Offline Copy of a Website: How It Works Step by Step

3 weeks ago

Knowledge

Creating an offline copy of a website can be useful in many situations. For instance, it allows you to archive a homepage permanently and view it at any time, even if the server is no longer available or the content has been removed from the web. Additionally, certain websites can be preserved as a memory or even as evidence.

Moreover, having content available offline is practical. For example, you can access important information while on a plane or in locations with poor internet connectivity. In this guide, we will use the software HTTrack. This application is particularly suitable for Windows users because it is both user-friendly and reliable.

In the next section, I will explain step by step how to use it to download a website.

Making Websites Available Offline:
Step-by-Step Guide

To download a website using HTTrack, start by downloading and installing the software. Windows users can use the graphical interface, which is also explained in this tutorial. For Linux and macOS, a command-line version is available as an alternative.

Launch HTTrack and create a new project. Choose a target directory where the files will be saved. You can load multiple websites into the same directory to maintain a clear structure. In the next step, select the action, such as "Download Website." Use the "Add URL" button to insert the links to the pages you want to download. Copy the full URL from your browser. Note that HTTrack only follows redirects to a limited extent, so always provide the complete URL, not just the domain.

Before proceeding, click on Options to adjust the download process. For example, you can set the software to download HTML files first, which speeds up the process. Optionally, you can ignore the Robots.txt file if you want access to all content. Once everything is configured, click Next and start the download by selecting Finish.

HTTrack will now download the website. You can pause the process at any time and resume it later with the same configuration. Once the download is complete, you can open the downloaded site using the "Browse Mirrored Website" button. Alternatively, you will find an index.html file in your target directory, which you can open directly in a browser like Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.

The process involves the following steps:

Download the Program: Install HTTrack. Use the graphical interface for Windows, or the command-line version for Linux and macOS.
Launch HTTrack: Open the software.
Create a New Project:
- Set up a new project and select a target directory.
- You can store multiple websites in the same directory.
Select Action:
- Choose "Download Website."
- Use the "Add URL" button to add the full links to the desired pages.
- Ensure the complete URL is entered, as HTTrack has limited redirect handling.
Adjust Options:
- Configure the download to prioritize HTML files for faster processing.
- Optionally, ignore Robots.txt for full content access.
Start the Download:
- Click Next and begin the process by selecting Finish.
- You can pause the download and resume it later.
Open the Website:
- After the download completes, click "Browse Mirrored Website" to access the site directly.
- Alternatively, locate the index.html file in your target directory and open it with a browser like Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.