Emulation API Reference

Programmatically spin up historically accurate browser environments, render archived URLs exactly as they appeared in the 1990s, capture snapshots, and extract console/network logs for research or development.

npm install @1990archive/emulation-sdk

Authentication

Security

All API requests require authentication via a Bearer token or your project API key. Tokens can be generated in the developer dashboard.

# Header Format
Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_KEY>
X-Archive-Key: pk_live_xxxxxxxxxxxx

Base URL & Environments

Configuration

Environment	Base URL	Use Case
Production	https://api.1990archive.com/v2	Live emulation & production workloads
Sandbox	https://api-sandbox.1990archive.com/v2	Testing & development (no rate limits)

Create Emulation Session

Core

POST /v2/emulation/sessions Provision a vintage browser instance

Allocates a secure, isolated container with a period-accurate browser and OS environment. Sessions persist for 24 hours by default.

Body Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
browser_version *	string	`netscape_3.0`, `ie4.0`, `mosaic_3.0`, `opera_3.0`
os_target	string	`windows_95`, `mac_os_8`, `linux_2.0` (default: `windows_95`)
network_profile	string	`56k_dialup`, `isdn_64k`, `t1`, `unmetered`
screen_resolution	object	`{ width: 800, height: 600 }` (default era-standard)

curl -X POST https://api.1990archive.com/v2/emulation/sessions \\
  -H "Authorization: Bearer <KEY>" \\
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \\
  -d '{"browser_version": "netscape_3.0", "network_profile": "56k_dialup"}'

{
  "browser_version": "netscape_3.0",
  "os_target": "windows_95",
  "network_profile": "56k_dialup",
  "screen_resolution": {
    "width": 800,
    "height": 600
  }
}

{
  "session_id": "ses_8f3a2c1d",
  "status": "provisioned",
  "browser": "netscape_3.0",
  "endpoint_url": "https://emu.1990archive.com/ses_8f3a2c1d",
  "expires_at": "2024-12-01T12:00:00Z"
}

Render Archived Page

Core

POST /v2/emulation/{session_id}/render Load & execute a historical URL

Triggers the emulation instance to navigate to a specific archived snapshot or live mirror. Supports relative resource loading from our 1990-1999 archive.

curl -X POST https://api.1990archive.com/v2/emulation/ses_8f3a2c1d/render \\
  -H "Authorization: Bearer <KEY>" \\
  -d '{"url": "archive://geoocities.com/~coder95", "timestamp": "1998-04-15T10:30:00Z"}'

{
  "job_id": "job_9x2m4",
  "status": "rendering",
  "url": "archive://geoocities.com/~coder95",
  "estimated_complete": "2024-11-30T08:15:22Z"
}

Capture Screenshot

Media

POST /v2/emulation/{session_id}/screenshot Generate period-accurate viewport capture

Returns a base64-encoded PNG or direct download URL. Supports full-page or viewport-only modes. Automatically applies era-appropriate rendering quirks (anti-aliasing off, dithering enabled, etc.).

{
  "format": "png",
  "viewport": true,
  "quality": 100,
  "include_scrollbar": false
}

Retrieve Console & Network Logs

Debugging

GET /v2/emulation/{session_id}/logs Extract browser console & traffic

Returns an array of structured log objects. Filters support type=console, type=network, or type=errors. Useful for debugging legacy JS (Netscape 2/3 quirks) or tracking broken resource paths.

{
  "logs": [
    {
      "timestamp": "1998-04-15T10:30:05Z",
      "type": "console",
      "level": "warn",
      "message": "Variable 'document.layers' deprecated in later specs"
    }
  ],
  "count": 1
}

Terminate Session

Lifecycle

DELETE /v2/emulation/{session_id} Release resources & wipe state

Gracefully shuts down the emulation container, clears temporary disk allocations, and returns remaining compute credits. Returns 204 No Content on success.

204 Session terminated

404 Session not found

401 Invalid API key

Webhooks & Events

Async

Configure webhook endpoints in your dashboard to receive real-time event notifications. All payloads are signed with your project's signing_secret.

Event	Trigger	Payload Key
`session.created`	Container provisioned	`session_id`, `browser`
`render.complete`	DOM fully loaded	`job_id`, `status`, `metrics`
`screenshot.ready`	Capture generated	`url`, `expires_at`
`session.terminated`	Manual or auto-close	`session_id`, `reason`

Rate Limits & Tiers

Billing

Plan	Concurrent Sessions	Requests / min	Storage Retention
Free	1	30	24h
Research	10	500	7d
Enterprise	Unlimited	5,000	90d + S3 export