Skip to content

Scanning Options

Configure how Agora performs accessibility scans across all websites. These global settings affect scan behavior, performance, and rule application for every scanning operation.

Accessing Scanning Settings

  1. From Dashboard: Click the gear/settings icon in the top navigation bar
  2. Select Scanning Tab: Choose "Scanning" from the settings tabs
  3. Configure Options: Adjust settings and click "Save Changes"

Performance Settings

Control scan speed and resource usage for optimal performance on your system.

Max Concurrency

Range: 1-10 (Default: 5)

Controls the number of URLs crawled simultaneously during scanning operations.

Considerations:

  • Higher values (6-10): Faster scanning but increased memory usage
  • Lower values (1-3): Slower scanning but more stable on resource-limited systems
  • Recommended: 3-5 for most systems

When to adjust:

  • Increase for powerful systems with ample memory
  • Decrease if experiencing browser crashes or system slowdowns
  • Monitor system performance during large scans

Same Domain Delay

Range: 0+ seconds (Default: 0)

Minimum time delay between successive requests to the same domain.

Purpose:

  • Prevents overwhelming target servers
  • Respects website rate limits
  • Avoids being blocked by aggressive anti-bot systems

Recommended values:

  • 0 seconds: For internal or development websites
  • 0.5-1 seconds: For production websites with moderate traffic
  • 2-5 seconds: For high-traffic or rate-limited websites

Browser Settings

Configure how the browser engine behaves during scanning operations.

Use Headless Mode

Default: Enabled

Controls whether browser windows are visible during scanning.

When Enabled (Recommended):

  • Browser windows run in the background
  • Faster scanning performance
  • No visual interruptions during scanning
  • Better resource efficiency

When Disabled:

  • Browser windows visible during scanning
  • Useful for debugging scan issues
  • Allows manual inspection of page loading
  • Significantly slower performance

Use cases for disabling:

  • Troubleshooting websites that fail to scan properly
  • Verifying authentication flows
  • Understanding how pages load and render

Enable Page Scrolling

Default: Disabled

Automatically scrolls pages to trigger lazy-loaded content before scanning.

When Enabled:

  • Ensures all page elements are loaded before analysis
  • Critical for websites with infinite scroll or lazy loading
  • May significantly increase scan duration
  • Better coverage of dynamic content

When Disabled:

  • Faster scanning of static content
  • May miss lazy-loaded accessibility issues
  • Suitable for websites without dynamic loading

Considerations:

  • Enable for modern single-page applications
  • Enable for e-commerce sites with product grids
  • Disable for simple static websites
  • Monitor scan duration impact

Page Scrolling Sub-Options

When page scrolling is enabled, additional options become available:

Maximum Scrolls (Default: 20)

  • Limits the number of scroll attempts per page
  • Prevents infinite scrolling on pages with endless content
  • Higher values = more content loaded but longer scan times
  • Recommended: 10-30 depending on typical page length

Maximum Scroll Timeout (Default: 10 seconds)

  • Maximum time allocated for scrolling each page
  • Ensures scans proceed even if scrolling encounters issues
  • Prevents scans from hanging on problematic pages
  • Recommended: 5-15 seconds based on network speed

Accessibility Rules

Configure which WCAG rules and standards are applied during scanning.

Enable WCAG 2.2 Rules

Default: Enabled

Includes the latest WCAG 2.2 accessibility standards in scans.

Rules:

  • Target size requirements (touch targets ≥ 24x24 pixels)

Benefits:

  • Aligns with latest accessibility best practices

Considerations:

  • May identify more issues than WCAG 2.1
  • Some criteria may not be widely adopted yet
  • Recommended for forward-thinking accessibility programs

Enable AAA Rules

Default: Disabled

Includes stricter AAA-level WCAG criteria in accessibility scans.

Rules:

  • Enhanced color contrast ratios (7:1 for normal text)
  • Delayed refresh check

Benefits:

  • Highest level of accessibility compliance
  • Serves users with more severe disabilities
  • Demonstrates commitment to inclusive design

Considerations:

  • Significantly more challenging to satisfy
  • May require substantial design and development changes
  • Often not required for legal compliance
  • Recommended for accessibility-focused organizations

Debug Settings

Advanced options for troubleshooting and development purposes.

Enable Debug Logging

Default: Disabled

Enables verbose logging throughout the scanning process.

When Enabled:

  • Detailed scan progress information
  • Browser interaction logs
  • Network request/response details
  • Error diagnostics and stack traces

Use Cases:

  • Troubleshooting scan failures
  • Understanding why specific pages fail to load
  • Debugging authentication issues
  • Performance analysis and optimization

Considerations:

  • Increases log file size significantly
  • May impact scan performance slightly
  • Contains detailed technical information
  • Disable for routine scanning operations

Configuration Best Practices

Initial Setup

  1. Start with defaults: Begin with recommended default settings
  2. Test with sample websites: Verify settings work with your typical websites
  3. Adjust incrementally: Change one setting at a time to understand impact
  4. Monitor performance: Watch system resources during scanning

Performance Optimization

  1. System Resources: Match concurrency to available CPU and memory
  2. Network Bandwidth: Consider same domain delay for limited connections
  3. Website Characteristics: Enable scrolling only when necessary
  4. Scan Scope: Balance rule coverage with scan duration

Troubleshooting Configuration

  1. Enable debug logging when experiencing issues
  2. Disable headless mode to observe browser behavior
  3. Reduce concurrency if encountering stability problems
  4. Increase delays if websites are blocking requests

Compliance Strategy

  1. Start with WCAG 2.1 AA for standard compliance
  2. Add WCAG 2.2 rules for future-proofing
  3. Consider AAA rules for enhanced accessibility
  4. Document rule selection for audit purposes

Common Configurations

High-Performance Setup

  • Max Concurrency: 8-10
  • Same Domain Delay: 0 seconds
  • Headless Mode: Enabled
  • Page Scrolling: Disabled
  • WCAG 2.2: Enabled
  • AAA Rules: Disabled

Conservative Setup

  • Max Concurrency: 2-3
  • Same Domain Delay: 1-2 seconds
  • Headless Mode: Enabled
  • Page Scrolling: Enabled
  • WCAG 2.2: Enabled
  • AAA Rules: Disabled

Debug/Troubleshooting Setup

  • Max Concurrency: 1
  • Same Domain Delay: 0 seconds
  • Headless Mode: Disabled
  • Page Scrolling: Enabled
  • Debug Logging: Enabled

Maximum Compliance Setup

  • Max Concurrency: 3-5
  • Same Domain Delay: 0.5 seconds
  • Headless Mode: Enabled
  • Page Scrolling: Enabled
  • WCAG 2.2: Enabled
  • AAA Rules: Enabled

Next Steps