Can you use vba to log on to a website?

In reviewing some of the older threads in the forum, I came across one that suggested it may be possible, so I started thinking....

Code:

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Sub LoginToWebsite()
    ' Declare variables
    Dim IE As Object ' Represents the Internet Explorer application
    Dim doc As Object ' Represents the HTML document within IE
    Dim element As Object ' Represents a generic HTML element
    Dim url As String ' The URL of the login page
    Dim usernameFieldID As String ' The ID of the username input field
    Dim passwordFieldID As String ' The ID of the password input field
    Dim loginButtonID As String ' The ID of the login button (or name/tag)
    Dim username As String ' Your username
    Dim password As String ' Your password
    ' --- Configuration ---
    ' IMPORTANT: Replace these placeholders with the actual values for your target website.
    ' You'll need to inspect the website's HTML source code to find these IDs/names.
    url = "https://www.example.com/login" ' Replace with the actual login page URL
    usernameFieldID = "username" ' Replace with the actual ID of the username input field
    passwordFieldID = "password" ' Replace with the actual ID of the password input field
    loginButtonID = "loginButton" ' Replace with the actual ID of the login button (or name/tag)
    username = "your_username" ' Replace with your actual username
    password = "your_password" ' Replace with your actual password
    ' --- End Configuration ---
    On Error GoTo ErrorHandler
    ' Create a new Internet Explorer object
    Set IE = CreateObject("InternetExplorer.Application")
    ' Make IE visible (set to False if you want it to run in the background)
    IE.Visible = True
    ' Navigate to the login page
    IE.Navigate url
    ' Wait for the page to load completely
    ' Loop until the document is ready state 4 (complete)
    Do While IE.ReadyState <> 4 Or IE.Busy
        DoEvents
    Loop
    ' Set a reference to the HTML document
    Set doc = IE.Document
    ' Find the username input field and enter the username
    Set element = doc.getElementById(usernameFieldID)
    If Not element Is Nothing Then
        element.Value = username
    Else
        MsgBox "Username field with ID '" & usernameFieldID & "' not found.", vbCritical
        IE.Quit
        Set IE = Nothing
        Exit Sub
    End If
    ' Find the password input field and enter the password
    Set element = doc.getElementById(passwordFieldID)
    If Not element Is Nothing Then
        element.Value = password
    Else
        MsgBox "Password field with ID '" & passwordFieldID & "' not found.", vbCritical
        IE.Quit
        Set IE = Nothing
        Exit Sub
    End If
    ' Find and click the login button
    ' This part might vary depending on whether the button has an ID, Name, or is a specific tag.
    ' Try getElementById first. If not, you might need to use getElementsByName or getElementsByTagName.
    Set element = doc.getElementById(loginButtonID)
    If Not element Is Nothing Then
        element.Click
    Else
        ' If not found by ID, try by name (common for buttons)
        Set element = doc.getElementsByName(loginButtonID).Item(0)
        If Not element Is Nothing Then
            element.Click
        Else
            ' If not found by ID or Name, try by tag name (e.g., "input" or "button")
            ' This is less specific and might require looping through elements
            ' For example, to find a button with specific text:
            ' For Each element In doc.getElementsByTagName("input")
            '    If element.Type = "submit" And element.Value = "Log In" Then
            '        element.Click
            '        Exit For
            '    End If
            ' Next element
            ' MsgBox "Login button with ID/Name '" & loginButtonID & "' not found. Manual intervention needed.", vbCritical
            MsgBox "Login button with ID/Name '" & loginButtonID & "' not found. Please check the ID/Name or adjust the code to find the button.", vbCritical
            IE.Quit
            Set IE = Nothing
            Exit Sub
        End If
    End If
    ' Wait for the page to load after login (e.g., the dashboard page)
    Do While IE.ReadyState <> 4 Or IE.Busy
        DoEvents
    Loop
    ' Optional: Display a message box to confirm successful login or show the current URL
    MsgBox "Login process completed. Current URL: " & IE.LocationURL, vbInformation
    ' Clean up
    Set doc = Nothing
    Set IE = Nothing
    Exit Sub
    ErrorHandler:
    MsgBox "An error occurred: " & Err.Description, vbCritical
    If Not IE Is Nothing Then
        IE.Quit
        Set IE = Nothing
    End If
End Sub

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Would the above be close or not?

I have done it.

Did you test that code? Looks good, if you still have IE installed.

If you know element names, code can be much simpler.

Sample from my db:

Code:

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        'open ASTM/AASHTO test standards website and pass agency username/password to the web page
        Dim oBrowser As InternetExplorer
        Set oBrowser = New InternetExplorer
        oBrowser.Silent = True
        oBrowser.Navigate "https://login.ihserc.com/login/erc?"
        oBrowser.Visible = True
        Do
            'Wait till the Browser is loaded
        Loop Until oBrowser.ReadyState = READYSTATE_COMPLETE
        oBrowser.Document.all.Item("subAcctLoginName").Value = "username"
        oBrowser.Document.all.Item("subAcctPassword").Value = "password"
        oBrowser.Document.all.Item("Submit").Click

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Might find this of interest https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/an...ge-through-vba