Reddit Stash: Automatically Save Reddit Posts and Comments to Dropbox

Reddit Stash is a Python script designed to help you effortlessly back up your Reddit saved/ posted/ upvoted posts and comments to Dropbox or your local machine. Utilizing GitHub Actions, this script runs daily, automating the process of archiving your Reddit data in Dropbox after a simple setup.

Key Features

Automated Reddit Backup: Automatically retrieves saved posts and comments from Reddit, even your posts and comments if you set it up.
Flexible Storage Options: Allows for flexible saving options (all activity or only saved items) via settings.ini.
Dropbox Integration : Downloads and Uploads the files to Dropbox for storage.
Markdown Support: Saves the content as markdown files.

Setup

Prerequisites

Python 3.10
Reddit API credentials.
A Dropbox account with an API token.

Installation

Before proceeding with any installation method, ensure that you have set the Reddit environment variables. Follow Reddit API guide to create a Reddit app and obtain the necessary credentials.

GitHub Action Installation (Recommended)

Note: The following process requires the Dropbox App setup. The GitHub Actions workflow runs the script daily at midnight CET, uploading the files to Dropbox. The workflow is defined in .github/workflows/reddit_scraper.yml.

Fork this repository.
Set Up Secrets:

Go to your forked repository’s Settings > Secrets and variables > Actions > Click on New repository secret.
Add the following secrets individually:
- REDDIT_CLIENT_ID
- REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET
- REDDIT_USERNAME For Dropbox Setup
- DROPBOX_APP_KEY
- DROPBOX_APP_SECRET
- DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN
Enter the respective secret values without any quotes.

After adding all secrets: .

Manually Trigger the Workflow:

Go to the Actions tab > Select the Reddit Stash Workflow from the list on the left > Click Run workflow > Select the branch main > Click the green Run workflow button. The workflow will then be triggered, and you can monitor its progress in the Actions tab. Upon successful completion, you should see the Reddit folder in your Dropbox.

The workflow should run automatically at midnight CET time automatically.

Local Installation

Clone this repository:

git clone https://github.com/rhnfzl/reddit-stash.git
cd reddit-stash

Install the required Python packages:
```
pip install -r requirements.txt
```
Setup the Dropbox App setup. Skip it if you don't want to setup the dropbox and only want to save the file locally in your system.
Edit the settings.ini file, here is how to

Set Environment Variables (Optional but preferred):

For macOS and Linux:

export REDDIT_CLIENT_ID='your_client_id'
export REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET='your_client_secret'
export REDDIT_USERNAME='your_username'
export REDDIT_PASSWORD='your_password'
# Optional, if you need dropbox locally
export DROPBOX_APP_KEY='dropbox-app-key'
export DROPBOX_APP_SECRET='dropbox-secret-key'
export DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN='dropbox-secret-key'

For Windows:

set REDDIT_CLIENT_ID='your_client_id'
set REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET='your_client_secret'
set REDDIT_USERNAME='your_username'
set REDDIT_PASSWORD='your_password'
# Optional, if you need dropbox locally
set DROPBOX_APP_KEY='dropbox-app-key'
set DROPBOX_APP_SECRET='dropbox-secret-key'
set DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN='dropbox-secret-key'

You can verify the setup with:

echo $REDDIT_CLIENT_ID
echo $REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET
echo $REDDIT_USERNAME
echo $REDDIT_PASSWORD
echo $DROPBOX_APP_KEY
echo $DROPBOX_APP_SECRET
echo $DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN

Usage:
- First-time setup:
```
python reddit_stash.py
```
To upload to Dropbox (optional):
```
python dropbox_utils.py --upload
```
- Subsequent runs, as per your convenience:
1. Download from Dropbox (optional):
```
python dropbox_utils.py --download
```
1. Process Reddit saved items:
```
python reddit_stash.py
```
1. Upload to Dropbox (optional):
```
python dropbox_utils.py --upload
```

Configuration

`settings.ini` File

The settings.ini file in the root directory of the project allows you to configure how Reddit Stash operates. Here’s what each section of the file does:

[Settings]
save_directory = reddit/ # your system save directory
dropbox_directory = /reddit # your dropbox directory
save_type = ALL  # Options: 'ALL' to save all activity, 'SAVED' to save only saved posts/comments, 'ACTIVITY' to save only the users posts and comments, 'UPVOTED' to save users upvoted post and comments
check_type = LOG # Options: 'LOG' to use the logging file to verify the file exisitnece, 'DIR' to verify the file exisitence based on the downloaded directory. 
unsave_after_download = false
process_gdpr = false # Whether to process GDPR export data
process_api = true # Whether to process items from Reddit API (default: true)

[Configuration]
client_id = None  # Can be set here or via environment variables
client_secret = None  # Can be set here or via environment variables
username = None  # Can be set here or via environment variables
password = None  # Can be set here or via environment variables

save_directory: Specifies the directory where the Reddit content will be saved, modify it to the location you want it to be in.
dropbox_directory : Specifies the folder where the Reddit content will be saved on dropbox, modify it to the location you want it to be in.
save_type: Determines what user activity is saved, accepts these two values:
- ALL: Saves all posts and comments made by the user, the saved posts and comments with it's context, along with the the upvoted posts and comments.
- SAVED: Saves only the posts and comments the user has saved on Reddit with it's context.
- ACTIVITY: Saves only the posts and comments user has made/ posted on reddit with it's context.
- UPVOTED: Saves only the posts and comments the user has upvoted with it's context.
check_type : Determines if the file existence needs to be checked using the log file only or using the directory.
LOG : Uses the log file only to check the file exisitence, faster processing. Recommneded to use in the github action setup.
DIR : Uses the saved/ downloaded directory to check the file existence, slower processing. Recommended to use in the local setup.
unsave_after_download : Determines if the script should unsave posts after downloading them.
process_gdpr : Whether to process GDPR export data
process_api : Whether to process items from Reddit API (default: true)

Note: You can still use environment variables as a fallback or override for the Reddit API credentials if they are not set in the settings.ini file.

Setting Up Reddit Environment Variables

Create a Reddit app at https://www.reddit.com/prefs/apps or https://old.reddit.com/prefs/apps/
Set up the name, select script, and provide the redirect_uri as per the PRAW docs.

Copy the provided REDDIT_CLIENT_ID and the REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET based on the following screenshot:

REDDIT_USERNAME is your reddit username
REDDIT_PASSWORD is your reddit passowrd Keep these credentials for the setup.

Setting Up Dropbox app

Go to Dropbox Developer App.
Click on Create app.
Select Scoped access and choose Full Dropbox or App folder for access type.
give a Name to your app and click Create app.

In the Permissions tab, ensure the following are checked under Files and folders:
- files.metadata.write
- files.metadata.read
- files.content.write
- files.content.read
- Click Submit in the bottom.

Your DROPBOX_APP_KEY and DROPBOX_APP_SECRET are in the settings page of the app you created.
To get the DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN follow the follwing steps:

Replace <DROPBOX_APP_KEY> with your DROPBOX_APP_KEY you got in previous step and add that in the below Authorization URL

https://www.dropbox.com/oauth2/authorize?client_id=<DROPBOX_APP_KEY>&token_access_type=offline&response_type=code

Paste the URL in browser and complete the code flow on the Authorization URL. You will receive an <AUTHORIZATION_CODE> at the end, save it you will need this later.

Go to Postman, and create a new POST request with below configuration

Add Request URL- https://api.dropboxapi.com/oauth2/token
Click on the Authorization tab -> Type = Basic Auth -> Username = <DROPBOX_APP_KEY> , Password = <DROPBOX_APP_SECRET> (Refer this answer for cURL -u option)

Body -> Select "x-www-form-urlencoded"

Key	Value
code	`<AUTHORIZATION_CODE>`
grant_type	authorization_code

After you click send the request, you will receive JSON payload containing refresh_token.

{
    "access_token": "sl.****************",
    "token_type": "bearer",
    "expires_in": 14400,
    "refresh_token": "*********************",
    "scope": <SCOPES>,
    "uid": "**********",
    "account_id": "***********************"
}

and add/export the above rrefresh_token to DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN in your environment. For more information about the setup visit OAuth Guide.

Credits for above DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN solution : https://stackoverflow.com/a/71794390/12983596

Important Note About Unsaving

The script includes an option to automatically unsave posts after downloading them (unsave_after_download in settings.ini). This feature can be used to cycle through older saved posts beyond Reddit's 1000-item limit.

How it works:

The script downloads and saves a post/comment
If successful, it attempts to unsave the item
A small delay is added between unsave operations to respect Reddit's rate limits
Error handling ensures that failed unsaves don't stop the script

Important Considerations:

This process is irreversible - Once items are unsaved, they cannot be automatically restored to your saved items list
Create backups first - Always ensure you have a backup of your saved items before enabling this feature
Use with caution - It's recommended to first run the script without unsaving to verify everything works as expected
Rate Limiting - The script includes built-in delays to avoid hitting Reddit's API limits
Error Recovery - If an unsave operation fails, the script will continue processing other items

Usage:

Set unsave_after_download = true in your settings.ini file
Run the script as normal
The script will now unsave items after successfully downloading them
Run the script multiple times to gradually access older saved items

Recommended Workflow:

First run: Keep unsave_after_download = false and verify all content downloads correctly
Create a backup of your downloaded content
Enable unsaving by setting unsave_after_download = true
Run the script multiple times to access progressively older content

Key Additions and Changes:

Configuration Section: Added a new section explaining the settings.ini file and the save_type option.
Setup Instructions: Provided guidance on editing the settings.ini file and clarifying the role of environment variables as a fallback.
Consistent Documentation: Updated the usage instructions to reflect the new configuration options.

Contributing

Feel free to open issues or submit pull requests if you have any improvements or bug fixes.

Acknowledgement

This project was inspired by reddit-saved-saver.

Issues:

~~The dropbox isn't working at the moment because the token expiration, I need to find out a way to tackle that here, the main code reddit_stash.py works as expected.~~
~~The reddit_stash.py downloads all the file first and decides if the file is availble or not, implement early exit startegy while relevent fetching the content.~~

New Features for Future

Build a Docker Image to run it on the Local/ NAS system etc.
Processing the export of a user's data from reddit with context. (not so relevent to implement, based on how the repo has been built, but will look into the possibility).

GDPR Data Processing

The script can process Reddit's GDPR data export to access your complete saved post history. This feature uses PRAW to fetch full content for each saved item in your export.

How to Use GDPR Export:

Request your Reddit data:
- Go to https://www.reddit.com/settings/data-request
- Request your data (processing may take several days)
- Download the ZIP file when ready

Extract and place the CSV files:

Inside your save directory (from settings.ini), create a gdpr_data folder

Example structure:

reddit/              # Your save directory
├── gdpr_data/      # GDPR data directory
│   ├── saved_posts.csv
│   └── saved_comments.csv
├── subreddit1/     # Regular saved content
└── file_log.json

Enable GDPR processing:
```
[Settings]
process_gdpr = true
```
Run the script:
```
python reddit_stash.py
```

Technical Details:

Uses PRAW's built-in rate limiting
Processes both submissions and comments
Maintains consistent file naming with "GDPR_" prefix
Integrates with existing file logging system
Handles API errors and retries gracefully

Important Notes:

GDPR processing runs after regular API processing
Each item requires a separate API call to fetch full content
Rate limits are shared with regular API processing
Large exports may take significant time to process
Duplicate items are automatically skipped via file logging

Docker Installation

You can run Reddit Stash in a Docker container. This method provides isolation and ensures consistent environment across different systems.

Build the Docker image:
```
docker build -t reddit-stash .
```

Run the container:

docker run -d \
  -e REDDIT_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id \
  -e REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret \
  -e REDDIT_USERNAME=your_username \
  -e REDDIT_PASSWORD=your_password \
  -e DROPBOX_APP_KEY=your_dropbox_key \
  -e DROPBOX_APP_SECRET=your_dropbox_secret \
  -e DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN=your_dropbox_token \
  -v $(pwd)/reddit:/app/reddit \
  reddit-stash

For Windows Command Prompt, use:

docker run -d ^
  -e REDDIT_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id ^
  -e REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret ^
  -e REDDIT_USERNAME=your_username ^
  -e REDDIT_PASSWORD=your_password ^
  -e DROPBOX_APP_KEY=your_dropbox_key ^
  -e DROPBOX_APP_SECRET=your_dropbox_secret ^
  -e DROPBOX_REFRESH_TOKEN=your_dropbox_token ^
  -v %cd%/reddit:/app/reddit ^
  reddit-stash

Docker Notes:

The container runs as a non-root user for security
Data is persisted through a volume mount to your local machine
Environment variables must be provided at runtime
The container automatically runs the script when started
Logs are available through Docker's logging system:
```
docker logs <container_id>
```

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README.md

README.md

Reddit Stash: Automatically Save Reddit Posts and Comments to Dropbox

Key Features

Setup

Prerequisites

Installation

GitHub Action Installation (Recommended)

Local Installation

Configuration

`settings.ini` File

Setting Up Reddit Environment Variables

Setting Up Dropbox app

Important Note About Unsaving

How it works:

Important Considerations:

Usage:

Recommended Workflow:

Key Additions and Changes:

Contributing

Acknowledgement

Issues:

New Features for Future

GDPR Data Processing

How to Use GDPR Export:

Technical Details:

Important Notes:

Docker Installation

Docker Notes:

Files

README.md

Latest commit

History

README.md

File metadata and controls

Reddit Stash: Automatically Save Reddit Posts and Comments to Dropbox

Key Features

Setup

Prerequisites

Installation

GitHub Action Installation (Recommended)

Local Installation

Configuration

settings.ini File

Setting Up Reddit Environment Variables

Setting Up Dropbox app

Important Note About Unsaving

How it works:

Important Considerations:

Usage:

Recommended Workflow:

Key Additions and Changes:

Contributing

Acknowledgement

Issues:

New Features for Future

GDPR Data Processing

How to Use GDPR Export:

Technical Details:

Important Notes:

Docker Installation

Docker Notes:

`settings.ini` File