How to Monitor and Check Website Availability, Connection, and Blocking in China Using PHP, Python, and cURL

If your business targets an audience in China, ensuring that your website is accessible and free from blocking by the Great Firewall (GFW) is critical. The "China Connectivity and GFW Blocking Checker" API provides a robust solution for monitoring website accessibility in China. This API, accessible via RapidAPI, enables you to check whether your website is blocked, monitor connection quality, and gather important metrics like DNS resolution time and download speed. Whether you’re using PHP, Python, or cURL, you can easily implement this API to ensure your website is available to internet users in China, allowing you to stay ahead of China's internet censorship and maintain your online presence. This tutorial will walk you through the steps of setting up the API, integrating it into your application, and using it to monitor and test your website's accessibility from within China.

API Overview

The China Connectivity and GFW Blocking Checker (Multi-metric) API is designed to help businesses verify whether their websites are accessible in China, considering the potential restrictions imposed by the Great Firewall. It offers metrics that can be crucial for understanding how Chinese users interact with your site, and whether there are any blocks or slowdowns that could affect user experience.

You can find and subscribe to this API at RapidAPI.

Getting Started with RapidAPI

To use the API, you need to sign up on RapidAPI and subscribe to the "China Connectivity and GFW Blocking Checker (Multi-metric)" API.

Sign Up on RapidAPI: If you don’t already have a RapidAPI account, create one at RapidAPI.
Subscribe to the API: Visit the API page and select a pricing plan that suits your needs.
Retrieve Your API Key: After subscribing, you’ll receive an API key, which will be necessary for making requests.

How to Use the API with Python

Step 1: Install Required Libraries

First, install the requests library, which is essential for making HTTP requests in Python:

pip install requests

Step 2: Implement the Python Script

Here’s a sample Python script that checks if a website is blocked in China:

import requests

# Define API endpoint and parameters
api_url = "https://china-connectivity-and-gfw-blocking-checker-multi-metric.p.rapidapi.com/"
querystring = {"url": "https://microsoft.com"}

# Set headers with your RapidAPI key
headers = {
    "x-rapidapi-host": "china-connectivity-and-gfw-blocking-checker-multi-metric.p.rapidapi.com",
    "x-rapidapi-key": "YOUR_RAPIDAPI_KEY"
}

# Make the request to the API
response = requests.get(api_url, headers=headers, params=querystring)

# Process the response
if response.status_code == 200:
    results = response.json()
    for result in results:
        print(f"Node: {result['node_name']}")
        print(f"Host: {result['host']}")
        print(f"HTTP Code: {result['http_code']}")
        print(f"Blocked: {'Yes' if result['http_code'] == 0 else 'No'}")
else:
    print(f"Error: {response.status_code} - {response.text}")

Replace "YOUR_RAPIDAPI_KEY" with the key you obtained from RapidAPI. Running this script will tell you whether the specified website is accessible in China.

How to Use the API with PHP

Step 1: Write the PHP Script

Below is a PHP example for checking website accessibility:

<?php

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_RAPIDAPI_KEY';
$api_url = "https://china-connectivity-and-gfw-blocking-checker-multi-metric.p.rapidapi.com/";

$url = "https://microsoft.com";
$headers = [
    "x-rapidapi-host: china-connectivity-and-gfw-blocking-checker-multi-metric.p.rapidapi.com",
    "x-rapidapi-key: " . API_KEY
];

$ch = curl_init();
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, $api_url . "?url=" . urlencode($url));
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, 1);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER, $headers);

$response = curl_exec($ch);
curl_close($ch);

if ($response) {
    $result = json_decode($response, true);
    foreach ($result as $entry) {
        echo "Node: " . $entry['node_name'] . "\n";
        echo "Host: " . $entry['host'] . "\n";
        echo "Blocked: " . ($entry['http_code'] == 0 ? 'Yes' : 'No') . "\n";
    }
} else {
    echo "Failed to retrieve data.";
}

?>

Ensure to replace "YOUR_RAPIDAPI_KEY" with your actual API key. This script will check the website’s availability from China and output the results.

How to Use the API with cURL

For those who prefer using cURL, you can quickly check a website’s availability with the following command:

curl --request GET \
    --url 'https://china-connectivity-and-gfw-blocking-checker-multi-metric.p.rapidapi.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmicrosoft.com' \
    --header 'x-rapidapi-host: china-connectivity-and-gfw-blocking-checker-multi-metric.p.rapidapi.com' \
    --header 'x-rapidapi-key: YOUR_RAPIDAPI_KEY'

This cURL command will retrieve the accessibility status of microsoft.com from China.

Possible Use Cases

Global Website Monitoring: Businesses with a global audience can use this API to ensure their site is accessible in China.
Compliance Checks: If your company needs to comply with regional internet regulations, use this API to monitor accessibility in China.
Customer Support: If Chinese users report difficulties accessing your website, use the API to diagnose potential issues.

Conclusion

Monitoring your website’s accessibility in China is vital for businesses targeting users in that region. The "China Connectivity and GFW Blocking Checker" API provides a reliable tool for ensuring your site is available and not blocked by the Great Firewall. By integrating this API into your Python, PHP, or cURL scripts, you can automate the monitoring process, ensuring continuous accessibility for your Chinese audience.

How to Test Your Business Website Availability, Connectivity, and GFW Blocking for Your Users in China