Pelgrane Press's feed is behind a browser check that refuses iPX most of the time #144

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opened 2026-10-06 12:52:25 -07:00 by rays · 1 comment
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Found in a production check on 2026-10-06. pelgrane-press-ltd (https://pelgranepress.com/feed/, one subscriber) has failed 27 times with HTTP 403 since 2026-09-29 20:12 UTC, the latest 2026-10-06 15:35, with reads between that worked (2026-10-03 13:53 and 2026-10-06 01:34, one new item each).

It is the publisher's: the site is on Automattic's CDN (server-timing: a8c-cdn), which answers the feed with a 403 page titled "Checking your browser..." ("Javascript required"), a bot check no feed reader can pass. From Tower it refused a browser's user agent as it refused ipx's, so it goes by the address, not by who asks; now and then it lets one through.

Shown in Loki with: sum by (feed, error_type) (count_over_time({container="iPX"} |= ""ev":"feed_error"" |= "pelgrane-press-ltd" | json | error="" [7d])). ipx explains it as 'The site refuses ipx's requests.', which is fair; it could say a browser check is in the way, the one thing the publisher can change. Their feed may also be reachable elsewhere (a feedburner or newsletter address).

Found in a production check on 2026-10-06. pelgrane-press-ltd (https://pelgranepress.com/feed/, one subscriber) has failed 27 times with HTTP 403 since 2026-09-29 20:12 UTC, the latest 2026-10-06 15:35, with reads between that worked (2026-10-03 13:53 and 2026-10-06 01:34, one new item each). It is the publisher's: the site is on Automattic's CDN (server-timing: a8c-cdn), which answers the feed with a 403 page titled "Checking your browser..." ("Javascript required"), a bot check no feed reader can pass. From Tower it refused a browser's user agent as it refused ipx's, so it goes by the address, not by who asks; now and then it lets one through. Shown in Loki with: sum by (feed, error_type) (count_over_time({container="iPX"} |= "\"ev\":\"feed_error\"" |= "pelgrane-press-ltd" | json | __error__="" [7d])). ipx explains it as 'The site refuses ipx's requests.', which is fair; it could say a browser check is in the way, the one thing the publisher can change. Their feed may also be reachable elsewhere (a feedburner or newsletter address).
rays added the bug label 2026-10-06 12:52:25 -07:00
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Closing: the feed fails only some of the time and reads in between, so it is not dead, and the subscriber still gets its items.

Closing: the feed fails only some of the time and reads in between, so it is not dead, and the subscriber still gets its items.
rays closed this issue 2026-10-08 07:45:31 -07:00
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Reference: rays/ipx#144