlessly via CSR, potentially even pre-loading content for predicted user actions.
This model finds a balance between two key aspects: ensuring the initial load is highly efficient while making subsequent interactions exceptionally smooth.
Suggestions for Scraping Instagram
To scrape Instagram by simulating the entire rendering process, you must use a headless browser. However, the most effective scraping method is not to parse the complex and constantly changing HTML content generated by JavaScript. Instead, it's more efficient to directly intercept and capture the network API requests that return structured JSON data.