[Instagram] Can't download from instagram (401 Unauthorized)

[Darkmaster006]

Hello! Firstly, thank you very much for developing such a great tool. I found it just now and wanted to try it out with instagram. I understand OAuth cannot be done with it, or, at least, I tried:
C:\Windows\system32>gallery-dl oauth:instagram
[gallery-dl][error] Unsupported URL 'oauth:instagram'

Either way, the problem I was having was this:
C:\Windows\system32>gallery-dl https://www.instagram.com/p/CtaQtMVrP1p/
[instagram][error] HttpError: '401 Unauthorized' for 'https://www.instagram.com/api/v1/media/3123882765904051561/info/'

This is the post I'm trying to download https://www.instagram.com/p/CtaQtMVrP1p/ and the error is 401 Unauthorized. I have no idea how to fix this, so any idea would be helpful to know if it's on my end or if it's a bug. Thank you.

[coffee-muffin]

I have then same issue ~ it always happens to me when I already downloaded some images on the same day. Maybe Instagram has a download limit?

EDIT: this is my verbose output:

$ gallery-dl -v "https://www.instagram.com/_emakaw/"
[gallery-dl][debug] Version 1.25.6
[gallery-dl][debug] Python 3.11.3 - Linux-6.4.4-arch1-1-x86_64-with-glibc2.37
[gallery-dl][debug] requests 2.28.2 - urllib3 1.26.15
[gallery-dl][debug] Configuration Files []
[gallery-dl][debug] Starting DownloadJob for 'https://www.instagram.com/_emakaw/'
[instagram][debug] Using InstagramUserExtractor for 'https://www.instagram.com/_emakaw/'
[instagram][debug] Using InstagramPostsExtractor for 'https://www.instagram.com/_emakaw/posts/'
[urllib3.connectionpool][debug] Starting new HTTPS connection (1): www.instagram.com:443
[urllib3.connectionpool][debug] https://www.instagram.com:443 "GET /api/v1/users/web_profile_info/?username=_emakaw HTTP/1.1" 200 27959
[instagram][debug] Sleeping 8.01 seconds (request)
[urllib3.connectionpool][debug] https://www.instagram.com:443 "GET /api/v1/feed/user/2995454973/?count=30 HTTP/1.1" 401 98
[instagram][error] HttpError: '401 Unauthorized' for 'https://www.instagram.com/api/v1/feed/user/2995454973/'

[mikf]

The 401 Unauthorized error is new.
Seems like guest users are no longer able to use that specific API endpoint.

You could provide logged-in cookies, or you tell gallery-dl to use a different endpoint (-o api=graphql) which will only get a smaller version of images and videos, but this shouldn't matter for https://www.instagram.com/p/CtaQtMVrP1p/ since it's only 896x980.

Maybe Instagram has a download limit?

Exactly. Guests can only do something like 5-10 API requests before they get constantly redirected to a login page or get 4xx errors.

[Darkmaster006]

I see, I will try with logged-in cookies, thank you!

[icco]

FYI: looks like instagram turned off viewing of individual images for logged out visitors

[Darkmaster006]

FYI: looks like instagram turned off viewing of individual images for logged out visitors

Yeah, it's all becoming even more closed off.

[glottisfaun0000]

I'm having an issue where my logged-in cookies from browser seem to de-auth after a little while and I go back to 401 redirects. Anyone else havinfg this with instagram? Is it a matter of using certain cookies and not others from everything you get when exporting to netscape .txt from browser?

[lhs55502002]

I'm having an issue where my logged-in cookies from browser seem to de-auth after a little while and I go back to 401 redirects. Anyone else havinfg this with instagram? Is it a matter of using certain cookies and not others from everything you get when exporting to netscape .txt from browser?

I have the same problem,too.I think it's the same whether you use cookies file or get cookies from browser,because I have tried these two ways to get cookies,and I was still kicked out of login after I download things from instagram for a while.

I think setting a ratelimit like twitter will help .I download a lot from twitter and have never been kicked out of login with the ratelimit.@mikf

[hrxn]

Well, what kind of limit are you talking about, exactly?

Are you already using something like "sleep-request"?

[lhs55502002]

Well, what kind of limit are you talking about, exactly?

Are you already using something like "sleep-request"?

I tried,it's useless,no matter "sleep-request": "300" or "sleep": "15".It's just not as good as twitter ratelimit

[beakwood]

Well, what kind of limit are you talking about, exactly?
Are you already using something like "sleep-request"?

I tried,it's useless,no matter "sleep-request": "300" or "sleep": "15".It's just not as good as twitter ratelimit

I think this is the way. I've been clearing cookies and re-adding them from browser and extracting, and neither works long term. I would after a while be logged out. Then, have to re-login and extract fresh cookies again. A vicious circle. You're right, I use Twitter, and never get logged-out. I download much more on Twitter than I do from Instagram.