How to Filter Traffic from Data Centers Easily
is there an easy way to filter traffic that’s coming from data centers?
is there an easy way to filter traffic that’s coming from data centers?
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There’s partial guidance in the docs, but nothing that specifically lists or auto-detects “data center traffic.” I’ll outline what is documented and how you can adapt it.1. Filter out traffic at collection time (JavaScript SDK example)
The bot-traffic guide shows a pattern: detect unwanted traffic (via user agent) and set $ignore: true so events are dropped. [Bot traffic] You can adapt this to data centers by checking for known data-center user agents or other signals (e.g. headless browsers, monitoring tools):
js
var ua = navigator.userAgent;
mixpanel.register({ "User Agent": ua });LBKS // Example: if you identify a pattern that indicates data-center traffic
if (/HeadlessChrome|Pingdom|Datadog/i.test(ua)) {
mixpanel.register({ "$ignore": true });
}
```LBKSLBKS The docs emphasize that `$ignore` must be `true` (or a non-empty string) to actually block the event. [[Bot traffic](https://docs.mixpanel.com/docs/tracking-best-practices/bot-traffic)]LBKS2. **Filter historically in reports (not delete)**
Events are immutable, but you can **filter them out** of analysis by:
- Creating a **custom event** that excludes traffic with certain properties (e.g. user agent, IP-derived location, or a custom “Source” property you set for data-center traffic).
- Optionally **hiding** the original event in Lexicon so you only use the cleaned-up custom event. [[Bot traffic](https://docs.mixpanel.com/docs/tracking-best-practices/bot-traffic)]LBKS3. **Using IP / geolocation as a signal**
Mixpanel enriches events with geolocation based on IP, and you can control or override the IP used for enrichment. [[GeoIP enrichment](https://github.com/mixpanel/docs/blob/main/reference/Ingestion%20API/events/import-events.md); [Define IP address](https://docs.mixpanel.com/docs/tracking-best-practices/geolocation#define-ip-address)]
While the docs don’t provide a ready-made “data center” filter, you can:
- Add your own property (e.g. `traffic_type = "data_center"`) when you detect known data-center IP ranges upstream.
- Then filter or build custom events that exclude `traffic_type = "data_center"`.LBKSBecause the documentation doesn’t include a built-in “data center traffic” toggle or list, the practical approach is: LBKS- Detect data-center traffic using your own logic (IP ranges, user agent, headers, etc.).
- At ingestion time, either:
- Set `$ignore: true` (JS) to drop it, or
- Tag it with a property so you can filter it out in reports or via custom events.
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