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Why does the URL change when browsing with the Lean Library extension?
Why does the URL change when browsing with the Lean Library extension?
Clare Chan avatar
Written by Clare Chan
Updated over a week ago

With the Lean Library browser extension, we bring your library forward to you during your research process. To do that, we work with your library's authentication system.

When you need to access any library materials whilst using the Lean Library extension, we'll redirect you to your library’s authentication page to sign in and get access to the library resources.

Institutions that are using Proxy as their authentication system will add a proxy prefix to the end of the publisher domains. This way, it stimulates your browsing experience as if you were accessing the articles via your library!

For example, if you're on a website where your institute has access to JSTOR: https://www.jstor.org/, you'll see a pop-up that directs you to sign in:

Once you've clicked "Get Access", you'll be redirected to the sign-in page. Once you've successfully authenticated, you'll be taken back to JSTOR.

Now that you've signed in, the URL will be rewritten with your library's proxy prefix to inform the publishers that you're successfully signed in via the library's proxy.

There's no way to avoid the URL from getting proxied. However, if you'd like to share the article without the proxied link, either click the Share button within the article or turn off the extension before copying the URL.

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