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DiscordChatExporter (CLI setup)

This project uses DiscordChatExporter (CLI), not a separate product named “DiscordExpert.” The GUI and CLI come from the same Tyrrrz releases; ingestion here runs the CLI only (export, exportguild, channels), driven by discord_activity_tracker/sync/chat_exporter.py and manage.py run_discord_activity_tracker.

Exporter credentials and Discord server/channel IDs are configured via .env (see .env.example). User-account automation may violate Discord’s Terms of Service; prefer official APIs and bots when possible.

1. Download a release

  1. Open DiscordChatExporter releases.
  2. Download the archive for your OS:
    • Windows: e.g. DiscordChatExporter.win-x64.zip (contains DiscordChatExporter.Cli.exe and dependencies).
    • macOS Apple Silicon: e.g. DiscordChatExporter.osx-arm64.zip.
    • macOS Intel: e.g. DiscordChatExporter.osx-x64.zip.
    • Linux: pick the matching linux-* zip.

Official overview: Tyrrrz/DiscordChatExporter.

2. Where to install (this repo)

Default layout (no DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_CLI in .env):

Piece Path
Workspace root {WORKSPACE_DIR}/discord_activity_tracker/ (see Workspace.md)
CLI directory {WORKSPACE_DIR}/discord_activity_tracker/script/
Binary (Windows) DiscordChatExporter.Cli.exe
Binary (macOS / Linux) DiscordChatExporter.Cli (no extension)

Create script/ if it does not exist, extract the CLI and any bundled files from the zip into that folder, then ensure the binary is executable on Unix (chmod +x DiscordChatExporter.Cli).

Alternatively, install the CLI anywhere and set DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_CLI in .env to the absolute path of the executable.

3. Configure environment variables

All variables live in .env (see .env.example in the repo root). The ones that matter for the CLI:

Variable Purpose
DISCORD_SERVER_ID Guild snowflake to export.
DISCORD_CHANNEL_IDS Optional comma-separated channel IDs; empty often means “all text channels” depending on exporter mode.
DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_CLI Optional absolute path to DiscordChatExporter.Cli / .exe if not using workspace/.../script/.
DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_DOTNET_DLL Optional path to DiscordChatExporter.Cli.dll — use with system dotnet on macOS when the bundled host fails (external disks / quarantine).
DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_DOTNET Optional explicit dotnet binary if not on PATH.
DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_MACOS_CLEAR_QUARANTINE If true, runs xattr cleanup on the CLI folder before export (only if you trust the files).
DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_PARALLEL Parallelism for exportguild (keep low if you hit OOM / SIGKILL).
DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_SEQUENTIAL_EXPORT When true, exports channels one-by-one (safer on huge guilds).
DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_INCLUDE_VC Whether to include voice channels in listings where applicable.

Optional .NET GC env vars (DOTNET_GCConserveMemory, etc.) are documented in .env.example; they are forwarded into the exporter subprocess to reduce memory spikes.

4. macOS tips

  • Architecture: Use an arm64 build on Apple Silicon and x64 on Intel. The code validates the binary with file(1) where possible and errors with a hint if the ABI is wrong.
  • External volumes / Gatekeeper: If the native CLI fails to start, use DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_DOTNET_DLL plus a system-installed dotnet SDK/runtime (brew install dotnet), pointing at DiscordChatExporter.Cli.dll next to your extracted CLI files.
  • Quarantine: Downloaded zips may carry quarantine flags; DISCORD_CHAT_EXPORTER_MACOS_CLEAR_QUARANTINE or manual xattr -cr on the script/ folder can help (only for trusted binaries).

5. How the project invokes it

  • manage.py run_discord_activity_tracker — Runs DiscordChatExporter → parses JSON → DB → archives under {WORKSPACE_DIR}/raw/discord_activity_tracker/<server_id>/<channel_id>/, then optional Markdown export and Pinecone sync.
  • manage.py backfill_discord_activity_tracker — Does not call the CLI by default in the current design: it imports JSON already placed under {WORKSPACE_DIR}/discord_activity_tracker/Discussion - c-cpp-discussion/ (recursive), then deletes each file after a successful DB import. Use the CLI manually or elsewhere to produce those JSON files if needed.

For command-line flags on the Django side, see service_api/discord_activity_tracker.md.

6. Quick sanity check

After placing the CLI:

# Replace with your actual binary path if needed
/path/to/DiscordChatExporter.Cli --help

Then a dry run (no writes):

python manage.py run_discord_activity_tracker --dry-run

If Django reports a missing CLI or wrong architecture, follow the error text — it usually points at the releases page and expected binary name.