How to Deploy "yt-dlp Web" Online

To let friends use this without your computer being on, you need to host it on a cloud server. GitHub stores your code, and a service like Render (free tier available) runs it.

Step 1: Push Code to GitHub

1. Create a GitHub Account if you haven't.
2. Create a New Repository named ytdlp-web.
3. Upload Files:
   • Upload ALL files in this folder to that repository.
   • (Especially: Dockerfile, Procfile, requirements.txt, app.py, downloader.py, templates/, static/).
   • Note: Do NOT upload the downloads folder or ytdlp.exe if present. The server uses Linux.

Step 2: Deploy on Render (Free)

1. Go to dashboard.render.com and Sign Up (you can use your GitHub account).
2. Click New + -> Web Service.
3. Select Build and deploy from a Git repository.
4. Connect your ytdlp-web repository.
5. Configuration:
   • Name: my-downloader (or anything).
   • Runtime: Select Docker.
   • Region: Choose one close to you (e.g. Frankfurt, Singapore, Oregon).
   • Instance Type: Free.
6. Click Create Web Service.

Step 3: Fix "Sign in to confirm you’re not a bot"

Youtube blocks cloud servers. To fix this, provide cookies.txt.

Method: Secret File (Recommended) Since cookies can be large, use a "Secret File" instead of an Environment Variable to avoid errors.

1. Get Cookies: Install "Get cookies.txt LOCALLY" extension and download cookies.txt.
2. Add to Render:
   • Go to Dashboard -> Your Service -> Environment.
   • Scroll down to Secret Files.
   • Click Add Secret File.
   • Filename: cookies.txt
   • File Content: Paste the content of your cookies.txt.
   • Click Save.
3. Delete the old Variable: If you added COOKIES_CONTENT earlier, delete it to fix the "argument list too long" error.
4. Render will redeploy automatically.

Step 4: Wait & Share

• Render will take about 2-5 minutes to build.
• Once it says Live, you will get a URL like: https://my-downloader.onrender.com.
• Share this URL with your friends. They can use it from any phone or computer!

Important Notes

• Spin Down: On the free tier, if no one uses the site for 15 minutes, it goes to "sleep". When you visit it again, it might take 50 seconds to wake up.
• Cookie Expiry: Cookies eventually expire (usually after a few months or if you change password). If downloads fail again, just update the COOKIES_CONTENT variable with fresh cookies.