github-repos-downloader ^v0.2.1

Powerful Python utility for automating comprehensive GitHub backups

Downloads your repositories and gists as ZIP archives with parallel processing for speed and detailed reporting for insight.

Python CLI GitHub Backup Utility Parallel

GitHub

github-repos-downloader — a powerful Python utility for automating comprehensive backups of your GitHub repositories and gists. This tool downloads your code as .zip archives for safe keeping, with parallel processing for speed and detailed reporting for insight.

Complete Backup — Downloads all your GitHub repositories and gists as .zip archives in a single operation
Parallel Downloads — Speeds up the process by downloading multiple items simultaneously, automatically using your available CPU cores
Detailed Reporting — Generates a quality report with success rates, sizes, and actionable insights after each backup
System Automation — Optionally schedules your computer to shut down or reboot after the backup completes
Robust Error Handling — Implements retry logic, handles network timeouts, and protects against failed downloads
Secure Token Management — Stores your GitHub token securely in your system's configuration directory

Prerequisites: Python 3.7+, curl command-line tool, GitHub Personal Access Token

Installation:

git clone https://github.com/aixandrolab/github-repos-downloader.git
cd github-repos-downloader

Configure Token:

1. Go to GitHub Settings → Developer settings → Personal access tokens

2. Generate token with repo and gist scopes

3. Save token:

python app.py -t

Basic Usage:

Command	Action
`python app.py -r`	Download all your repositories
`python app.py -g`	Download all your gists
`python app.py -r -g`	Download both repositories and gists
`python app.py -r --verbose`	Download repos with detailed output
`python app.py -r --timeout 120`	Download with 2-minute timeout per request
`python app.py -r --shutdown`	Download repos and shutdown when done

What Gets Backed Up?

The tool creates snapshot .zip archives of your code at a specific point in time (does not include full Git history).

Repositories — Saved as [repository-name].zip in the repositories/ folder
Gists — Saved as [gist-id].zip in the gists/ folder

Where Are Files Saved?

~/[your_github_username]_github_downloads/
├── repositories/
│   ├── project-one.zip
│   └── project-two.zip
├── gists/
│   ├── a1b2c3d4.zip
│   └── e5f6g7h8.zip
└── reports/
    └── backup_report_20251215_143022.txt

Post-Backup Archiving: By default, the entire folder is compressed into a single .zip. Use --no-archive to skip.

Argument	Description	Default
`-r, --repos`	Download your repositories	`False`
`-g, --gists`	Download your gists	`False`
`-t, --token`	Update or set your stored GitHub token	`False`
`--no-archive`	Do not create a final ZIP archive of the backup folder	`False`
`--timeout N`	Set the timeout for each download operation	`30`
`--verbose`	Print detailed real-time information	`False`
`--shutdown`	Shutdown the computer 60 seconds after finish	`False`
`--reboot`	Reboot the computer 60 seconds after finish	`False`

Note: --shutdown and --reboot are mutually exclusive.

Optimizing Download Speed:

Uses parallel processing for batches larger than 5 items
Workers = CPU cores minus one for optimal performance
For large backups (50+ items): use --timeout 120

Handling API Rate Limits:

Authenticated users: 5,000 requests per hour
Automatic pause and retry with exponential backoff
Reduce max_workers parameter if needed

Problem	Likely Cause	Solution
Failed to authenticate	Token invalid, expired, or lacks scopes	Run `python app.py -t` to update token
Download timeout	Network slow or repository large	Re-run with `--timeout 120`
Some items fail to download	Repository renamed, deleted, or forked	Check report for failures — retries up to 3 times
"curl" command not found	curl not installed on system	Install curl: `apt install curl` (Ubuntu)

Summary — Counts of successful/failed downloads for repos and gists
Statistics — File sizes and success percentages
Top Lists — Your 10 largest repositories and gists with the most files
Failure Analysis — A list of items that couldn't be downloaded
Insights & Recommendations — Actionable advice based on results

Token Storage — Stored in encrypted format at ~/.config/github_repos_downloader/github_token.json
No Data Sent Elsewhere — Only communicates with GitHub's API
Clean Operations — Temporary files deleted after use, failed downloads cleaned up