yt-dlp YouTube Video Downloader in Whonix

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yt-dlp logo

yt-dlp is a command-line program to download videos from YouTube.com and a few more sites.

yt-dlp is a software fork of youtube-dl.

Introduction[edit]

yt-dlp is simple to use in Whonix. Simply follow the instructions to install it below, identify the relevant YouTube video URL, then run the application in a terminal to download the video. Once it has finished downloading, VLC Media Player (installed by default) can be used to view the video.

Installation[edit]

The Whonix wiki normally recommends that additional software is Kicksecure logo Installed from Debian stable Onion Version , but in the case of yt-dlp there is often a significant difference between the stable and backports versions. Since the developers frequently update the software to address broken functionality when attempting downloads from various websites, an upgrade of yt-dlp from Debian backports may be required.

yt-dlp can be installed from Debian backports. This is non-ideal, see footnote. [1]

1. Update the package lists.

sudo apt update

2. Install the select software.

sudo apt -t bookworm-backports install yt-dlp

3. Done.

The procedure of installing the package from the backports repository is now complete.

Pip? If the user knows that python pip is, see footnote. Otherwise ignore this. [2]

Usage[edit]

First identify the relevant YouTube video URL in Tor Browser, then right-click the link and select "Copy Link Location". In the example below it is "Why Do so Many People Hate Windows 10?" (https://youtube.com/watch?v=KpEb8M23LsUarchive.org)

Figure: Example YouTube Video to Download

Next, open a terminal. To download the relevant YouTube video, run.

Note: Replace link-to-video with the chosen URL.

yt-dlp link-to-video

Finally, open VLC Media Player and select the relevant file to play: Media → Open File... → Open the video file

Figure: VLC Media Player

Extensive documentationarchive.org is available describing a host of possible options, including:

  • general options
  • network options
  • geo restriction
  • video selection
  • download options
  • filesystem options
  • thumbnail images
  • verbosity/simulation options
  • workarounds
  • video format options
  • subtitle options
  • authentication options
  • Adobe pass options
  • post-processing options

In addition the documentation describes numerous configuration settings, output templates, format selection and video selection among other topics. Many readers will be interested in how to select preferred video quality; see herearchive.org for a quick overview.

Alternatives[edit]

See Also[edit]

Footnotes[edit]

  1. ↑ Users should Kicksecure logo Prefer Packages from Debian Stable Repository Onion Version , but using backports is better than manual software installation or using third party package managers since this prefers APT. To contain the risk, Non-Qubes-Whonix users might want to consider using Multiple Whonix-Workstation™ and Qubes-Whonix™ users might want to consider using Multiple Qubes-Whonix™ Templates or Kicksecure logo Software Installation in an App Qube Onion Version .
  2. ↑ Pip cannot be recommended without disclaimer. Kicksecure logo Avoid Third Party Package Manager Onion Version
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