| name | wayback-screenshot |
| description | Retrieve screenshots from the Wayback Machine. Use when the user wants to see how a webpage looked, get a visual snapshot, find archived screenshots, or view historical page appearance. |
Retrieve Wayback Machine Screenshots
Access existing screenshots stored by the Wayback Machine.
Usage
npx tsx scripts/screenshot.ts <url> [options]
Arguments
| Argument | Required | Description |
|---|
url | Yes | The URL to find screenshots for |
Options
| Option | Description |
|---|
--timestamp=DATE | Get screenshot from specific capture (YYYYMMDDhhmmss) |
--list | List available screenshots for URL |
--download=PATH | Download screenshot to file |
--no-cache | Bypass cache and fetch fresh data from API |
Output
Screenshots for: https://example.com/
January 15, 2024 12:34 (3 days ago)
https://web.archive.org/web/20240115123456im_/https://example.com/
December 1, 2023 08:00 (46 days ago)
https://web.archive.org/web/20231201080000im_/https://example.com/
Total: 2 screenshot(s)
Script Execution (Preferred)
npx tsx scripts/screenshot.ts <url> [options]
Options:
--timestamp=DATE - Get screenshot from specific capture (YYYYMMDDhhmmss)--list - List available screenshots for URL--download=PATH - Download screenshot to file--no-cache - Bypass cache and fetch fresh data from API
Run from the wayback plugin directory: ~/.claude/plugins/cache/wayback/
Screenshot URL Pattern
https://web.archive.org/screenshot/{URL}
Direct Access
Get the most recent screenshot:
https://web.archive.org/screenshot/https://example.com/
With Timestamp
Get screenshot from a specific capture:
https://web.archive.org/web/{timestamp}im_/https://example.com/
The im_ modifier returns the screenshot image for that timestamp.
List Available Screenshots
Use CDX API with wildcard to find all screenshots:
https://web.archive.org/cdx/search/cdx?url=web.archive.org/screenshot/https://example.com/*&output=json
Or browse visually:
https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://web.archive.org/screenshot/https://example.com/*
Via Wayback Toolbar
When viewing any archived page:
- Look for the camera icon (📷) in the top-right of the Wayback toolbar
- Click to view available screenshots for that capture
From SPN2 Response
When submitting with capture_screenshot=1, the response includes:
{
"status": "success",
"screenshot": "https://web.archive.org/web/20240115123456im_/https://example.com/"
}
## Caveats
- **Not all captures have screenshots** - depends on whether `capture_screenshot=1` was used during archiving
- **Undocumented feature** - may be unreliable or change without notice
- **Indexing delays** - newly captured screenshots may not appear immediately
- **Coverage varies** - older archives typically don't have screenshots
## Caching
Availability API responses are cached for 24 hours using the OS temporary directory (`os.tmpdir()`). Cache keys are generated from the URL using SHA-256 hashing. Cached responses expire automatically and are deleted on access.
Use `wayback-cache` to manage cached data:
```bash
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.
Related
- Use
wayback-submit --capture-screenshot to create a new screenshot
- Use
wayback-check to verify if a URL is archived
- Use
wayback-list to see all captures (not just those with screenshots)
