How Python Bots Beat 12306 Ticket Crashes: Open‑Source Tools & Features

Background

During peak travel periods the 12306 railway ticketing platform experiences overload due to massive concurrent user actions, which can cause service interruptions and error messages such as “system busy”.

Open‑Source Python Ticket‑Snatching Tools

Two widely used GitHub projects provide automated ticket‑purchasing capabilities:

testerSunshine/12306 – https://github.com/testerSunshine/12306

pjialin/py12306 – https://github.com/pjialin/py12306

testerSunshine/12306

This repository (over 200 k stars, 6.5 k forks) supports Python 3.6+ and implements the full ticket‑purchasing workflow by simulating human actions (seat query, order submission). Key features include automatic captcha solving, login, precise pre‑sale timing, intelligent queuing, and notification via email or Server‑Chan.

Directory overview

agency – CDN proxy module

config – configuration files (station list, user credentials, request parameters)

verify – captcha handling and automatic recognition

init – entry point (main execution script)

inter – API interface wrappers for 12306 endpoints

myException – custom exception definitions

myUrllib – network request wrapper with retry and timeout logic

Typical usage

Clone the repository: git clone https://github.com/testerSunshine/12306.git Install dependencies (requests, lxml, Pillow, etc.) via pip install -r requirements.txt Edit config/config.py to set your username, password, target train numbers, travel dates, and seat type.

Run the main script: python init/main.py. The program will repeatedly query seat availability, solve captchas automatically, and submit orders when tickets appear.

Sample success log

正在第355次查询  乘车日期: 2018-02-12  车次G4741,G2365,G1371,G1377,G1329 查询无票  代理设置 无  总耗时429ms
车次: G4741 始发车站: 上海 终点站: 邵阳 二等座:有
正在尝试提交订票...
提交订单成功！
排队成功, 当前余票还剩余: 359 张
恭喜您订票成功，订单号为：EB52743573, 请立即打开浏览器登录12306，30分钟内完成支付！

py12306

py12306 extends the functionality of testerSunshine/12306 by adding distributed execution and multi‑tasking capabilities. It allows multiple machines to cooperate when a single instance cannot secure a ticket, and supports simultaneous monitoring of several origin‑destination pairs, dates, and train numbers.

Key enhancements

Distributed mode – run a master node that distributes query tasks to worker nodes via HTTP or message queue.

Multi‑tasking – specify multiple train numbers, dates, and accounts in the configuration file; the engine creates separate coroutines for each combination.

Cross‑route strategy – example: purchase a ticket from Beijing to Dezhou (available) and later exchange or supplement it with a Dezhou‑to‑Nanjing ticket when a direct Beijing‑Nanjing ticket is sold out.

Typical usage

Clone the repository: git clone https://github.com/pjialin/py12306.git Install dependencies: pip install -r requirements.txt Configure config/config.py with account credentials, target routes, and enable distributed=True if using multiple machines.

Start the master node: python py12306/master.py.

Start worker nodes on other machines: python py12306/worker.py --master http://MASTER_IP:PORT.

Bypass (分流抢票) Windows Tool

Bypass is a closed‑source .NET application for Windows that provides automatic ticket grabbing, slider‑captcha handling for hot routes, real‑time order queuing, and ticket exchange features. The latest public version (1.13.84) adds slider verification, configurable delayed shutdown, and several stability fixes.

Core features

Automatic slider captcha solving for popular routes.

Configurable delayed shutdown after successful purchase.

Fixes for city‑station loading, busy‑system retry delays, and automatic payment retry logic.