Migration from youtube-dl

Migration from youtube-dl

This guide helps you migrate from youtube-dl command-line tool to Pocat’s API-based approach.

Why Migrate to Pocat?

• Better reliability: 95%+ success rate with yt-dlp engine
• API-first: RESTful endpoints for easy integration
• Multiple engines: Fallback system ensures downloads work
• Quality options: Granular control over video quality
• Scalable: Handle multiple downloads efficiently

Migration Steps

1. Replace Command Line Calls

Before (youtube-dl):

youtube-dl "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"

After (Pocat API):

curl -X POST http://localhost:3333/v2/projects \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "title": "My Video",
    "youtubeUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID",
    "userId": 1
  }'

2. Quality Selection Migration

Before:

youtube-dl -f "best[height<=720]" URL

After:

curl -X POST http://localhost:3333/v2/projects \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "title": "720p Video",
    "youtubeUrl": "URL",
    "userId": 1,
    "quality": "720p"
  }'

3. Batch Processing

Before:

youtube-dl -a urls.txt

After:

const urls = ['url1', 'url2', 'url3'];
const promises = urls.map(url =>
  fetch('http://localhost:3333/v2/projects', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      title: `Video from ${url}`,
      youtubeUrl: url,
      userId: 1
    })
  })
);
await Promise.all(promises);

Common Patterns

Error Handling

try {
  const response = await fetch('/v2/projects', {
    method: 'POST',
    body: JSON.stringify(data)
  });

  if (!response.ok) {
    throw new Error(`HTTP ${response.status}`);
  }

  const result = await response.json();
} catch (error) {
  console.error('Download failed:', error);
}

Progress Monitoring

// Poll for download status
const checkStatus = async (projectId) => {
  const response = await fetch(`/v2/projects/${projectId}`);
  const project = await response.json();
  return project.status;
};

Benefits After Migration

• Programmatic control: Full API access
• Better error handling: Detailed error responses
• Multiple download engines: Automatic fallback
• Web integration: Easy to integrate in web apps
• Monitoring: Track download progress and status