YouTube URL	Enter a YouTube video URL to generate 40 high-quality screenshots.

Project WordPress YouTube Screenshot Generator – Historic Thread

Posted :

Jun 13, 2025

by :

///****
///**** THREAD #1
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# is there a way a website can generate screenshots off a youtube video? like giving it the youtube url and generate screenshot of frames of the video

Yes, there are several websites that can generate screenshots from YouTube videos just by providing the YouTube URL. These online tools make it super easy to capture specific frames without needing to download any software or browser extensions.

## **YouTube Screenshot Generator Websites**

The most straightforward option is using dedicated YouTube screenshot generator websites[^1_2][^1_5]. These tools work by simply pasting the YouTube video URL into their interface. Here’s how they typically work:

You copy the YouTube video URL (like https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RK1K2bCg4J8), paste it into the website’s input field, and click a button like “Get Screenshot” or “Show Screenshot”[^1_2][^1_5]. The website then loads the video player and lets you navigate to the exact moment you want to capture[^1_2].

**YouTubeScreenshot.com** is one example that specifically does this – you just copy and paste a YouTube video link and it generates screenshots for you[^1_1]. Another option is **GetYouTubeVideoThumbnail.com**, which follows a similar process where you paste the URL, click “Get Screenshot,” choose your preferred screenshot size, and then save the image[^1_5].

## **How These Tools Work**

These websites essentially embed the YouTube video player and give you controls to navigate through the video frame by frame. Once you find the perfect moment, you can capture a high-quality screenshot that gets generated instantly[^1_2]. Some tools even let you choose different screenshot sizes and formats before downloading[^1_5].

The whole process is pretty quick and doesn’t require any technical knowledge. You don’t need to install anything on your computer since everything runs directly in your web browser[^1_2]. This makes it convenient for anyone who needs to grab screenshots from YouTube videos occasionally without wanting to mess with software installations or browser extensions.

These online generators are particularly useful when you need clean screenshots without having to deal with cropping out browser elements or other screen clutter that you’d get from using basic screenshot methods like PrintScreen[^1_2].

⁂

[^1_1]: https://www.youtubescreenshot.com
[^1_2]: https://democreator.wondershare.com/screen-recorder/screenshot-a-youtube-video.html
[^1_3]: https://flixier.com/tools/video-to-photo/extract-frames-from-video
[^1_4]: https://www.tella.com/tools/website-screenshot-video
[^1_5]: https://www.getyoutubevideothumbnail.com/youtube-screenshot-online
[^1_6]: https://tubepilot.ai/tools/youtube-video-screenshot-generator/
[^1_7]: https://askify.video
[^1_8]: https://screenshot.guru
[^1_9]: https://mixilab.com/toolkit/extract-photo-from-video
[^1_10]: https://www.loom.com/products/screenshot-youtube

—

# how complex would be to generate a wordpress plugin that can do the same?

Creating a WordPress plugin that generates screenshots from YouTube videos would be moderately complex, but definitely doable if you have some PHP and JavaScript experience. The complexity mainly comes from handling the YouTube API and managing the screenshot generation process.

## **Technical Requirements**

You’d need to work with several components to make this happen. First, you’d need the **YouTube Data API v3** to fetch video information and validate URLs[^2_5]. This requires getting an API key from Google, which is free but comes with usage quotas[^2_5]. The plugin would also need to handle **iframe embedding** since you’d essentially be loading the YouTube player in the background to capture frames[^2_1].

For the actual screenshot generation, you’d probably use JavaScript’s **Canvas API** to capture frames from the embedded video player. This gets a bit tricky because of cross-origin restrictions, but it’s manageable with the right approach.

## **Plugin Architecture**

The basic structure would include a few key parts. You’d need an **admin interface** where users can paste YouTube URLs and configure screenshot settings like image quality and specific timestamps. The **backend processing** would handle URL validation, API calls to YouTube, and coordinate the screenshot capture process[^2_1].

The **frontend component** would embed a hidden or small YouTube player, navigate to the specified time, and capture the frame using canvas methods. Finally, you’d need **file management** to save the generated screenshots to WordPress media library and handle cleanup of temporary files.

## **Development Complexity**

From a coding perspective, this sits somewhere in the **intermediate to advanced** range. You’d be dealing with WordPress hooks and filters, AJAX requests for real-time processing, and managing asynchronous operations since video loading and frame capture take time.

The trickiest parts would be handling **cross-origin restrictions** when trying to capture frames from YouTube’s embedded player, managing **API rate limits** from YouTube, and ensuring the plugin works across different browsers and devices. You’d also need to handle edge cases like private videos, age-restricted content, or videos that don’t allow embedding.

## **Estimated Development Time**

For someone with solid WordPress plugin development experience, this would probably take **2-3 weeks** to build a basic version that works reliably. That includes time for testing across different scenarios, handling error cases, and making sure it integrates well with WordPress’s media system.

If you’re newer to plugin development, you might be looking at **1-2 months** to get something production-ready, especially when you factor in learning the YouTube API, debugging cross-origin issues, and making the user interface intuitive.

The good news is that there are already plugins that handle YouTube embedding and API integration[^2_5], so you could potentially build on existing frameworks rather than starting completely from scratch.

⁂

[^2_1]: https://wpswings.com/blog/wordpress-video-strategy/
[^2_2]: https://blog.homeforfiction.com/2024/09/30/youtube-facade-wordpress-plugin/
[^2_3]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Huoh7yRLt_g
[^2_4]: https://www.wpbeginner.com/plugins/x-best-youtube-video-gallery-plugins-for-wordpress/
[^2_5]: https://cs.wordpress.org/plugins/youtube-embed-plus/
[^2_6]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twlXohw9V34
[^2_7]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ws1FsDeLDbk
[^2_8]: https://it.wordpress.org/plugins/youtube-showcase/
[^2_9]: https://www.wonderplugin.com/wordpress-gallery/how-to-create-a-wordpress-video-gallery-with-thumbnails/
[^2_10]: https://www.iptanus.com/capture-and-upload-from-webcam/

—

# ok Im ready now with root access to the computer hosting my wordpress website, my wordpress is running on docker, I want to generate a wordpress plugin that generates 20 screenshots of a youtube video that in the back is download using yt-dlp, https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp; the goal is to have a field where I can input the url of the youtube video, yt-dlp downloads in the back in 1080p, then takes 20 screenshots if possible key screenshots depending on the transcript of the video and then delete the video so it doesnt use hard disk space, screenshots have to be 800 x 450 in the high resolution HD, after the screenshots are taken add them to the wordpress media library with name scrn_increasingnumber (replace increasingnumber with a number starting with 1), show a progress bar as screenshots are been taken and then show 20 thumbnails of the screenshots, this thumbnails are temporary and can be deleted automatically after screenshots are taken, show thumbnails in rows of 5 from left to right and then continue with second row, generate all detail information on how to implement this, Im a tech person but not an expert, the computer running docker is on ubuntu 22.04

Alright, this is a pretty cool project! Since you have root access and your WordPress is running on Docker, we’ll need to set up yt-dlp inside the container and create a plugin that handles the whole process. Let me break this down step by step.

## **Setting Up yt-dlp in Your Docker Container**

First, you need to get into your WordPress Docker container and install yt-dlp. Run these commands on your Ubuntu server:

“`bash
# Find your WordPress container name
docker ps

# Access the container (replace ‘wordpress_container_name’ with your actual container name)
docker exec -it wordpress_container_name bash

# Inside the container, install dependencies
apt-get update && apt-get install -y curl python3 ffmpeg

# Download and install yt-dlp
curl -L https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/latest/download/yt-dlp -o /usr/local/bin/yt-dlp
chmod a+rx /usr/local/bin/yt-dlp

# Test if it works
yt-dlp –version
“`

You’ll also need ffmpeg for screenshot extraction, which we included above[^3_1][^3_2].

## **Creating the WordPress Plugin Structure**

Create a new plugin directory in your WordPress plugins folder. Inside your container or through volume mapping, create this structure:

“`
wp-content/plugins/youtube-screenshot-generator/
├── youtube-screenshot-generator.php
├── includes/
│ ├── class-screenshot-processor.php
│ └── class-media-handler.php
├── assets/
│ ├── css/
│ │ └── admin-style.css
│ └── js/
│ └── admin-script.js
└── templates/
└── admin-page.php
“`

## **Main Plugin File**

Create `youtube-screenshot-generator.php`:

“`php
admin_url(‘admin-ajax.php’),
‘nonce’ => wp_create_nonce(‘ysg_nonce’)
));
}

public function admin_page() {
include YSG_PLUGIN_PATH . ‘templates/admin-page.php’;
}

public function ajax_process_video() {
check_ajax_referer(‘ysg_nonce’, ‘nonce’);

if (!current_user_can(‘manage_options’)) {
wp_die(‘Unauthorized’);
}

$youtube_url = sanitize_url($_POST[‘youtube_url’]);

if (empty($youtube_url)) {
wp_send_json_error(‘Please provide a YouTube URL’);
}

$processor = new ScreenshotProcessor();
$result = $processor->process_video($youtube_url);

if ($result[‘success’]) {
wp_send_json_success($result);
} else {
wp_send_json_error($result[‘message’]);
}
}

public function ajax_get_progress() {
check_ajax_referer(‘ysg_nonce’, ‘nonce’);

$progress = get_transient(‘ysg_progress’);
wp_send_json_success($progress ? $progress : 0);
}
}

new YouTubeScreenshotGenerator();
“`

## **Screenshot Processor Class**

Create `includes/class-screenshot-processor.php`:

“`php
upload_dir = $wp_upload_dir[‘basedir’];
$this->temp_dir = $this->upload_dir . ‘/temp_youtube/’;

// Create temp directory if it doesn’t exist
if (!file_exists($this->temp_dir)) {
wp_mkdir_p($this->temp_dir);
}
}

public function process_video($youtube_url) {
set_transient(‘ysg_progress’, 0, 300);

try {
// Step 1: Download video (20% progress)
$video_path = $this->download_video($youtube_url);
set_transient(‘ysg_progress’, 20, 300);

if (!$video_path) {
return array(‘success’ => false, ‘message’ => ‘Failed to download video’);
}

// Step 2: Get video duration
$duration = $this->get_video_duration($video_path);
set_transient(‘ysg_progress’, 30, 300);

// Step 3: Generate screenshots (30% to 80% progress)
$screenshots = $this->generate_screenshots($video_path, $duration);

// Step 4: Add to media library (80% to 95% progress)
$media_handler = new MediaHandler();
$media_ids = $media_handler->add_screenshots_to_library($screenshots);
set_transient(‘ysg_progress’, 95, 300);

// Step 5: Clean up
$this->cleanup($video_path, $screenshots);
set_transient(‘ysg_progress’, 100, 300);

return array(
‘success’ => true,
‘media_ids’ => $media_ids,
‘thumbnails’ => $this->get_thumbnail_urls($media_ids)
);

} catch (Exception $e) {
$this->cleanup_temp_files();
return array(‘success’ => false, ‘message’ => $e->getMessage());
}
}

private function download_video($youtube_url) {
$video_filename = ‘temp_video_’ . time() . ‘.%(ext)s’;
$video_path = $this->temp_dir . $video_filename;

// Use yt-dlp to download in 1080p
$command = sprintf(
‘yt-dlp -f “best[height<=1080]" -o "%s" "%s" 2>&1′,
escapeshellarg($video_path),
escapeshellarg($youtube_url)
);

exec($command, $output, $return_code);

if ($return_code !== 0) {
throw new Exception(‘Failed to download video: ‘ . implode(“\n”, $output));
}

// Find the actual downloaded file
$files = glob($this->temp_dir . ‘temp_video_’ . time() . ‘.*’);
return !empty($files) ? $files[^3_0] : false;
}

private function get_video_duration($video_path) {
$command = sprintf(
‘ffprobe -v quiet -show_entries format=duration -of csv=”p=0″ “%s”‘,
escapeshellarg($video_path)
);

$duration = trim(shell_exec($command));
return floatval($duration);
}

private function generate_screenshots($video_path, $duration) {
$screenshots = array();
$interval = $duration / 20; // Divide video into 20 equal parts

for ($i = 0; $i < 20; $i++) { $timestamp = $i * $interval; $screenshot_path = $this->temp_dir . ‘screenshot_’ . ($i + 1) . ‘.jpg’;

$command = sprintf(
‘ffmpeg -ss %f -i “%s” -vframes 1 -vf scale=800:450 -y “%s” 2>&1’,
$timestamp,
escapeshellarg($video_path),
escapeshellarg($screenshot_path)
);

exec($command, $output, $return_code);

if ($return_code === 0 && file_exists($screenshot_path)) {
$screenshots[] = $screenshot_path;
}

// Update progress (30% to 80%)
$progress = 30 + (($i + 1) / 20) * 50;
set_transient(‘ysg_progress’, $progress, 300);
}

return $screenshots;
}

private function cleanup($video_path, $screenshots) {
// Delete video file
if (file_exists($video_path)) {
unlink($video_path);
}

// Delete temporary screenshots
foreach ($screenshots as $screenshot) {
if (file_exists($screenshot)) {
unlink($screenshot);
}
}
}

private function cleanup_temp_files() {
$files = glob($this->temp_dir . ‘*’);
foreach ($files as $file) {
if (is_file($file)) {
unlink($file);
}
}
}

private function get_thumbnail_urls($media_ids) {
$thumbnails = array();
foreach ($media_ids as $id) {
$thumbnails[] = wp_get_attachment_image_url($id, ‘thumbnail’);
}
return $thumbnails;
}
}
“`

## **Media Handler Class**

Create `includes/class-media-handler.php`:

“`php
$screenshot_path) {
$filename = ‘scrn_’ . ($index + 1) . ‘.jpg’;
$media_id = $this->upload_file_to_media_library($screenshot_path, $filename);

if ($media_id) {
$media_ids[] = $media_id;
}
}

return $media_ids;
}

private function upload_file_to_media_library($file_path, $filename) {
$wp_upload_dir = wp_upload_dir();
$destination = $wp_upload_dir[‘path’] . ‘/’ . $filename;

// Copy file to uploads directory
if (!copy($file_path, $destination)) {
return false;
}

$file_type = wp_check_filetype($filename, null);

$attachment = array(
‘guid’ => $wp_upload_dir[‘url’] . ‘/’ . basename($filename),
‘post_mime_type’ => $file_type[‘type’],
‘post_title’ => preg_replace(‘/\.[^.]+$/’, ”, basename($filename)),
‘post_content’ => ”,
‘post_status’ => ‘inherit’
);

$attach_id = wp_insert_attachment($attachment, $destination);

if (!is_wp_error($attach_id)) {
$attach_data = wp_generate_attachment_metadata($attach_id, $destination);
wp_update_attachment_metadata($attach_id, $attach_data);
return $attach_id;
}

return false;
}
}
“`

## **Admin Page Template**

Create `templates/admin-page.php`:

“`php

YouTube Screenshot Generator

YouTube URL

“`

## **CSS Styling**

Create `assets/css/admin-style.css`:

“`css
.progress-bar {
width: 100%;
height: 20px;
background-color: #f1f1f1;
border-radius: 10px;
overflow: hidden;
margin: 10px 0;
}

.progress-fill {
height: 100%;
background-color: #0073aa;
transition: width 0.3s ease;
}

#thumbnails-grid {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: repeat(5, 1fr);
gap: 10px;
margin-top: 20px;
}

.thumbnail-item {
text-align: center;
}

.thumbnail-item img {
max-width: 100%;
height: auto;
border: 1px solid #ddd;
border-radius: 4px;
}

#progress-text {
text-align: center;
font-weight: bold;
}
“`

## **JavaScript for AJAX and Progress**

Create `assets/js/admin-script.js`:

“`javascript
jQuery(document).ready(function($) {
let progressInterval;

$(‘#generate-screenshots’).on(‘click’, function() {
const youtubeUrl = $(‘#youtube-url’).val();

if (!youtubeUrl) {
alert(‘Please enter a YouTube URL’);
return;
}

// Hide previous results and errors
$(‘#results-container, #error-container’).hide();
$(‘#progress-container’).show();

// Start progress monitoring
startProgressMonitoring();

// Process video
$.ajax({
url: ysg_ajax.ajax_url,
type: ‘POST’,
data: {
action: ‘process_youtube_video’,
youtube_url: youtubeUrl,
nonce: ysg_ajax.nonce
},
success: function(response) {
stopProgressMonitoring();

if (response.success) {
displayThumbnails(response.data.thumbnails);
$(‘#progress-container’).hide();
$(‘#results-container’).show();
} else {
showError(response.data);
}
},
error: function() {
stopProgressMonitoring();
showError(‘An error occurred while processing the video’);
}
});
});

function stopProgressMonitoring() {
if (progressInterval) {
clearInterval(progressInterval);
}
}

function updateProgress(progress) {
$(‘.progress-fill’).css(‘width’, progress + ‘%’);
$(‘#progress-text’).text(progress + ‘%’);
}

function displayThumbnails(thumbnails) {
const grid = $(‘#thumbnails-grid’);
grid.empty();

thumbnails.forEach(function(thumbnail, index) {
const item = $(‘

‘);
const img = $(‘‘).attr(‘src’, thumbnail).attr(‘alt’, ‘Screenshot ‘ + (index + 1));
const label = $(‘

scrn_’ + (index + 1) + ‘

‘);

item.append(img).append(label);
grid.append(item);
});
}

function showError(message) {
$(‘#error-message’).text(message);
$(‘#progress-container’).hide();
$(‘#error-container’).show();
}
});
“`

## **Installation Steps**

1. **Upload the plugin files** to your WordPress container’s `/wp-content/plugins/` directory
2. **Activate the plugin** from the WordPress admin dashboard
3. **Go to Media > YouTube Screenshots** to access the tool
4. **Make sure your Docker container has the necessary permissions** for file operations

## **Important Notes**

The plugin uses WordPress transients to track progress, which works well for this use case[^3_4]. The screenshots are generated at equal intervals throughout the video since getting transcript-based key frames would require additional API calls and complexity that might not be worth it for your first version.

The temporary files get cleaned up automatically after processing, and the final screenshots are properly added to your WordPress media library with the naming convention you requested[^3_3][^3_8]. The progress bar updates in real-time, and the thumbnails display in a 5-column grid as you wanted.

Make sure your Docker container has enough disk space for temporary video downloads, and consider adding error handling for edge cases like private videos or network issues.

⁂

[^3_1]: https://www.rapidseedbox.com/blog/yt-dlp-complete-guide
[^3_2]: https://github.com/docker-hy/docker-hy.github.io/blob/master/docs/part-1/section-4.md
[^3_3]: https://wordpress.stackexchange.com/questions/256830/programmatically-adding-images-to-media-library
[^3_4]: https://groundwp.com/how-to-add-a-progress-bar-in-wordpress-step-by-step/
[^3_5]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/73516823/using-yt-dlp-in-a-python-script-how-do-i-download-a-specific-section-of-a-video
[^3_6]: https://www.wpbeginner.com/plugins/an-automated-way-of-taking-website-screenshot-in-wordpress/
[^3_7]: https://ultimateblocks.com/how-to-add-a-progress-bar-in-wordpress/
[^3_8]: https://www.wpastronaut.com/blog/upload-files-wordpress-programmatically/
[^3_9]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLoxYYq7Q_Y
[^3_10]: https://www.reddit.com/r/youtubedl/comments/125qphq/ytdlp_and_video_hosted_in_a_private_website/
[^3_11]: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp
[^3_12]: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/wiki/Installation
[^3_13]: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-75923-y
[^3_14]: https://www.reddit.com/r/ffmpeg/comments/lxlbv6/is_there_a_way_to_extract_all_key_frames_from_a/
[^3_15]: https://pub.aimind.so/efficient-frame-extraction-for-video-object-annotation-366daba84556
[^3_16]: https://preventdirectaccess.com/wordpress-upload-file-programmatically/
[^3_17]: https://rudrastyh.com/wordpress/how-to-add-images-to-media-library-from-uploaded-files-programmatically.html
[^3_18]: https://gist.github.com/hissy/7352933
[^3_19]: https://www.reddit.com/r/youtube/comments/1dd2ezg/psa_ytdlp_aka_how_to_download_any_video_you_want/
[^3_20]: https://michael.team/ytd/
[^3_21]: https://italchemy.wordpress.com/2023/02/21/replace-youtube-dl-with-yt-dlp-speed-up-your-download/
[^3_22]: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/wiki/Plugin-Development
[^3_23]: https://www.reddit.com/r/youtubedl/comments/qzqzaz/can_someone_please_post_a_simple_guide_on_making/
[^3_24]: https://www.pythoncentral.io/yt-dlp-download-youtube-videos/
[^3_25]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIzGu6wvDPU
[^3_26]: https://github.com/ttharden/Keyframe-Extraction-for-video-summarization
[^3_27]: https://arxiv.org/abs/2401.04962
[^3_28]: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1155/2017/1231794
[^3_29]: https://www.descript.com/tools/video-transcript-generator
[^3_30]: https://superuser.com/questions/669716/how-to-extract-all-key-frames-from-a-video-clip
[^3_31]: https://www.scitepress.org/papers/2016/57257/57257.pdf
[^3_32]: https://screenpal.com/tool/transcribe-video
[^3_33]: https://wordpress.org/plugins/progress-bar-wp/
[^3_34]: https://wordpress.org/plugins/thumbnail-grid/
[^3_35]: https://www.a2hosting.com/kb/installable-applications/optimization-and-configuration/wordpress2/wordpress-plugins/disable-thumbnails-generation-in-wordpress/
[^3_36]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOEWuOf5v6w
[^3_37]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZ2npbUyz38
[^3_38]: https://www.isitwp.com/progress-bar-plugins-for-wordpress/

—

# how can i check this “Docker container has enough disk space for temporary video downloads”

You can check if your Docker container has enough disk space for temporary video downloads using several commands. Here’s how to do it:

## **Check Overall Docker Disk Usage**

First, get a quick overview of Docker’s disk usage on your Ubuntu host:

“`bash
docker system df
“`

This shows you how much space Docker is using across images, containers, and volumes[^4_1]. For more detailed information, use:

“`bash
docker system df –verbose
“`

This gives you a breakdown of space usage for each container, image, and volume[^4_1][^4_4].

## **Check Available Space Inside Your WordPress Container**

To see how much disk space is available inside your specific WordPress container, run:

“`bash
docker exec -it your_wordpress_container_name df -h
“`

Replace `your_wordpress_container_name` with your actual container name. This command shows the filesystem usage inside the container[^4_5]. Look for the main filesystem (usually listed as `none` or `overlay`) to see available space.

You can also check the size of your running containers specifically:

“`bash
docker ps –size
“`

This shows the disk space each container is currently using[^4_2][^4_4].

## **Check Host System Disk Space**

Since Docker containers share the host’s disk space, also check your Ubuntu server’s available space:

“`bash
df -h
sudo du -sh /var/lib/docker/
“`

The first command shows overall disk usage, and the second shows how much space Docker is consuming on your host system[^4_3].

## **Estimate Space Requirements**

For your YouTube screenshot plugin, you’ll need space for:
– **Temporary video download**: A 1080p video can range from 100MB to several GB depending on length
– **Screenshot generation**: 20 screenshots at 800×450 will be roughly 2-5MB total
– **Processing overhead**: Additional space for ffmpeg operations

I’d recommend having at least **5-10GB of free space** in your container to handle most YouTube videos comfortably. If you’re dealing with longer videos (over 30 minutes), you might need even more space.

## **Monitor Space During Development**

You can create an alias to quickly check container space:

“`bash
alias check_docker_space=”docker exec -it your_wordpress_container_name df -h”
“`

This makes it easy to monitor space usage while testing your plugin. If you find yourself running low on space, you can clean up unused Docker images and containers using `docker system prune` to free up space.

⁂

[^4_1]: https://docs.docker.com/reference/cli/docker/system/df/
[^4_2]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/26753087/how-to-analyze-disk-usage-of-a-docker-container
[^4_3]: https://www.howtogeek.com/devops/how-to-check-disk-space-usage-for-docker-images-containers/
[^4_4]: https://www.baeldung.com/linux/docker-container-disk-usage
[^4_5]: https://gist.github.com/JoshuaGross/762f13ae4ac1c2c09594808c5bea20d1
[^4_6]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/72517164/how-to-get-disk-usage-from-inside-docker-container
[^4_7]: https://docs.docker.com/engine/manage-resources/pruning/
[^4_8]: https://forums.docker.com/t/docker-containers-taking-up-all-space-over-time/137291
[^4_9]: https://www.reddit.com/r/docker/comments/p9wqqc/which_container_is_using_all_my_disk_space/
[^4_10]: https://www.digitalocean.com/community/questions/how-to-check-the-disk-usage-of-all-running-docker-containers

—

# When I run
docker exec -it palleon-wordpress-1 df -h

I get
Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on
overlay 103G 77G 21G 79% /
tmpfs 64M 0 64M 0% /dev
shm 64M 0 64M 0% /dev/shm
/dev/sda5 103G 77G 21G 79% /etc/hosts
tmpfs 3.9G 0 3.9G 0% /proc/asound
tmpfs 3.9G 0 3.9G 0% /proc/acpi
tmpfs 3.9G 0 3.9G 0% /proc/scsi
tmpfs 3.9G 0 3.9G 0% /sys/firmware

I think kthats 21Gb available right?

Yes, you’re absolutely right! You have **21GB of available space** in your Docker container, which is plenty for your YouTube screenshot plugin.

Looking at your output, the main filesystem (overlay) shows:
– **Total size**: 103G
– **Used space**: 77G
– **Available space**: 21G
– **Usage**: 79%

That 21GB is more than enough for downloading and processing YouTube videos. Even if you’re working with longer videos that might be 2-3GB when downloaded in 1080p, you’ll have plenty of room for the temporary files, screenshot generation, and processing overhead.

For context, most YouTube videos you’ll be working with will probably be:
– **Short videos (5-10 minutes)**: 100-500MB
– **Medium videos (20-30 minutes)**: 500MB-1.5GB
– **Longer videos (1+ hours)**: 1.5-4GB

Since your plugin downloads the video, generates screenshots, and then deletes the video file, you’re really only using that space temporarily. With 21GB available, you could comfortably process multiple videos or even handle really long content without running into space issues.

You’re all set to move forward with implementing the plugin without worrying about disk space constraints.

—

# when I try video url https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc

I get:

Failed to download video: [generic] Extracting URL: ‘https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc’ ERROR: [generic] “‘https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc’” is not a valid URL. Set –default-search “ytsearch” (or run yt-dlp “ytsearch:’https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc’” ) to search YouTube

The error you’re getting is because of how the URL is being passed to yt-dlp in the command. The issue is with the shell escaping – the URL is getting wrapped in extra quotes which makes yt-dlp think it’s not a valid URL.

## **Fix the Command in Your Plugin**

In your `class-screenshot-processor.php` file, update the `download_video` method. Change this line:

“`php
$command = sprintf(
‘yt-dlp -f “best[height<=1080]" -o "%s" "%s" 2>&1′,
escapeshellarg($video_path),
escapeshellarg($youtube_url)
);
“`

To this:

“`php
$command = sprintf(
‘yt-dlp -f “best[height<=1080]" -o %s %s 2>&1′,
escapeshellarg($video_path),
escapeshellarg($youtube_url)
);
“`

The problem is that `escapeshellarg()` already adds the necessary quotes for shell safety, so when you wrap it in additional double quotes, you end up with something like `”‘https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc’”` which confuses yt-dlp.

## **Test the Command Manually First**

Before updating your plugin, test this directly in your Docker container to make sure it works:

“`bash
docker exec -it palleon-wordpress-1 bash
yt-dlp -f “best[height<=1080]" -o "/tmp/test_video.%(ext)s" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" ``` If that works correctly, then the fix above should solve your plugin issue. ## **Alternative Approach** If you're still having issues, you can also try a more explicit approach in your PHP code: ```php private function download_video($youtube_url) { $video_filename = 'temp_video_' . time() . '.%(ext)s'; $video_path = $this->temp_dir . $video_filename;

// Validate URL format first
if (!filter_var($youtube_url, FILTER_VALIDATE_URL)) {
throw new Exception(‘Invalid YouTube URL format’);
}

// Build command without extra quotes
$command = ‘yt-dlp -f “best[height<=1080]" -o ' . escapeshellarg($video_path) . ' ' . escapeshellarg($youtube_url) . ' 2>&1′;

exec($command, $output, $return_code);

if ($return_code !== 0) {
throw new Exception(‘Failed to download video: ‘ . implode(“\n”, $output));
}

// Find the actual downloaded file
$pattern = $this->temp_dir . ‘temp_video_’ . substr($video_filename, 11, 10) . ‘.*’;
$files = glob($pattern);
return !empty($files) ? $files[^6_0] : false;
}
“`

This should fix the URL escaping issue and allow your plugin to properly download the YouTube video.

⁂

[^6_1]: watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc

—

# when I run “docker exec -it palleon-wordpress-1 bash
yt-dlp -f “best[height<=1080]" -o "/tmp/test_video.%(ext)s" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" " Im suppose to get any output? Yes, you should definitely get output when running that yt-dlp command! When yt-dlp downloads a video, it shows real-time progress information that looks something like this: ``` [youtube] HtUKvyoo4Mc: Downloading webpage [youtube] HtUKvyoo4Mc: Downloading android player API JSON [info] HtUKvyoo4Mc: Downloading 1 format(s): 137+140 [download] Destination: /tmp/test_video.mp4 [download] 0.1% of 45.67MiB at 2.34MiB/s ETA 00:19 [download] 0.3% of 45.67MiB at 4.56MiB/s ETA 00:09 [download] 1.2% of 45.67MiB at 8.90MiB/s ETA 00:05 ... [download] 100% of 45.67MiB in 00:08 at 5.67MiB/s [Merger] Merging formats into "/tmp/test_video.mp4" Deleting original file /tmp/test_video.f137.mp4 (pass -k to keep) Deleting original file /tmp/test_video.f140.m4a (pass -k to keep) ``` If you're not seeing any output at all, there might be a few issues: ## **Check if yt-dlp is Actually Installed** First, make sure yt-dlp is properly installed in your container: ```bash docker exec -it palleon-wordpress-1 bash which yt-dlp yt-dlp --version ``` ## **Try a Simpler Test Command** Test with a more basic command to see if yt-dlp works at all: ```bash yt-dlp --list-formats "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" ``` This should show you all available formats for that video without downloading anything. ## **Check for Error Messages** If the command is running but hanging without output, try adding verbose flags: ```bash yt-dlp -v -f "best[height<=1080]" -o "/tmp/test_video.%(ext)s" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" ``` The `-v` flag will give you more detailed output about what's happening. ## **Alternative Format Selection** Sometimes the format selector might not find anything. Try a simpler format selection: ```bash yt-dlp -f "best" -o "/tmp/test_video.%(ext)s" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" ``` If you're still not getting any output, the issue might be that yt-dlp isn't properly installed or there's a network connectivity issue from within your Docker container. Let me know what you see when you run the `yt-dlp --version` command first.

⁂

[^7_1]: watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc
[^7_2]: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp
[^7_3]: https://www.reddit.com/r/youtubedl/comments/otjtex/ytdlp_beginner_how_to_download_mp4_instead_of/
[^7_4]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/75195622/download-video-with-yt-dlp-using-format-id
[^7_5]: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/issues/8880
[^7_6]: https://forum.endeavouros.com/t/tutorial-yt-dlp-cli-youtube-downloader/60419
[^7_7]: https://www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2022/how-download-mp4-youtube-every-time
[^7_8]: https://liassica.codeberg.page/posts/0001-yt-dlp
[^7_9]: https://michael.team/ytd/
[^7_10]: https://askubuntu.com/questions/486297/how-to-select-video-quality-from-youtube-dl

—

# this is what I get: root@ubuntu:/home/destro# docker exec -it palleon-wordpress-1 bash
yt-dlp -f “best[height<=1080]" -o "/tmp/test_video.%(ext)s" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc root@df05b80fd843:/var/www/html# Looking at your output, it seems like the command ran but you didn't see any progress output, and it just returned to the prompt. This could mean a few things: ## **Check if the Download Actually Worked** First, let's see if the video was actually downloaded: ```bash ls -la /tmp/test_video.* ``` If you see a file there, then the download worked but yt-dlp just ran silently for some reason. ## **Try with Verbose Output** Run the command again with verbose flags to see what's happening: ```bash yt-dlp -v -f "best[height<=1080]" -o "/tmp/test_video2.%(ext)s" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" ``` ## **Test Basic yt-dlp Functionality** Let's make sure yt-dlp is working properly: ```bash yt-dlp --version yt-dlp --list-formats "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" ``` The `--list-formats` command should show you all available video formats without downloading anything. ## **Try a Simpler Format** Sometimes the format selector `best[height<=1080]` might not find anything. Try: ```bash yt-dlp -f "best" -o "/tmp/test_video3.%(ext)s" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" ``` ## **Check for Silent Success** It's possible the download worked but was just very quiet. Check the `/tmp` directory: ```bash ls -la /tmp/ | grep test_video du -h /tmp/test_video* ``` If there are files there, then yt-dlp is working fine, it's just not showing progress output for some reason. This could be because the video downloaded quickly or because of terminal settings. Let me know what you find when you run these commands, especially the `--list-formats` one, as that will tell us if yt-dlp can properly access the YouTube video.

⁂

[^8_1]: watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc

—

# when I do yt-dlp -v -f “best[height<=1080]" -o "/tmp/test_video2.%(ext)s" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc" I can see the download progress Perfect! That's exactly what we want to see. The `-v` (verbose) flag is showing you the download progress, which means yt-dlp is working correctly in your Docker container. ## **Why the First Command Was Silent** The reason your first command didn't show any output is that yt-dlp by default runs in "quiet" mode when executed through scripts or certain terminal environments. The verbose flag forces it to show the progress information. ## **Update Your Plugin Code** Now you need to update your plugin's `download_video` method to include the verbose flag so you can see what's happening during downloads. In your `class-screenshot-processor.php` file, change the command to: ```php $command = sprintf( 'yt-dlp -v -f "best[height<=1080]" -o %s %s 2>&1′,
escapeshellarg($video_path),
escapeshellarg($youtube_url)
);
“`

Adding the `-v` flag will help with debugging if you run into issues later, and the `2>&1` part captures both regular output and error messages.

## **Check Your Downloaded File**

You should now have a test video in your `/tmp` directory. Check it out:

“`bash
ls -la /tmp/test_video2.*
du -h /tmp/test_video2.*
“`

This will show you the file size and confirm the download worked properly.

## **Clean Up Test Files**

Don’t forget to clean up your test downloads:

“`bash
rm /tmp/test_video*
“`

Now that you’ve confirmed yt-dlp is working correctly, your plugin should be able to download YouTube videos without issues. The verbose output will also help you troubleshoot if any specific videos fail to download.

Your plugin is ready to move forward with the video processing part!

⁂

[^9_1]: watch?v=HtUKvyoo4Mc

—

# output the entire code for class-screenshot-processor.php including update

Here’s the complete updated `class-screenshot-processor.php` file with all the fixes: