Requirements and restrictions for Session Replay

Note

When you view a recording, its content may differ from what the site looks like at the moment. This is because Session Replay captures the site’s HTML content at the time of the session, not when you’re viewing the recording.

Robot sessions

Session Replay records all sessions, including those that Yandex Metrica or Yandex Direct identify as robot traffic.

Recording video and audio content

Session Replay doesn't record the content of HTML audio and video elements and how the user interacts with them, if the Audio and Video objects are modified inside these elements.

Recording browser tabs in private browsing mode

Due to browser limitations, Session Replay may incorrectly record information about tabs in private mode (for example, Incognito in Yandex Browser or similar modes in other browsers).

Some browsers may block the tag entirely in private mode, which means that the session won't be recorded and won't appear in your statistics.

Recording iframe contents from another domain

For Session Replay to record iframe contents where the address differs from the site address, configure the tag in a specific way.

Recording and playback of pages with layout errors

Session Replay records pages exactly as the browser displays them. This means any HTML layout defects (like unclosed tags or incorrect element nesting) will be reproduced in the recording just as the browser processed them.

Session Replay typically adapts to such errors. But if the page layout doesn't comply with W3C standards or contains numerous defects, the session recording may not look the way the site owner expects.

Recording pages with flexible layout

Sessions on pages with flexible layouts will be replayed correctly, even if the resolution of the user’s screen is not the same as the replay screen. During playback, you might see small cursor jumps due to different relative positioning of elements on the recorded and replayed pages.

Using Session Replay 2.0 for frequently updated CSS files

If your site frequently updates CSS, add the content hash to the style file names. This will make the file name change every time you update its contents. For example, style.390b32d4d49d5e7d.css will become style.0c573d460df87d4de5a4.css. This lets Session Replay use the style that the site visitor sees when it records a session.

Using Session Replay if the site has multiple tags

In this case, enable Session Replay on just one of the installed tags. If Session Replay is enabled for all tags, the data for all tags is recorded incorrectly.

Limit on number of recordings per day

In a single day, Session Replay records a sufficient number of sessions to form a representative sample. The number of sessions recorded throughout the day is determined by a special algorithm and may vary.

Limit on period for storing recordings

Data is stored for 15 days, including the current day.

Processing styles

If the site uses runtime styles (including from the Data Styled Components series), Session Replay does not record sessions or records them incorrectly. We recommend using classic styles.

Support for Shadow DOM

Session Replay does not support Shadow DOM technologies.

Browser support

Session Replay supports session recordings for most modern desktop browsers, including Yandex Browser, Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera, and Microsoft Edge. There is limited support for recording in beta versions and in certain mobile browsers. There is also limited support for session recording and playback in Internet Explorer (any version).

Different browsers may process the same page in different ways. This means that to accurately replay a session, you should use the same browser as it was originally recorded in.

Canvas support

Session Replay doesn’t record site content if it is displayed using the canvas element.

Recommended site encoding

Session Replay correctly records user actions if the site uses UTF-8 encoding.

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Select a question to find a solution.

The page content in the recording may be different from the actual content. It’s likely that the CSS on the site frequently changes. In this case, add the content hash to the style file names. This will make the file name change every time you update its contents. For example, style.390b32d4d49d5e7d.css will become style.0c573d460df87d4de5a4.css. This lets Session Replay use the style that the site visitor sees when it records a session.

Do the following:

  • Clear the browser cache.
  • Disable all plugins and browser extensions.
  • Delete the browser cookies.
  • Check the firewall settings. It’s possible that the firewall is blocking the Yandex Metrica tag script. The tag could also be blocked by the Adblock Plus extension.
I followed the recommendations, but the error persists

If you have more questions about Session Replay, submit them in the form below. Provide an example of a session with incorrectly displayed data and specify the full version of your browser.

Useful links

Online training

Styles that are generated when the page loads.

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Enabling and configuring Session Replay
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Setting up iframe content recording