🎥 VidWerk – Local Video Downloader

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A lightweight cross-platform desktop downloader built with yt-dlp.
Download videos or audio from YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and 1000+ supported sites — with clean quality options, progress tracking, and audio‑merged MP4 output.

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🖼️ Screenshot

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✅ Features

• Desktop App UI (Electron) — no browser required
• MP4 + MP3 downloads
• Clean quality picker (1080p / 720p / 480p etc.)
• Auto-merge best audio into MP4 so every video has sound
• Live progress (percent / speed / ETA)
• Cancel download anytime
• Duplicate downloads allowed (auto-renames)
• Show in folder after download
• Works fully offline after install
• Bundled yt-dlp + ffmpeg (no extra installs)

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📥 Download

Download the latest installers from the GitHub Releases page:

➡️ Download Latest Release

macOS

• Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3): VidWerk-2.0.5-arm64.dmg
• Intel Mac: VidWerk-2.0.5-x64.dmg

Windows

• VidWerk-Setup-2.0.5.exe

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🍎 macOS First-Run Fix (Important)

Because the app bundles CLI binaries, macOS Gatekeeper may block it.

Step 1 — Open anyway

1. Open the app once (it will warn)
2. Go to: System Settings → Privacy & Security
3. Scroll down and click “Open Anyway”
4. Re-open the app

Step 2 — Allow yt-dlp binaries (if prompted)

If macOS blocks yt-dlp or ffmpeg:

1. Open them once from inside the app
2. Repeat Privacy & Security → Open Anyway

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🪟 Windows First-Run Note (SmartScreen)

Because the app isn’t code‑signed yet, Windows SmartScreen may block it on first run. Here’s how to bypass safely:

1. When the blue SmartScreen window appears, click More info.
2. Click Run anyway.
3. If Windows asks for permission (UAC prompt), click Yes.

If you downloaded from GitHub and still see a block

Sometimes Windows marks files from the internet as “unsafe.” You can unblock it:

1. Right‑click the installer .exe → Properties.
2. At the bottom, check Unblock.
3. Click Apply → OK.
4. Run the installer again.

Tip: Downloading from the official GitHub Releases page reduces false warnings.

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⚙️ Development Setup (IntelliJ / Any IDE)

1. Clone repo

git clone https://github.com/sishanhewa/Local-Video-Downloader.git
cd Local-Video-Downloader

2. Install dependencies

npm install

3. Run in dev mode

npm run dev

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📦 Build Installers

macOS (Apple Silicon)

npm run dist:mac:arm

macOS (Intel)

npm run dist:mac:intel

Windows EXE

npm run dist:win

Installers will appear in:

dist/

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📂 Folder Structure

VidWerk-Local-Video-Downloader/
├─ assets/              # icons (.png / .icns / .ico)
├─ bin/
│  ├─ mac/              # yt-dlp + ffmpeg mac binaries
│  └─ win/              # yt-dlp + ffmpeg windows binaries
├─ public/              # frontend UI
│  ├─ index.html
│  ├─ app.js
│  └─ styles.css
├─ server/
│  └─ api.js            # express + yt-dlp backend
├─ main.js              # electron main process
├─ package.json
└─ README.md

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🛠 Troubleshooting

No sound in MP4?

Not anymore — MP4 automatically merges best audio.
If still an issue, confirm ffmpeg.exe exists in:

bin/win/ffmpeg.exe

Formats missing size?

Some formats don’t report size.
We estimate size using bitrate + duration, so you should still see sizes for most entries.

Cancel leaves temp files?

Cancelled downloads may leave .part files occasionally.
They are safe to delete manually — future versions will auto-clean them.

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👨‍💻 Developed By

Sishan Hewapathirana

• GitHub: https://github.com/sishanhewa
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/sishan.a
• Email: sishanhewapathirana@gmail.com

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⭐ Support

If you like this project, give it a star ⭐
Feature requests and PRs are welcome!