Anti-Detect Browser Automation with camoufox-cli

Core Workflow

Every browser automation follows this pattern:

1. Navigate: camoufox-cli open <url>
2. Snapshot: camoufox-cli snapshot -i (get element refs like @e1, @e2)
3. Interact: Use refs to click, fill, select
4. Re-snapshot: After navigation or DOM changes, get fresh refs
5. Close: camoufox-cli close when the entire task is complete — with the same --tab/--session flags as your other commands. Keep it open if the user may have follow-up instructions.

bash
camoufox-cli open https://example.com/form
camoufox-cli snapshot -i
# Output: - textbox "Email" [ref=e1]
#         - textbox "Password" [ref=e2]
#         - button "Submit" [ref=e3]

camoufox-cli fill @e1 "user@example.com"
camoufox-cli fill @e2 "password123"
camoufox-cli click @e3
camoufox-cli snapshot -i  # Check result

Command Chaining

Commands can be chained with && in a single shell invocation. The browser persists between commands via a background daemon, so chaining is safe and more efficient than separate calls.

bash
# Chain open + snapshot in one call
camoufox-cli open https://example.com && camoufox-cli snapshot -i

# Chain multiple interactions
camoufox-cli fill @e1 "user@example.com" && camoufox-cli fill @e2 "password123" && camoufox-cli click @e3

# Navigate and capture
camoufox-cli open https://example.com && camoufox-cli screenshot page.png

When to chain: Use && when you don't need to read the output of an intermediate command before proceeding (e.g., open + screenshot). Run commands separately when you need to parse the output first (e.g., snapshot to discover refs, then interact using those refs).

Essential Commands

bash
# Navigation
camoufox-cli open <url>              # Navigate to URL (starts daemon if needed)
camoufox-cli back                    # Go back
camoufox-cli forward                 # Go forward
camoufox-cli reload                  # Reload page
camoufox-cli url                     # Print current URL
camoufox-cli title                   # Print page title
camoufox-cli close                   # Close your tab (browser exits when the last tab closes)
camoufox-cli close --all             # Force-close all sessions

# Snapshot
camoufox-cli snapshot                # Full aria tree of page
camoufox-cli snapshot -i             # Interactive elements only (recommended)
camoufox-cli snapshot -s "#selector" # Scope to CSS selector

# Interaction (use @refs from snapshot)
camoufox-cli click @e1               # Click element
camoufox-cli fill @e1 "text"         # Clear + type into input
camoufox-cli type @e1 "text"         # Type without clearing (append)
camoufox-cli select @e1 "option"     # Select dropdown option
camoufox-cli check @e1               # Toggle checkbox
camoufox-cli hover @e1               # Hover over element
camoufox-cli press Enter             # Press keyboard key
camoufox-cli press "Control+a"       # Key combination

# Data Extraction
camoufox-cli text @e1                # Get text content of element
camoufox-cli text body               # Get all page text (CSS selector)
camoufox-cli eval "document.title"   # Execute JavaScript

# Capture
camoufox-cli screenshot              # Screenshot as JSON {"base64": "..."}
camoufox-cli screenshot page.png     # Screenshot to file
camoufox-cli screenshot --full p.png # Full page screenshot
camoufox-cli pdf output.pdf          # Save page as PDF

# Scroll & Wait
camoufox-cli scroll down             # Scroll down 500px
camoufox-cli scroll up               # Scroll up 500px
camoufox-cli scroll down 1000        # Scroll down 1000px
camoufox-cli wait @e1                # Wait for element to appear
camoufox-cli wait 2000               # Wait milliseconds
camoufox-cli wait --url "*/dashboard" # Wait for URL pattern

# Tabs
camoufox-cli tabs                    # List open tabs (with owner names)
camoufox-cli switch 2                # Switch to tab by index
camoufox-cli --tab <unique-name> open <url> # Named tab: shared browser + login, own page/refs

# Cookies & State
camoufox-cli cookies                 # Dump cookies as JSON
camoufox-cli cookies import file.json # Import cookies
camoufox-cli cookies export file.json # Export cookies

# Sessions
camoufox-cli sessions                # List active sessions
camoufox-cli --session work open <url> # Use named session
camoufox-cli close --all             # Force-close all sessions

# Setup
camoufox-cli install                 # Download Camoufox browser
camoufox-cli install --with-deps     # Download browser + system libs (Linux)

Common Patterns

Form Submission

bash
camoufox-cli open https://example.com/signup
camoufox-cli snapshot -i
camoufox-cli fill @e1 "Jane Doe"
camoufox-cli fill @e2 "jane@example.com"
camoufox-cli select @e3 "California"
camoufox-cli check @e4
camoufox-cli click @e5
camoufox-cli snapshot -i  # Verify submission result

Data Extraction

bash
camoufox-cli open https://example.com/products
camoufox-cli snapshot -i
camoufox-cli text @e5                # Get specific element text
camoufox-cli eval "document.title"   # Get page title via JS
camoufox-cli screenshot results.png  # Visual capture

Cookie Management (Persist Login)

bash
# Login and export cookies
camoufox-cli open https://app.example.com/login
camoufox-cli snapshot -i
camoufox-cli fill @e1 "user"
camoufox-cli fill @e2 "pass"
camoufox-cli click @e3
camoufox-cli cookies export auth.json

# Restore in future session
camoufox-cli open https://app.example.com
camoufox-cli cookies import auth.json
camoufox-cli reload

For long-lived accounts where the site also verifies device stability (not just the cookie), combine this with --persistent so the fingerprint stays fixed alongside the cookies — see the Persistent Identity section below.

Multiple Tabs

bash
camoufox-cli open https://site-a.com
camoufox-cli eval "window.open('https://site-b.com')"
camoufox-cli tabs                    # List tabs
camoufox-cli switch 1                # Switch to second tab
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

Parallel Tabs (shared identity, one browser)

Named tabs share one browser within a session — same fingerprint, same cookies/login state — but each tab keeps its own page, element refs, and navigation history, so concurrent agents never clobber each other. This is the cheap way to parallelize: one Firefox total, roughly 50-150MB per extra tab.

bash
camoufox-cli --tab inbox-scan-x4q open https://app.example.com/inbox
camoufox-cli --tab report-pull-9kf open https://app.example.com/reports
camoufox-cli --tab inbox-scan-x4q snapshot -i   # refs are per tab
camoufox-cli tabs                               # Lists every tab with its owner name
camoufox-cli --tab inbox-scan-x4q close         # Frees only this tab; browser stays for the others

Picking your tab name. Nothing enforces uniqueness — two agents using the same name share one page pointer and will clobber each other. Generate your name ONCE at the start of your task: a short slug of your specific task plus a shell-generated random suffix — don't invent the suffix yourself, LLM-"random" characters are biased and concurrent agents may produce the same ones. Then reuse the printed name verbatim in every subsequent command. (If your instructions explicitly assign you a tab name, use that instead.)

bash
TAB="price-scan-$(openssl rand -hex 2)" && echo "$TAB" && camoufox-cli --tab "$TAB" open https://example.com
# prints e.g. price-scan-9f3c — use that exact name in every later command:
camoufox-cli --tab price-scan-9f3c snapshot -i

Use tabs when subagents should act as the same identity (e.g. all operating the same logged-in account). Cleanup needs no coordination: every agent runs close when done, addressed to its own tab (camoufox-cli --tab <name> close) — it releases only that tab, and the browser exits by itself when the last tab closes.

Tabs share one browser process, so commands from different tabs may queue behind a slow navigation or wait; separate sessions run as independent processes and execute fully in parallel. If a few agents are extremely command-heavy, consider giving those their own session and keeping the rest on tabs.

Parallel Sessions (isolated identities)

Each named session is a separate browser process, so each gets its own randomly-generated fingerprint and its own cookies. Use this when agents must NOT share identity (multi-account work) — it costs a full Firefox (~300-500MB) per session:

bash
camoufox-cli --session s1 open https://site-a.com
camoufox-cli --session s2 open https://site-b.com
camoufox-cli sessions                # List both
camoufox-cli --session s1 snapshot -i
camoufox-cli --session s2 snapshot -i

Separate sessions alone only isolate the browser side. For multi-account work that must survive scrutiny, also give each session its own proxy (sites correlate accounts by IP — use the config file's sessions.<name>.proxy) and --persistent (otherwise the fingerprint is re-randomized every launch, which looks like a new device on each login).

Visual Browser (Debugging)

bash
camoufox-cli --headed open https://example.com
camoufox-cli snapshot -i
camoufox-cli screenshot debug.png

Session Management and Cleanup

When running multiple agents or automations concurrently, give each agent its own name so they don't conflict. Two isolation levels:

• --tab <name> (shared identity, recommended default): all agents share one browser — same fingerprint and login state — but each gets an independent tab. Cheap: one Firefox total.
• --session <name> (isolated identity): each agent gets its own browser with its own fingerprint and cookies. Expensive: a full Firefox per session. Use only when identities must be separate.

bash
# Shared identity: 3 agents, one browser, one login
camoufox-cli --tab orders-audit-p2m open https://app.example.com/a
camoufox-cli --tab user-export-j8w open https://app.example.com/b
camoufox-cli --tab billing-check-r4t open https://app.example.com/c

# Isolated identities: 2 agents, two browsers
camoufox-cli --session shop-a-buyer open https://site-a.com
camoufox-cli --session shop-b-buyer open https://site-b.com
camoufox-cli sessions                  # Check active sessions

Names are just strings and nothing enforces uniqueness — follow the "Picking your tab name" rule above (task slug + shell-generated random suffix, chosen once). The same applies to session names.

Always run close when done to avoid leaked processes — with the same --tab/--session flags as your other commands, since close releases the tab the command is addressed to. The browser exits when the last tab closes, so every agent cleans up the same way without knowing about the others:

bash
camoufox-cli --tab orders-audit-p2m close       # Free this tab; browser exits if it was the last
camoufox-cli close                              # Same, for the default tab
camoufox-cli --session shop-a-buyer close       # Same, within a named session
camoufox-cli close --all                        # Force-close all sessions (cleanup escape hatch)

If a previous session was not closed properly, the daemon may still be running. Use camoufox-cli close (or close --all) to clean it up before starting new work.

Timeouts and Slow Pages

Some pages take time to fully load, especially those with dynamic content or heavy JavaScript. Use explicit waits before taking a snapshot:

bash
# Wait for a specific element to appear
camoufox-cli wait @e1
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

# Wait for a URL pattern (useful after redirects)
camoufox-cli wait --url "*/dashboard"
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

# Wait a fixed duration as a last resort
camoufox-cli wait 3000
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

When dealing with slow pages, always wait before snapshotting. If you snapshot too early, elements may be missing from the output.

Ref Lifecycle (Important)

Refs (@e1, @e2, etc.) are temporary identifiers assigned by sequential numbering during each snapshot. They are invalidated when the page changes.

Always re-snapshot after:

• Clicking links or buttons that navigate
• Form submissions
• Dynamic content loading (dropdowns, modals, lazy-loaded content)
• Scrolling that triggers new content

bash
# CORRECT: re-snapshot after navigation
camoufox-cli click @e5              # Navigates to new page
camoufox-cli snapshot -i            # MUST re-snapshot
camoufox-cli click @e1              # Use new refs

# CORRECT: re-snapshot after dynamic changes
camoufox-cli click @e1              # Opens dropdown
camoufox-cli snapshot -i            # See dropdown items
camoufox-cli click @e7              # Select item

# WRONG: using refs without snapshot
camoufox-cli open https://example.com
camoufox-cli click @e1              # Ref doesn't exist yet!

# WRONG: using old refs after navigation
camoufox-cli click @e5              # Navigates away
camoufox-cli click @e3              # STALE REF - wrong element!

Always take a fresh snapshot before interacting with elements after navigation or page changes.

Troubleshooting

"Ref @eN not found"

The ref was invalidated. Re-snapshot to get fresh refs:

bash
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

Element Not Visible in Snapshot

bash
# Scroll down to reveal element
camoufox-cli scroll down 1000
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

# Or wait for dynamic content
camoufox-cli wait 2000
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

Too Many Elements in Snapshot

bash
# Scope to a specific container
camoufox-cli snapshot -s "#main-content"
camoufox-cli snapshot -i -s "form.login"

Page Not Fully Loaded

bash
# Wait for URL pattern after redirect
camoufox-cli wait --url "*/dashboard"
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

# Wait a fixed duration as last resort
camoufox-cli wait 3000
camoufox-cli snapshot -i

Global Flags

--session <name>       Named session (default: "default")
--tab <name>           Named tab within the session's shared browser: same
                       fingerprint and cookies/login, independent page/refs/
                       history (default: "default")
--headed               Show browser window (default: headless)
--timeout <seconds>    Daemon idle timeout (default: 1800)
--json                 Output as JSON instead of human-readable
--persistent [path]    Persistent identity — reuse the same fingerprint + cookies across launches
                       (default path: ~/.camoufox-cli/profiles/<session>)
--proxy <url>          Proxy server (http:// or https://; auth: http://user:pass@host:port)
--no-geoip             Disable automatic GeoIP spoofing (auto-enabled with --proxy)
--locale <tag>         Force browser locale (e.g. "en-US" or "en-US,zh-CN")
--version              Print version and exit

Config file (optional). To avoid repeating flags, set defaults in ~/.camoufox-cli/config.json (override path with $CAMOUFOX_CLI_CONFIG): a default block applies to all sessions, and an optional sessions.<name> block layers extra overrides on top whenever you run --session <name> (the name is just whatever you pass to --session — sessions are never pre-registered). Settable keys: proxy, locale, geoip, persistent (true/false/path), headed, timeout, json. Command-line flags always win over the file. Config is read only when a session's daemon first launches.

json
{
  "default": { "persistent": true, "timeout": 3600 },
  "sessions": { "<your-session-name>": { "proxy": "socks5://127.0.0.1:1080", "locale": "zh-CN" } }
}

Persistent Identity

By default, every launch gets a fresh random fingerprint. Add --persistent [path] to reuse the same fingerprint + cookies across launches — fingerprint/OS/canvas+font seeds are frozen on first launch (delete the directory to reset); --locale and proxy-derived timezone/geolocation are stored but refreshed whenever you pass the flag; --proxy / --no-geoip are never stored, so pass them every launch.

Use it when the same device should see the same fingerprint across visits (account-bound tasks, parallel independent identities, or when cookies import/export alone isn't enough because the site also checks device stability). Skip it for one-off scraping or quick debugging.

bash
# Parallel identities, each with its own fingerprint + cookies
camoufox-cli --session a --persistent ~/.camoufox-cli/profiles/alice open https://app.example.com
camoufox-cli --session b --persistent ~/.camoufox-cli/profiles/bob   open https://app.example.com

# Reset an identity: just remove the directory
rm -rf ~/.camoufox-cli/profiles/alice

Documentation

• camoufox-cli documentation -- Full README, setup guide, installation, and command reference