Media Devices Privacy

Control how navigator.mediaDevices.enumerateDevices() reports audio and video devices with --bot-config-media-devices.

Prerequisites

BotBrowser installed. See Installation Guide.
A profile file (.enc for production).

Overview

navigator.mediaDevices.enumerateDevices() returns a list of available audio and video input/output devices. The number, names, and IDs of these devices vary by system and can be used as a fingerprint signal. BotBrowser controls the device list to return consistent results regardless of the host machine’s actual hardware.

Quick Start


# Default: use profile-defined device list (recommended)
chromium-browser \
    --bot-profile="/path/to/profile.enc" \
    --user-data-dir="$(mktemp -d)"

By default, BotBrowser returns the profile’s device list. No extra flags needed.

Configuration

The --bot-config-media-devices flag controls device enumeration:

Value	Behavior
`profile` (default)	Return profile-defined devices. The device list matches the target platform regardless of host hardware.
`real`	Use the host system’s actual devices. Useful for development or when you need real audio/video capture.


# Use profile devices (default)
chromium-browser \
    --bot-profile="/path/to/profile.enc" \
    --bot-config-media-devices=profile
 
# Use host system devices
chromium-browser \
    --bot-profile="/path/to/profile.enc" \
    --bot-config-media-devices=real

Common Scenarios

Consistent device count across servers

Different servers have different audio hardware (or none). With profile mode, every instance reports the same device list:


const browser = await chromium.launch({
    executablePath: process.env.BOTBROWSER_EXEC_PATH,
    headless: true,
    args: [
        "--bot-profile=/path/to/profile.enc",
    ],
});
 
const page = await browser.newPage();
const devices = await page.evaluate(async () => {
    const list = await navigator.mediaDevices.enumerateDevices();
    return list.map(d => ({ kind: d.kind, label: d.label }));
});
console.log(devices); // Same list on any host
await browser.close();

Development with real devices

When testing audio/video capture locally, use real mode:


chromium-browser \
    --bot-profile="/path/to/profile.enc" \
    --bot-config-media-devices=real \
    --user-data-dir="$(mktemp -d)"

Troubleshooting / FAQ

Problem	Solution
Empty device list	Ensure the profile contains media device data. Most standard profiles include default device entries.
Need real microphone access	Set `--bot-config-media-devices=real` to expose host hardware.
Device IDs change between sessions	Device IDs are derived from the profile. Use the same profile for consistent IDs across sessions.

Next Steps

Audio Fingerprint Protection. Control audio rendering and noise.
Navigator Properties. Other navigator-level fingerprint surfaces.
CLI Flags Reference. Complete flag documentation.

Related documentation: CLI Flags | Profile Configuration

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