Our GitHub account is temporarily unavailable: links to the code, releases and issues will not open.

Report a bug or talk to us

Help

Troubleshooting

Most download problems come from four places: the system blocking the app, an old copy of yt-dlp, a login that expired, or a site that changed. This page goes through each one, then shows how to collect the details for a bug report.

First launch is blocked

OmniGet ships without a paid code-signing certificate, so each system asks for confirmation once. Check the hash on the download page if you want to be sure the file is the official one (how).

Windows: SmartScreen

SmartScreen shows a blue box. Click More info, then Run anyway.

macOS: “the app is damaged”

Gatekeeper may say the app is damaged. Drag OmniGet into Applications, open Terminal and run:

xattr -cr /Applications/omniget.app
codesign --force --deep --sign - /Applications/omniget.app

You only do this once per install.

Linux: the AppImage does not start

On newer Debian and Ubuntu releases the AppImage can fail with a libfuse error. Install libfuse2 (sudo apt install libfuse2) or use the .deb package instead. More in Install.

Antivirus

Some antivirus programs hold back new, unsigned programs or the files they write. Two signs point to it:

  • The app or one of its tools (yt-dlp, FFmpeg) disappears right after it is installed.
  • A download ends with Download finished, but no file appeared in the folder (or it’s empty). Check disk space and antivirus exclusions, then try again.

Check the hash of the installer first. If it matches, add the OmniGet folder and your download folder to the antivirus exclusions, then try again.

yt-dlp is missing or outdated

Sites change often, and yt-dlp is updated to follow them. When it is old, downloads fail with messages such as Extraction failed — update yt-dlp or try again or The site extractor is broken. Update yt-dlp in Settings → Dependencies, then retry.

  1. Open Settings › Advanced › Dependencies.
  2. Look at the Status column. Outdated means a newer version with fixes exists; Missing means it is not installed.
  3. Click Update (or Install).
  4. Try the download again.

If yt-dlp is not installed at all, a banner says yt-dlp is missing, so downloads cannot start. Install it from Settings. Click Open Settings to go straight there.

Roll back a version

A new yt-dlp can also break something that worked. To go back:

  1. In Settings › Advanced › Dependencies, click More options on the yt-dlp row.
  2. Under Previous versions, click Roll back to followed by the date of the version you want.

The same menu has Pick file from disk… to use your own copy, Use the managed one again to undo that, and Show folder. See Dependencies.

FFmpeg is missing

When a video saves but video and audio cannot be joined, OmniGet shows The video saved, but couldn’t be merged. with an Install FFmpeg button. FFmpeg lives in the same Dependencies table.

A login stopped working

Sites that need your account use cookies. When the saved cookie for a site is getting old, the download box shows This site’s saved cookie is getting old. or This site’s saved cookie has expired — downloads may fail., with an Update it button.

To refresh the cookies:

  1. Sign in to the site in your browser.
  2. Send the cookies again with the browser extension, or import a cookies.txt in Settings › Downloads › Cookies (click Show advanced options in that section).
  3. Click Test on the site’s entry to check that they work.

When a link needs a login, the error reads This one needs your login. or This one is age-restricted., with Use my browser login. Only use your own accounts. More in Accounts and cookies.

“OmniGet can’t open this site yet”

This message means none of OmniGet’s engines recognised the link.

  • Check that the link opens in your browser and is complete.
  • Click See supported sites to check the list of sites.
  • Update yt-dlp (above): support for many sites arrives through it.

A few site owners asked OmniGet not to support their site. Links from them end with The owner of this site asked OmniGet not to support it.

Protected content (DRM)

OmniGet does not break DRM or paywalls. When the streams of a page are DRM-protected, the download stops with The streams are DRM-protected and cannot be merged. This content is not supported. No setting changes that.

Other messages

Message What to do
The site asked us to slow down. Wait a few minutes, then try again.
Couldn’t reach the site. Check your connection and any proxy in Proxy and network.
Not available in your region. The site blocks the link where you are.
This link is gone. It was removed or made private on the site.
Download folder path is too long Choose a shorter download folder in Folders and names.
Write error — your disk may be full. Free some space or pick another folder.

When a download fails, the error box has Details and Copy, so you can paste the full message into a bug report.

Debug info

Debug info is a short text with the OmniGet version, your system and the versions of yt-dlp, FFmpeg and the other tools. It contains no secrets.

  1. Open Settings › Advanced and scroll to Debug.
  2. Click Show advanced options under it, then turn on Activity log.
  3. Open About in the sidebar. A debug info tab is now there.
  4. Click Copy to clipboard and paste the text into your report.

The switch turns off again when OmniGet restarts.

Create a diagnostics file

For harder problems, OmniGet can save a diagnostics file on your computer: versions, counts, recent app log lines and crash reports. Code, notes, prompts and terminal output are left out; tokens, e-mail addresses and your home folder are masked. Nothing is sent by itself.

  1. Open Settings › Integrations › Canvas.
  2. Scroll to Report a problem and click Create diagnostics file.
  3. OmniGet shows the file in its folder. Attach it yourself.

Write an e-mail and Open a GitHub issue prepare a message for you. You can also send the file through the contact page.