Settings

Settings are saved automatically. Restart the app after changing the listen address or port.

Basic settings

• Save Directory: the default destination for new tasks. Changing it does not move existing files.
• Filename Template: controls download filenames and subdirectories. See Filename template for variables and examples.
• Name Conflicts: choose automatic numbering, overwrite, or skip. Automatic numbering is recommended.
• Auto Intercept: starts capturing automatically when the app launches.
• Insert tail: controls whether newly captured resources appear at the top or bottom of the list.
• Clear cache and restart: use this to recover from app problems. It clears certificates, settings, captured resources, task history, capture cache, and download temporary files in the current save directory. It keeps downloaded files, installed plugins, and temporary files in other save directories.
• Open log folder: opens the directory containing app.log on your system for diagnosing startup, capture, and download issues. Remove private information before sharing logs.

Filename template

During a download, res-downloader replaces template variables with the resource information.

A template can contain literal text, {{variables}}, and / to create subdirectories within the save directory. Variable names are case-sensitive; use the lowercase names listed below.

Default template

Leaving the field empty uses this default:

{{title|default:resource|sanitize|truncate:80}}_{{date:20060102_150405}}.{{ext}}

It uses the resource title, substitutes the literal text resource if the title is empty, sanitizes incompatible filename characters, and limits the title to 80 characters. It then adds the download date, time, and output extension. Example: Beautiful Chongqing_20260910_140509.mp4.

Available variables

Wrap a variable in double braces, for example {{title}}.

Variable	Meaning	Example value
title	Resource title	Beautiful Chongqing
id	Resource ID in the app	Depends on the resource
kind	Specific resource kind identifier	media.video
plugin	ID of the plugin that identified the resource	com.example.video
host	Main domain of the download track URL, usually without subdomains	cdn.example.com becomes example.com
author	Author information from resource metadata	putyy
track	ID of the track used for naming	video-1080p
quality	Track quality label	1080p
width / height	Track width / height in pixels	1920 / 1080
bitrate	Bitrate value supplied by the track, without a unit suffix	Depends on the track
date	Local date when the save path is generated; default format 20060102	20260910
time	Local time when the save path is generated; default format 150405	140509
created_at	Content creation time from metadata.createdAt; default format 20060102	20260901
published_at	Content publication time from metadata.publishedAt; default format 20060102	20260902
ext	Download output extension, without the leading dot	mp4
meta.*	Resource metadata supplied by the plugin, such as meta.site.author	Depends on the plugin

Author, quality, dimensions, and similar information depend on the resource and plugin and may be unavailable. Track variables prefer the track directly referenced by the download output. When the output comes from merging or other processing, they use the resource's primary track. date and time describe when the save path is generated. created_at and published_at use plugin-provided Unix milliseconds, formatted in the local time zone used when generating the path. Missing or invalid values stay empty; they never fall back to the download time automatically.

Missing fields, unknown variables, and width, height, or bitrate without a positive value produce empty strings. Use default to supply replacement text. meta.* supports strings, numbers, and booleans; objects and arrays do not become filenames directly. Metadata lookup checks the complete key first, then tries nested fields separated by dots. Available keys depend on the plugin.

Filters and date formats

Append filters to a variable with |. Multiple filters run from left to right.

Filter	Effect
default:Unknown author	Replaces an empty or whitespace-only value with Unknown author
sanitize	Replaces incompatible characters with _ and handles surrounding whitespace, trailing dots, and system-reserved names
truncate:80	Keeps at most 80 Unicode characters; the argument must be an integer from 1 to 1000
lower	Converts to lowercase
upper	Converts to uppercase
prefix:_	Adds _ before a nonblank value; blank values stay empty
suffix:_	Adds _ after a nonblank value; blank values stay empty

For example, {{author|default:Unknown author|sanitize}} supplies a missing author before sanitizing the result. Add sanitize to titles and authors so that / or \ within their values becomes _ instead of creating unintended subdirectories. To supply replacement text when sanitizing leaves an empty value, put default after sanitize.

Add a colon after date, time, created_at, or published_at to specify a format. Formats use Go's reference time digits: year 2006, month 01, day 02, 24-hour clock hour 15, minute 04, and second 05. Do not use YYYY-MM-DD.

Expression	Example result
{{date:2006-01-02}}	2026-09-10
{{date:2006/01}}	2026/09, creating year and month directories
{{time:15-04-05}}	14-05-09

Use - to separate time components in filenames; : is replaced with _ during filename sanitization.

Common templates

These examples assume a title of Beautiful Chongqing, author putyy, quality 1080p, output extension mp4, and a local path-generation time of September 10, 2026 at 14:05:09. Results are relative to the save directory and assume no name conflicts.

Title only: produces Beautiful Chongqing.mp4.

{{title|default:resource|sanitize|truncate:80}}.{{ext}}

Group by author: produces putyy/Beautiful Chongqing.mp4. A missing author uses the Unknown author directory.

{{author|default:Unknown author|sanitize}}/{{title|default:resource|sanitize|truncate:80}}.{{ext}}

Archive by year and month, retaining the download timestamp: produces 2026/09/Beautiful Chongqing_20260910_140509.mp4.

{{date:2006/01}}/{{title|default:resource|sanitize|truncate:80}}_{{date:20060102_150405}}.{{ext}}

Include quality: produces Beautiful Chongqing_1080p.mp4. Missing quality uses Original quality.

{{title|default:resource|sanitize|truncate:80}}_{{quality|default:Original quality|sanitize}}.{{ext}}

Include the creation date only when available: produces Beautiful Chongqing_20260901.mp4 when provided, or Beautiful Chongqing.mp4 when missing.

{{title|default:resource|sanitize|truncate:80}}{{created_at:20060102|prefix:_}}.{{ext}}

Replace created_at with published_at to use publication time. Both variables can be used together, each with its own prefix:_.

Put optional separators inside prefix or suffix; a literal _ outside a variable remains when the value is missing. Filters run left to right: sanitize and truncate before adding affixes. Replacement text supplied by default counts as a nonblank value.

Paths, extensions, and name conflicts

• Paths: use a path relative to the save directory. Do not enter drive letters, absolute paths, or parent directory segments (..). Both / and \ are treated as directory separators; use / consistently.
• Extensions: end the template with .{{ext}}. When the output extension is known, the app appends it if it is missing or does not match. For example, MP4 output with a template ending in .txt results in .txt.mp4. Changing the template does not convert the file format.
• Length and characters: templates are limited to 4096 bytes. Each generated directory name and filename is sanitized and limited to 240 UTF-8 bytes, preserving the extension where possible. Long titles containing many Chinese characters or emoji may therefore be shortened further even with truncate:80.
• Name conflicts: controlled by Name Conflicts in Basic Setting. Add a number produces names such as Beautiful Chongqing(1).mp4 and Beautiful Chongqing(2).mp4, also avoiding paths reserved by active downloads. Overwrite existing file allows replacing a file with the same name. Skip download stops that download when its target already exists or is reserved by another task.

Unclosed braces, empty variable expressions, unknown filters, and invalid truncation limits produce errors. If the operating system still rejects the generated filename, the app may use a fallback name. See Downloaded filenames start with resource-.

Appearance

Switch between light, dark, and other built-in themes. Changes take effect immediately.

Interface language

On first launch with no existing configuration, the app reads the system's preferred language: Chinese locales use Chinese; other locales, or a failed detection, use English. The choice is saved with the configuration and retained across launches and upgrades. Later changes to the system language or time zone do not switch it automatically.

Use the language button in the left menu to switch between Chinese and English. The change takes effect immediately and is saved automatically.

Generic resource rules

These rules identify common images, videos, audio, and documents. The defaults usually work well; dedicated plugins take priority for the sites they support.

Media processing

Merging separate audio and video tracks, remuxing, format conversion, audio extraction, and live recording require FFmpeg. Ordinary file downloads and the built-in HLS segment downloader work without it. FFmpeg is still required when a plugin uses it to download HLS, or when the downloaded media needs merging or remuxing.

FFmpeg is not bundled with the app; install it yourself. The two tools serve different purposes:

• FFmpeg: downloads, merges, remuxes, and processes media.
• ffprobe: reads media formats, tracks, and durations. It is usually distributed with FFmpeg.

Automatic detection

When the FFmpeg and ffprobe paths are empty, the app looks for ffmpeg and ffprobe in its process's PATH environment variable. The app inherits its environment when it starts, so restart it after installing FFmpeg or changing PATH, then click Detect FFmpeg.

Both FFmpeg and ffprobe must show Available to confirm that both tools are configured correctly.

Select executables manually

If you prefer not to configure PATH, or automatic detection fails, click Choose file beside each field and select the actual FFmpeg and ffprobe executables.

On Windows:

1. Choose a Windows distribution from the official FFmpeg download page and extract it.
2. For FFmpeg, select bin\ffmpeg.exe inside the extracted directory.
3. For ffprobe, select bin\ffprobe.exe in the same directory.
4. Click Detect FFmpeg and confirm that both show Available.

On macOS and Linux, select the actual ffmpeg and ffprobe executables in your installation.

Certificate

HTTPS capture requires the current certificate. Install, uninstall, or refresh its status under Setting → Certificate.

• Approve the UAC prompt on Windows; enter your system password when prompted on macOS or Linux.
• Phones need the certificate downloaded and installed separately.
• The app performs a one-time migration check for the shared certificate used by legacy versions. Follow any authorization prompt to remove it. Existing migration results are retained; routine upgrades preserve the current certificate and settings.

Advanced settings

• Listen address and port: local access only by default. To connect a phone, use 0.0.0.0 and make sure the firewall allows the connection.
• Upstream Proxy: configure this when using another proxy tool alongside the app.
• Download Proxy: routes downloads through the upstream proxy when enabled.
• Connections and Download Number: try reducing these if downloads are unstable.
• User-Agent and request headers: normally keep the defaults. Do not share account information such as cookies.

TLS interception policies

Choose which domains to capture and which to pass through. If a site becomes inaccessible or you do not want it captured, set its domain to Pass through.

For help with problems, see Troubleshooting.