# Project pack: ArchiveBox @ d1c5a50

Facts about **ArchiveBox** for an AI following the [BespokeAI handover guide](https://handoff.bespokeai.software/guide/v4.md). Pinned to one version; never changes after publication.

> ArchiveBox takes a list of links, such as bookmarks, browser history or an RSS feed, and saves a durable copy of each page in several formats: HTML, PDF, screenshot, text, and video where available. You browse and search your archive in a web interface, and the files remain readable without any special software.

## Setup path (checked 2026-11-03)
- **Needs Docker.** Tell the person before any setup work; no light non-Docker route is documented upstream. A Windows desktop installer exists on archivebox.io, but upstream describes it as docker + electron, so it was not treated as Docker-free. Docker Desktop on Windows may need a computer restart and an admin-only Windows feature (virtualisation); say so and let the person decide.
- Verdict source: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ArchiveBox/ArchiveBox/HEAD/README.md
- You may be unable to download source archives or run commands in this session. The person downloads and runs things; if you cannot fetch something, give any changed file in full in chat with its path.

## Version and source
- Repository: https://github.com/ArchiveBox/ArchiveBox
- Pinned commit: `d1c5a50b7f14a97be4a0af98623e14379fad5dde`. Use exactly this version.
- Zip the person can download in a browser: https://github.com/ArchiveBox/ArchiveBox/archive/d1c5a50b7f14a97be4a0af98623e14379fad5dde.zip
- Fresh checkout (only if you have a shell and git): use the commands below in an empty folder. If this exact source is already checked out, keep your branch and use the development command; do not clone again or reset local changes.
- Official docs: https://docs.archivebox.io
- Licence: **MIT**. Free to use, change and share, even commercially. Keep the original copyright notice.

## Commands from the pinned source
- Developer commands (they may use Docker):

  ```sh
  git clone https://github.com/ArchiveBox/ArchiveBox bespoke-archivebox
  cd bespoke-archivebox
  git checkout --detach d1c5a50b7f14a97be4a0af98623e14379fad5dde
  # Prepare development requirements and local configuration first.
  uv sync
  uv run archivebox init
  uv run archivebox server 0.0.0.0:5797
  ```

- Separate trial of the current upstream release (not your changes; sample data and a separate data directory only):

  ```sh
  mkdir -p archivebox-data
  docker run -d --name archivebox -v "$PWD/archivebox-data:/data" -p 5797:5797 archivebox/archivebox:latest
  # then open http://localhost:5797
  ```
- Tools these commands use: Docker for a trial, Python 3.11+ and uv for development, plenty of disk space
- Develop: `uv run archivebox server 0.0.0.0:5797`
- Test: `uv run pytest`
- Stack: python, javascript (Django, Playwright, wget, yt-dlp, SingleFile). Difficulty for a non-developer with an AI: **moderate**. A Python and Django project that coordinates many command-line tools. It has plugin folders, and adding a new archive method is a small plugin.
- The project's own AI instructions, in the repository: `AGENTS.md`.
Personal data: **yes**. Stored in: A data folder containing the index and one folder per archived page. Secrets are entered by the person, never in chat.

---
Later, only when a step needs it: [reference.md](https://handoff.bespokeai.software/p/archivebox/d1c5a50/r3/reference.md) (customisation points, must-keep-working, data and costs, coding conventions) · [hosting.md](https://handoff.bespokeai.software/p/archivebox/d1c5a50/r3/hosting.md) (long-term hosting; hosts are paid third parties) · [bespoke.yaml](https://handoff.bespokeai.software/p/archivebox/d1c5a50/r3/bespoke.yaml) · [SKILL.md](https://handoff.bespokeai.software/p/archivebox/d1c5a50/r3/SKILL.md)