GitHub Repositories Cleanup

A modular Python tool to archive, make private, or delete repositories from your GitHub account using the GitHub API.

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Features

• Archive repositories (recommended, safest)
• Make repositories private (recommended for sensitive code)
• Delete repositories (dangerous, irreversible—use with extreme caution)
• Preserve list: Exclude repositories by name or regex pattern
• Export repository list to CSV
• Comprehensive logging (to both console and logs/cleanup.log)
• No secrets stored on disk: Uses GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable

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Setup

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/your-username/github-repositories-cleanup.git
   cd github-repositories-cleanup

2. Install dependencies:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Set your GitHub token as an environment variable:

   • On Windows (Command Prompt):

     set GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_your_token_here

   • On Linux/macOS:

     export GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_your_token_here

   • Token must have repo, delete_repo, and admin:repo_hook permissions.

4. (Optional) Edit the preserve list:

   • Add repository names or regex patterns (one per line) to config/preserve-projects.txt to prevent changes.

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Usage

⚠️ Safety First: Archive or Make Private Before Deleting

Archiving a repository makes it read-only and hides it from active development, but you can always unarchive it later.
Making a repository private hides it from the public, but you retain full control.
Deleting a repository is irreversible—all code, issues, and PRs are lost forever.

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1. Interactive Cleanup (Archive or Make Private Repositories)

python main.py --cleanup

• Lists your repositories.
• For each repo, shows details and asks if you want to archive, make private, or skip.
• Skipped repos can be added to the preserve list.
• Type q at any prompt to abort.

To force archiving only:

python main.py --archive --cleanup

To make repositories private:

python main.py --private --cleanup

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2. Export Repository List to CSV

python main.py --export repos.csv

• Exports your repository metadata to a CSV file.

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3. Batch Archive, Make Private, or Delete from CSV

Recommended workflow:

1. Export all deletable repos:

   python main.py --export repos.csv

2. Edit repos.csv to keep only the rows you want to process.

3. Run batch operation:

   Archive:

   python main.py --batch-archive repos.csv

   Make Private:

   python main.py --batch-private repos.csv

   Delete (dangerous!):

   python main.py --batch-delete repos.csv

• You will be asked for confirmation before any batch operation starts.

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4. Archive, Make Private, or Delete by Full Path or Pattern

python main.py --repos https://github.com/your-username/repo1 ^test-.*

• Archives (default) all matching repositories.
• You can specify full GitHub URLs and/or regex patterns.

To make private:

python main.py --private --repos https://github.com/your-username/repo1 ^test-.*

To delete instead of archive (dangerous!):

python main.py --delete --repos https://github.com/your-username/repo1 ^test-.*

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Why Archive or Make Private Instead of Delete?

• Archiving preserves your code and history, but prevents changes.
• Making private hides your repo from the public, but you keep full access.
• Deleting is permanent and cannot be undone.
  Always archive or make private unless you are absolutely sure you want to delete.

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Configuration

• Preserve List:
  config/preserve-projects.txt
  Add repo names or regex patterns (one per line) to exclude from any operation.

• Logging:
  All actions are logged to logs/cleanup.log with timestamps.

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Security

• Never store your token in a file.
• Token is read from the GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable only.
• No sensitive information is logged.

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Requirements

• Python 3.7+
• requests

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Example

🧹 Found 42 repositories for your-username at https://github.com/your-username.
Preserved patterns: 3

📦 https://github.com/your-username/my-repo (Public)
   ⭐ Stars: 5 | 🍴 Forks: 2
   📝 Description: My awesome project
   📄 README preview:
   -------------------
   # My Repo
   ...
   -------------------
❓ What do you want to do with 'https://github.com/your-username/my-repo'?
   [a] Archive   [p] Make Private   [d] Delete   [s] Skip   [q] Quit

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License

MIT