Mearman Check Wayback Machine Archive Status
Check if a URL has been archived by the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine.
Usage
npx tsx scripts/check.ts <url> [options]
Arguments
| Argument | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
url |
Yes | The URL to check |
Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--no-raw |
Include Wayback toolbar in archived URL |
--timestamp=DATE |
Find snapshot closest to date (YYYYMMDD or YYYYMMDDhhmmss) |
--no-cache |
Bypass cache and fetch fresh data from API |
Output
When archived:
✓ Archived
Timestamp: January 1, 2024 (3 days ago)
URL: https://web.archive.org/web/20240101120000id_/https://example.com
When not archived:
✗ Not archived
Consider using wayback-submit to archive this URL.
Script Execution (Preferred)
npx tsx scripts/check.ts <url> [options]
Options:
--no-raw- Include Wayback toolbar in archived URL--timestamp=DATE- Find snapshot closest to date (YYYYMMDD or YYYYMMDDhhmmss)--no-cache- Bypass cache and fetch fresh data from API
Run from the wayback plugin directory: ~/.claude/plugins/cache/wayback/
Availability API
https://archive.org/wayback/available?url={URL}
Parameters
| Parameter | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
url |
Yes | The URL to check |
timestamp |
No | Find snapshot closest to this date (YYYYMMDDhhmmss, partial dates OK) |
callback |
No | JSONP callback for cross-domain requests |
Examples
Latest snapshot:
https://archive.org/wayback/available?url=https://example.com
Snapshot closest to a specific date:
https://archive.org/wayback/available?url=https://example.com×tamp=20200101
Response Interpretation
Archived - Response contains archived_snapshots.closest with:
available: trueurl: The archived URL (format:https://web.archive.org/web/{timestamp}/{original_url})timestamp: Archive timestamp (YYYYMMDDhhmmss format)status: HTTP status code
Not Archived - Response has empty archived_snapshots object.
Raw Mode
By default, append id_ after the timestamp in URLs to get raw content without the Wayback toolbar:
- With toolbar:
https://web.archive.org/web/20240101120000/https://example.com - Raw (no toolbar):
https://web.archive.org/web/20240101120000id_/https://example.com
URL Modifiers
| Modifier | URL Pattern | Description |
|---|---|---|
| (none) | /web/{ts}/ |
Page with Wayback toolbar |
id_ |
/web/{ts}id_/ |
Raw page content (no toolbar) |
im_ |
/web/{ts}im_/ |
Screenshot image |
js_ |
/web/{ts}js_/ |
JavaScript content |
cs_ |
/web/{ts}cs_/ |
CSS content |
Related
- Use
wayback-screenshotto retrieve visual screenshots of archived pages - Use
wayback-listto see all captures with filtering options - Use
wayback-submitto create a new archive (with optional screenshot)
Caching
Availability API responses are cached for 24 hours using the OS temporary directory (os.tmpdir()). Cache keys are generated from the URL and timestamp parameters using SHA-256 hashing. Cached responses expire automatically and are deleted on access.
Use wayback-cache to manage cached data:
npx tsx scripts/cache.ts clear # Clear all cache
npx tsx scripts/cache.ts status # Show cache status
See wayback-cache skill for complete cache management documentation.
Error Handling
If the Wayback Machine API returns an error or is unavailable, retry after a brief delay. The API may be rate-limited during high traffic periods.