debont80
e8f0b83a7e
Replace the placeholder "UNLICENSED" with the MIT License so the now-public repo is genuinely free and open source. Adds a LICENSE file and documents the app-vs-bundled-binary licensing split in the README (yt-dlp/FFmpeg/aria2 are invoked as separate executables, so they remain under their own licenses). Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
AeroFetch
A clean, native-feeling video & audio downloader for Windows — a friendly front-end for yt-dlp.
Paste a link, pick a quality, and go. No command line, no Python setup, no chasing down FFmpeg — everything is bundled.
What it is
AeroFetch wraps the power of yt-dlp in a modern Windows desktop app. It handles single videos, whole playlists, and watched channels; it can grab audio-only, embed thumbnails and metadata, trim clips, skip sponsor segments, and keep a library of channels in sync — all from a point-and-click interface built with Fluent UI.
It ships as a regular installer and a single portable .exe (no admin rights required), with yt-dlp, FFmpeg, and aria2c bundled in — so it runs on a fresh machine with nothing else installed.
Features
- One-paste downloads — drop in a video or playlist URL and press Enter. Clipboard detection can offer the link automatically.
- Format & quality control — pick a resolution/codec (H.264 / VP9 / AV1), or extract audio to MP3, M4A, Opus, FLAC, WAV, or AAC.
- Playlists & channels — select which videos to grab, or add a channel to your Library and let AeroFetch watch it for new uploads.
- Post-processing — embed thumbnails, metadata, chapters, and subtitles; SponsorBlock to skip or mark sponsor segments; trim to a start/end timestamp.
- Queue that behaves — concurrent downloads with a configurable cap, pause/resume, cancel, retry-all, and live speed/ETA.
- Library & sync — organized per-source folders, scheduled daily sync, retention rules, and quality-upgrade selectors.
- History — searchable, filterable record of everything you've downloaded, with quick open-file / show-in-folder / re-download.
- Fast & convenient —
aria2cacceleration, aCtrl+Kcommand palette, light / dark / auto themes, and native Windows notifications. - Portable-friendly — runs from a USB stick or Downloads folder without installing or needing admin rights.
Screenshots
| Downloads (light) | Downloads (dark) |
|---|---|
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| Library — watched channels & playlists | History — searchable & filterable |
|---|---|
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Settings — grouped & searchable
Download & install
Grab the latest build from the Releases page:
AeroFetch Setup <version>.exe— standard installer. Installs per-user (no admin), adds a Start-menu shortcut, and auto-updates.AeroFetch-<version>-portable.exe— single self-contained executable. No install, no admin; keeps its data in anAeroFetch-datafolder beside the.exe. Ideal for locked-down or shared PCs.
Each release also publishes a .sha256 next to every executable so you can verify the download.
Because the executables aren't code-signed, Windows SmartScreen may warn on first launch — choose More info → Run anyway. No administrator rights are required either way.
Build from source
Requires Node.js 24.x.
git clone https://gitea.netbird.zimspace.uk:5938/debont80/AeroFetch.git
cd AeroFetch
npm install
npm run dev # launch the app in development
npm run ui # preview just the renderer in a browser (http://localhost:5173)
npm test # run the test suite
npm run build:win # produce the installer + portable .exe in dist/
The bundled yt-dlp.exe, ffmpeg.exe, ffprobe.exe, and aria2c.exe live in resources/bin/ and are packaged automatically.
Tech stack
Built with Electron + electron-vite + electron-builder, a React 19 / TypeScript renderer, Fluent UI, Zustand for state, and Zod for boundary validation. yt-dlp runs only in the main process; the renderer talks to it over a typed IPC bridge with context isolation enabled.
A note on responsible use
AeroFetch is a tool for downloading media you have the right to download — your own uploads, content offered for download, or material whose license permits it. Respect the terms of service of the sites you use and the rights of content creators.
License
AeroFetch's own source code is released under the MIT License — free to use, modify, and redistribute.
It also bundles third-party binaries that remain under their own licenses: yt-dlp (Unlicense), FFmpeg (LGPL/GPL), and aria2 (GPL). AeroFetch invokes these as separate executables rather than linking against them, so they are distributed as an aggregate; their licenses apply to the respective files in resources/bin/.