Founded by the Internet Archive, the Wayback Machine is a digital archive of websites from the World Wide Web. The Wayback Machine is the internetâs historical library that allows any user to visit an archived version of a website. Users can easily input a URL and select which date range they want to view.
As of 2022, the Wayback Machine has saved over 728 billion web pages. It would not be an understatement to call the Wayback Machine a treasure trove of the internetâs history. The data you can extract from it can be utilized in many aspects, but if you want to gather that data quickly and efficiently, you need to use a web scraper. A web scraping tool will extract data from the Wayback Machine faster than humanly possible.
The Wayback Machine does allow you to scrape data from it, but only until a certain amount. If you want to bypass these limitations, and also scrape data safely, then you need to pair your web scraper with a proxy server. Through a proxy, you have access to millions of IP addresses, so you can easily change your IP address if you hit the Wayback Machineâs limit. A proxy server will also hide your private information, so you can safely scrape without needing to worry about your personal data getting stolen.
Letâs set up a proxy server when scraping the Wayback Machine.
The Wayback Machineâs Proxy Settings
For Windows:
Step 1
In Windowâs search bar, type in âProxy Settingsâ.

Step 2
Click on the "Proxy Settings" search result.

Step 3
Youâll be given the choice of âAutomatic Proxy Setupâ or âManual Proxy Setupâ. For example purposes, weâll be choosing âManual Proxy Setupâ.

Step 4
Turn on "Use a proxy server".

Now, you need to go to your proxy provider and acquire the proxy server details. If you want to get it from Geonode, you can jump to âAcquiring Proxy Server Details With Geonodeâ.
Step 5
Enter your proxyâs âHostnameâ or âIP addressâ. This is the first part before the semicolon, which in our example is âpremium-residential.geonode.comâ.

Step 6
Enter your proxyâs âPort Numberâ. This is the second part before the semicolon, which in our example is â9001â.

Step 7
Enter any âwebsite addressesâ you would like to visit without a proxy.

If you want to access a local server without a proxy, turn on the "Donât use the proxy server for local addresses" check box.

Step 8
Click âSaveâ.

Step 9
Lastly, visit any website on Google Chrome and a pop-up window will appear asking for your account credentials. Enter your accountâs âUsernameâ and âPasswordâ. Then, click on âSign Inâ.

Congratulations! You have now set up a proxy server for your Windows operating system.
macOSâs Proxy Settings
Step 1
Click on the "Apple Icon".

Step 2
On the drop down menu, click on âSystem Preferencesâ.

Step 3
Click on âNetworkâ.

Step 4
Click on âAdvancedâ Note: Make sure to connect to your wi-fi first.

Step 5
Click on âProxiesâ

This should redirect you to MacOS proxy settings. Now, you need to go to your proxy provider and acquire the proxy server details. If you want to get it from Geonode, you can jump to âAcquiring Proxy Server Details With Geonodeâ.
Step 6
Select the correct protocol that youâll be using. For our example, weâll be selecting âWeb Proxy (HTTP)â.

Step 7
Enter your proxyâs âHostnameâ or âIP addressâ. This is the first part before the semicolon, which in our example is âpremium-residential.geonode.comâ.

Step 8
Enter your proxyâs âPort Numberâ. This is the second part before the semicolon, which in our example is â9001â.

Step 9
Turn on âProxy server requires passwordâ.

Step 10
Enter your proxy accountâs âUsernameâ and âPasswordâ.

Congratulations! You have now set up your proxy for your Mac operating system.
Acquiring Proxy Server Details With Geonode
Step 1
Go to Geonode and log in with your existing account or sign up to create a new one.

Step 2
On the Home Page, click on âResidential Servicesâ.

Step 3
Scroll down until you see âEndpointsâ.

Step 4
Choose which âProxy Protocolâ you want to utilize: âHTTP Protocolâ or âSOCKS5 Protocolâ.

Step 5
Select which "Session Type" you want to utilize: âRotating Proxyâ or Sticky Proxy.

Step 6
Choose which proxy you want to utilize. For example purposes, weâll be using the highlighted proxy âpremium-residential.geonode.com:9001â.

If you want to use an IP address instead of a DNS, simply turn off the Show DNS button, and IP addresses will show up.

Step 7
Now you need your proxy accountâs âAuthentication Detailsâ. For Geonode, this is on your accountâs home page.
