CLI

After installation, the wayback-restorator command is available in any directory.

CommandsCopy Anchor Link

Add --help to any command to list its options.

Restore a captureCopy Anchor Link

wayback-restorator restore 'https://web.archive.org/web/20260925084419/https://example.com/'

The terminal shows a progress bar. When the run ends, it prints the report path and, for completed jobs, the archive path.

Configure a runCopy Anchor Link

Pass options after the capture URL:

wayback-restorator restore 'https://web.archive.org/web/20260925084419/https://example.com/' \
  --concurrency 4 --capture-mode strict

For a short run processing up to ten resources:

wayback-restorator restore 'https://web.archive.org/web/20260925084419/https://example.com/' \
  --max-files 10 --job-id example-preview

After restoring the entry page, a run stopped by --max-files with resources still pending has status bounded and produces a report. Continue the same job to finish processing and create its ZIP.

See Configuration for all options.

Name a jobCopy Anchor Link

By default, the job ID is derived from the capture URL. Use --job-id to choose a recognizable directory name:

wayback-restorator restore 'https://web.archive.org/web/20260925084419/https://example.com/' \
  --job-id example-september

Results are written to data/output/jobs/example-september/. Use a different job ID when you want a separate restoration of the same capture.

Continue a restorationCopy Anchor Link

Press Ctrl+C to interrupt a run. Repeat the command with the same capture URL, job ID, and working directory to continue it. Downloaded resources are reused; pending, interrupted, and failed resources are processed on the next run.

To finish the short run above, run the same job without --max-files:

wayback-restorator restore 'https://web.archive.org/web/20260925084419/https://example.com/' \
  --job-id example-preview

The job's stored state lives in data/work/jobs/<job-id>/. Keep this directory to preserve its progress. Each job ID belongs to its original capture URL.

OutputCopy Anchor Link

data/output/jobs/<job-id>/
├── snapshot.zip
└── result.json

Paths are relative to the directory where you run the command. Change them with --output-dir and --work-dir; see Storage. See Results for the archive contents and report fields.

AutomationCopy Anchor Link

When its output is not a terminal, or with --json, the command prints one JSON event per line instead of a progress bar. The last event is the final_result with the same fields as the job report:

wayback-restorator restore 'https://web.archive.org/web/20260925084419/https://example.com/' --json

Every option can also be set with an environment variable, which is useful in containers and scripts. See Configuration.

Exit codesCopy Anchor Link