This article explains how to create a .har file which can provide useful information to Talis support staff.
Introduction
For many Talis integrations it is important to be able to see the information in those requests that the browser sent to us, so that we can check that they are doing what we expect.
Modern browsers allow you to capture the requests that are made to get and display the contents of a web page. These can be captured in an HTTP Archive (.har) file.
The file contains information about the requests made, and how long it took.
Google Chrome / Microsoft Edge (easiest method)
- Open the Developer Tools by pressing Command+Option+I (Mac) or Control+Shift+I (Windows, Linux)
- Activate the network tab.
- Make sure that the preserve log checkbox is selected.
- Reload or make your request.
- Click on the 'Export HAR' icon:
(you may need to expand your developer tools window to make it visible)
- Send us the file via your support ticket.
Firefox
There may be other ways to do this but here is one way:
- Install Firebug addon.
- Install the NetExport addon (choose the most recent version)
- Enable the firebug plugin for the page where you are seeing the issue.
- Enable the net panel so that it starts monitoring requests.
- Reload the iframe which is showing the Talis content.
- Use the export option on the net panel to save as the file to your computer.
- Send us the file via your support ticket.
Internet Explorer (IE)
In Internet Explorer the same information is saved as an XML file. To get to this information:
- Open the Settings menu in your browser.
- Open F12 Developer tools.
- Activate the Network tab.
- Right click anywhere on the screen.
- Select Save as XML.
- Send us the file via your support ticket.
- You could use this tool to change Microsoft's XML to JSON if needed
Safari
In Safari, you are now able to export a .har file by completing the following:
- With Safari open, click the 'Safari' menu.
- Open the 'Preferences' and select the 'Advanced' tab.
- Ensure that Show Develop menu in menu bar is ticked.
- Open the Develop menu and select Show Web Inspector.
- Activate the Network tab.
- Complete the activity that is causing issues.
- Click the Export icon and save the .har file.
- Send us the file via your support ticket.
If the issue you are experiencing is specific to Safari, then we'll probably want to arrange to screen-share with the affected computer to remotely diagnose the issue.
Viewing your HAR file
You can use one of these online tools to view the contents of a .har file to make sure that it contains the requests you think it does…