YouTube Upload Script

Status: Version 1.2.0

Overview

A Python script for tech enthusiasts looking to automate video uploads to YouTube with the YouTube Data API v3. It handles OAuth 2.0 authentication, video metadata, and more, all from the command line. Absolutely no warranty given for anything. Use at your own discretion.

• Resumable Upload: The script uses YouTube's resumable upload for handling large files or network issues.
• OAuth 2.0: Configured for offline access and incremental authorization, keeping your app's permissions lean and secure.

How It Works

1. Authentication: Uses OAuth 2.0 for secure access. The script either opens a local browser to authenticate or provides a URL for manual entry.

   • Token Management: Automatically refreshes tokens when they expire or when forced via command line. Tokens are stored in **youtube_oauth2_store.json**.

2. Upload Process:

   • Parses command-line arguments to define video metadata.
   • Initiates a resumable upload to YouTube, with retry logic for reliability.
   • Can add videos to playlists, set custom thumbnails, and specify various video settings.

3. Configuration: Uses a **config.cfg** file for static settings like paths to credentials and token storage.

Usage

Basic Upload:

python3 youtube-upload.py --videofile=path/to/video.mp4 --title="My Video" --description="Cool description"

Advanced usage:

python3 youtube-upload.py \
  --videofile=./my_video.mp4 \
  --title="Tech Deep Dive" \
  --description="Exploring the latest in tech" \
  --category=28 \
  --keywords="technology,AI,innovation" \
  --privacyStatus=public \
  --latitude=52.5200 --longitude=13.4050 \
  --language=de --playlistId=PLxYz12345 \
  --thumbnail=./thumbnail.jpg \
  --license=youtube \
  --publishAt="2025-03-01T08:00:00Z" \
  --publicStatsViewable \
  --madeForKids \
  --ageGroup=age25_34 \
  --gender=female \
  --geo=DE \
  --defaultAudioLanguage=de-DE \
  --nolocalauth \
  --force-refresh

Parameters for Youtube Upload

• --videofile: Path to the video file you want to upload.
• --title: Video title (default: "Test Title").
• --description: Video description (default: "Test Description").
• --category: Numeric YouTube category ID.
• --keywords: Comma-separated list of tags (default: "").
• --privacyStatus: Privacy setting (public, private, unlisted; default: public).
• --latitude, --longitude: Set video location (optional).
• --language: Default language of the video (default: "en").
• --playlistId: ID of playlist to add video to (optional).
• --thumbnail: Path to thumbnail image (optional).
• --license: Video license (youtube or creativeCommon; default: youtube).
• --publishAt: Scheduled publish time in ISO 8601 format (optional).
• --publicStatsViewable: Whether video stats should be public (optional).
• --madeForKids: Indicates if the video is made for kids (optional).
• --ageGroup, --gender, --geo: Targeting options for the video (optional).
• --defaultAudioLanguage: Default audio language (optional).

Parameters for authentication or debugging

• --nolocalauth: Skip local browser auth, use manual code entry.
• --no-upload: Authenticate only; don't upload the video.
• --force-refresh: Force token refresh on script run.

Configuration (config.cfg)

Please rename config.example.cfg to config.cfg and adjust the parameters accordingly.

[authentication]
client_secrets_file = /path/to/client_secrets.json
oauth2_storage_file = /path/to/store/oauth2_tokens.json

[token_management]
force_token_refresh_days = 5

[upload_settings]
MAX_RETRIES = 3

• client_secrets_file: Points to your Google API credentials. Please use absolute path.
• oauth2_storage_file: Location for storing OAuth tokens. Please use absolute path.
• force_token_refresh_days: Days before forcing token refresh.
• MAX_RETRIES: Number of retry attempts for upload.

Setup

Python

Requires Python 3.

Libraries

pip install google-api-python-client google-auth-httplib2 google-auth-oauthlib

Google API

• Enable YouTube Data API v3 on Google Cloud Console.
• Create credentials for a Desktop app, download client_secrets.json, and place it at client_secrets_file.

Contributions

This project is open for contributions. Enhancements, bug fixes, or new features? Fork and PR!