| source_url |
|---|
Download OnlyFans content including posts, messages, and live streams
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Use it to archive Onlyfans assets, prep client deliverables, or keep your library accessible when connectivity is limited.
👉 Get the the Onyfans Downloader
- Automatic detection of OnlyFans videos on the current page (and supported embeds)
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- One‑click activation (email + license key) with state persistence
- Export logs from the popup (🧾) for fast support
- Helpful status messages, refresh detection action, and “video detected” banner
- Password prompt support for protected videos
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- 100% privacy-friendly
- Auto-detect videos on the page
- No watermarks or branding added
- Zero Ads
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- Quality selection before download
- Download progress with live percentage and speed
- Cancel button to safely stop in-progress downloads
- Export logs from the popup (copy) for fast support
- Helpful status messages
- Refresh detection action
- Password prompt support for protected videos
- Chrome
- Firefox
- Edge
- Opera
- Windows
- Mac
- Linux
Install the browser extension, navigate to Onlyfans, find the content you want to download, and click the download button that appears. The content will be saved to your chosen location.
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- 💬 Community
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- How to download onlyfans content
Research
A comprehensive research document analyzing OnlyFans' video infrastructure, embed patterns, stream formats, and optimal download strategies using modern tools
Note: This article gets pretty technical, if you're looking for an easier to way download Onlyfans content here are some options:
This research document provides a comprehensive analysis of OnlyFans' video streaming infrastructure, including URL patterns, content delivery networks (CDNs), stream formats, and optimal download methodologies.
We examine the technical architecture behind OnlyFans' video delivery system and provide practical implementation guidance using industry-standard tools like yt-dlp, ffmpeg, and alternative solutions for reliable video extraction and download - the same techniques used in the Onlyfans downloader.
- Introduction
- OnlyFans Video Infrastructure Overview
- URL Patterns and Detection
- Stream Formats and CDN Analysis
- yt-dlp Implementation Strategies
- FFmpeg Processing Techniques
- Alternative Tools and Backup Methods
- Implementation Recommendations
- Troubleshooting and Edge Cases
- Security and Privacy Considerations
- Conclusion
OnlyFans has established itself as a leading subscription-based social media platform, utilizing sophisticated content delivery mechanisms to ensure secure and optimized video streaming. This research examines the technical infrastructure behind OnlyFans' video delivery system, with focus on developing robust download strategies while respecting platform security measures and user privacy.
This document covers:
- Technical analysis of OnlyFans' video streaming architecture
- URL pattern recognition and media identification
- Stream format analysis across different quality levels
- Practical implementation using open-source tools
- Security considerations and ethical guidelines
- Platform Terms of Service
- Creator intellectual property rights
- DMCA and copyright laws
- Privacy regulations
Users must obtain proper authorization and comply with all applicable laws before implementing any techniques described in this document.
OnlyFans utilizes a sophisticated multi-tier CDN strategy:
Primary CDN: Amazon CloudFront
- Primary Domains:
cdn3.onlyfans.com,cdn4.onlyfans.com - Video Domains:
vz-*.b-cdn.net,*.amazonaws.com - Geographic Distribution: Global edge locations with regional optimization
Secondary CDN: BunnyCDN
- Domains:
vz-*.b-cdn.netpatterns - Purpose: High-performance content delivery and backup
- Optimization: Real-time content optimization with geographic routing
OnlyFans' video processing follows this pipeline:
- Upload: Content uploaded through web/mobile interface
- Security Processing: Content scanning and verification
- Transcoding: Multiple formats generated (MP4, HLS)
- Quality Processing: Auto-generated quality variants
- CDN Distribution: Encrypted distribution across CDN network
- Access Control: Token-based access with subscriber verification
- Authentication Required: Valid session tokens for all video access
- Subscriber Verification: Content access limited to paying subscribers
- Token Expiration: Time-limited signed URLs (typically 1-6 hours)
- Geographic Restrictions: IP-based content filtering
- DRM Protection: Some content uses additional encryption layers
- Rate Limiting: Aggressive per-user download limitations
https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4
https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/{RESOLUTION}/video.mp4
https://cdn4.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4
https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/master.m3u8
https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/hls/master.m3u8
https://public.onlyfans.com/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/thumb.jpg
https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/preview/preview.mp4
# OnlyFans post URLs
https://onlyfans\.com/(\d+)/([a-zA-Z0-9_-]+)
# CDN video URLs
/dash/files/(\d+)/(\d+)/(\d+)/
# BunnyCDN patterns
vz-([a-f0-9]+)\.b-cdn\.net/media/([a-f0-9]+)/Using grep for URL pattern extraction:
# Extract OnlyFans video URLs from network logs
grep -oE "https://[^/]*\.b-cdn\.net/[^\"]*\.mp4" network.log
# Extract from browser network exports (HAR files)
grep -oE "https://cdn[34]\.onlyfans\.com/dash/files/[^\"]*\.mp4" export.har
# Extract user and post IDs
grep -oE "onlyfans\.com/(\d+)/([0-9]+)" urls.txtUsing yt-dlp for detection (Limited Support):
# Note: yt-dlp has limited OnlyFans support due to authentication requirements
# Test if URL contains downloadable video
yt-dlp --list-formats "https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}"
# Extract metadata where possible
yt-dlp --dump-json "https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}"Browser Network Monitoring:
# Monitor browser network traffic for video URLs
# 1. Open browser developer tools (F12)
# 2. Navigate to Network tab
# 3. Filter by "Media" or search for ".mp4"
# 4. Load OnlyFans content
# 5. Extract URLs from network requests
# Alternative: Use HAR export and extract
jq -r '.log.entries[].request.url | select(contains(".mp4") or contains(".m3u8"))' network.har- Container: MP4
- Video Codec: H.264 (AVC), H.265 (HEVC) for newer content
- Audio Codec: AAC
- Quality Levels: 240p, 480p, 720p, 1080p, 4K (premium)
- Bitrates: Adaptive from 500kbps to 15Mbps
- Container: MPEG-TS segments
- Video Codec: H.264/H.265
- Audio Codec: AAC
- Segment Duration: 4-6 seconds
- Adaptive: Dynamic quality switching based on bandwidth
https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4
https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/1080/video.mp4
https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/720/video.mp4
https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/master.m3u8
https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/hls/master.m3u8
OnlyFans uses multiple CDN endpoints for redundancy:
# Primary CDN endpoints
https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4
https://cdn4.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4
# BunnyCDN endpoints
https://vz-{CDN_ID1}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/{QUALITY}/video.mp4
https://vz-{CDN_ID2}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/{QUALITY}/video.mp4Command sequence for testing CDN availability:
# Test primary CDN with authentication headers
curl -H "Cookie: {SESSION_COOKIE}" \
-H "User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; OnlyFans-Research/1.0)" \
-I "https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4"
# Test BunnyCDN backup
curl -H "Referer: https://onlyfans.com/" \
-I "https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/720/video.mp4"Important Note: yt-dlp has limited OnlyFans support due to:
- Authentication requirements
- Anti-bot protections
- Terms of Service restrictions
- Dynamic content loading
# Attempt basic download (requires authentication)
yt-dlp --cookies cookies.txt "https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}"
# List available formats (if accessible)
yt-dlp --cookies cookies.txt -F "https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}"
# Download with custom headers
yt-dlp --cookies cookies.txt \
--add-header "User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (compatible)" \
--add-header "Referer: https://onlyfans.com/" \
"https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}"# Extract cookies from browser
# 1. Login to OnlyFans in browser
# 2. Export cookies using browser extension or developer tools
# 3. Save to cookies.txt in Netscape format
# Use cookies with yt-dlp
yt-dlp --cookies cookies.txt --verbose "https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}"
# Refresh cookies periodically (sessions expire)
# Note: Implement cookie refresh mechanism for long-running operationsInstead of relying on yt-dlp for OnlyFans content discovery, use it for direct video URLs:
# If you have the direct CDN URL
yt-dlp "https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/720/video.mp4"
# Download HLS stream directly
yt-dlp "https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/master.m3u8"# Process extracted URLs from network monitoring
yt-dlp -a onlyfans_video_urls.txt
# With custom naming
yt-dlp -o "%(uploader)s - %(title)s.%(ext)s" -a onlyfans_video_urls.txt# Analyze OnlyFans video stream (requires authentication headers)
ffprobe -headers $'Cookie: {SESSION_COOKIE}\r\nUser-Agent: Mozilla/5.0\r\n' \
-v quiet -print_format json -show_format -show_streams \
"https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4"
# Check HLS stream structure
ffprobe -v quiet -show_format \
"https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/master.m3u8"
# Analyze without downloading
ffprobe -v quiet -select_streams v:0 -show_entries stream=codec_name,width,height \
-of csv="s=x:p=0" "video.mp4"# Download with proper headers
ffmpeg -headers $'Cookie: {SESSION_COOKIE}\r\nUser-Agent: Mozilla/5.0\r\nReferer: https://onlyfans.com/\r\n' \
-i "https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4" \
-c copy output.mp4
# For HLS streams
ffmpeg -protocol_whitelist file,http,https,tcp,tls \
-headers $'Cookie: {SESSION_COOKIE}\r\n' \
-i "https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/master.m3u8" \
-c copy output.mp4# Download HLS stream with authentication
ffmpeg -protocol_whitelist file,http,https,tcp,tls \
-headers $'Cookie: {SESSION_COOKIE}\r\nUser-Agent: Mozilla/5.0\r\n' \
-i "master.m3u8" \
-c copy output.mp4
# Download with specific quality selection
ffmpeg -headers $'Cookie: {SESSION_COOKIE}\r\n' \
-i "https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/720/video.mp4" \
-c copy output_720p.mp4
# Handle fragmented MP4
ffmpeg -headers $'Cookie: {SESSION_COOKIE}\r\n' \
-i "fragmented_video.mp4" \
-c copy -movflags +faststart output.mp4# Re-encode for smaller file size while maintaining quality
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx264 -crf 20 -c:a aac -b:a 128k output_compressed.mp4
# Hardware-accelerated encoding (NVIDIA)
ffmpeg -hwaccel cuda -hwaccel_output_format cuda \
-i input.mp4 -c:v h264_nvenc -preset fast output_fast.mp4
# Optimize for mobile devices
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx264 -profile:v baseline -level 3.1 \
-c:a aac -ac 2 -b:a 128k -movflags +faststart output_mobile.mp4#!/bin/bash
# OnlyFans video download script with authentication
download_onlyfans_video() {
local video_url="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
local output_dir="${3:-./downloads}"
# Extract cookies for ffmpeg headers format
local cookie_header=$(grep -E "(sess|auth|token)" "$cookies_file" | \
awk '{printf "%s=%s; ", $6, $7}')
local headers="Cookie: ${cookie_header}
User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36
Referer: https://onlyfans.com/"
echo "Downloading: $video_url"
# Attempt download with authentication
ffmpeg -headers "$headers" \
-i "$video_url" \
-c copy \
-movflags +faststart \
"$output_dir/$(basename "$video_url")"
if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
echo "✓ Download successful"
return 0
else
echo "✗ Download failed"
return 1
fi
}
# Usage example
# download_onlyfans_video "https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/.../source.mp4" "cookies.txt"#!/bin/bash
# Batch process OnlyFans videos with robust error handling
process_onlyfans_batch() {
local url_file="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
local output_dir="${3:-./downloads}"
local max_retries=3
mkdir -p "$output_dir"
while IFS= read -r video_url; do
local filename=$(basename "$video_url")
local output_file="$output_dir/$filename"
echo "Processing: $video_url"
# Skip if already downloaded
if [ -f "$output_file" ]; then
echo "⚠️ File already exists, skipping"
continue
fi
# Retry mechanism
local retry=0
while [ $retry -lt $max_retries ]; do
if download_onlyfans_video "$video_url" "$cookies_file" "$output_dir"; then
break
fi
((retry++))
echo "Retry $retry/$max_retries in 10 seconds..."
sleep 10
done
if [ $retry -eq $max_retries ]; then
echo "✗ Failed after $max_retries attempts: $video_url"
fi
# Rate limiting
sleep 2
done < "$url_file"
}OnlyFans' authentication requirements make browser-based extraction often more reliable than command-line tools.
# Manual network monitoring workflow:
# 1. Open browser with OnlyFans account logged in
# 2. Open Developer Tools (F12)
# 3. Go to Network tab, filter by "Media" or "XHR"
# 4. Navigate to OnlyFans content
# 5. Look for .mp4 or .m3u8 requests
# 6. Right-click on video requests → "Copy as cURL"
# Extract video URLs from browser network export
grep -oE "https://[^\"]*\.(mp4|m3u8)" network_export.har | sort -u > video_urls.txt
# Process with curl commands
while IFS= read -r url; do
echo "Found video URL: $url"
done < video_urls.txt# Extract OnlyFans video URLs from HAR files
jq -r '.log.entries[] | select(.request.url | contains("cdn") and (contains(".mp4") or contains(".m3u8"))) | .request.url' network.har
# Extract with authentication headers
jq -r '.log.entries[] | select(.request.url | contains("onlyfans")) | {url: .request.url, headers: .request.headers}' network.harGallery-dl has limited OnlyFans support but can be configured for certain use cases:
{
"extractor": {
"onlyfans": {
"filename": "{author}_{id}_{num:>03}.{extension}",
"directory": ["OnlyFans", "{author}"],
"cookies": "./cookies.txt",
"sleep-request": [1, 3]
}
}
}# Install gallery-dl
pip install gallery-dl
# Configure for OnlyFans (limited support)
gallery-dl --config config.json "https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}"
# Extract metadata only
gallery-dl --no-download --write-metadata "https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}"// Example Playwright script for OnlyFans content extraction
const { chromium } = require('playwright');
async function extractOnlyFansVideos() {
const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: false });
const context = await browser.newContext();
// Load cookies from file
await context.addCookies(cookies);
const page = await context.newPage();
// Monitor network requests
page.on('response', response => {
const url = response.url();
if (url.includes('.mp4') || url.includes('.m3u8')) {
console.log('Video URL found:', url);
}
});
await page.goto('https://onlyfans.com/{USER_ID}');
// Wait for content to load and extract video URLs
await page.waitForTimeout(5000);
await browser.close();
}import requests
import json
from http.cookiejar import MozillaCookieJar
def extract_onlyfans_content(cookies_file, user_id):
"""Extract OnlyFans content URLs using authenticated session"""
# Load cookies
jar = MozillaCookieJar(cookies_file)
jar.load()
session = requests.Session()
session.cookies = jar
headers = {
'User-Agent': 'Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36',
'Referer': 'https://onlyfans.com/',
'X-BC': 'your-token-here' # OnlyFans uses additional tokens
}
try:
# Fetch user content (requires valid authentication)
response = session.get(
f'https://onlyfans.com/api2/v2/users/{user_id}/posts',
headers=headers
)
if response.status_code == 200:
data = response.json()
# Extract video URLs from response
for post in data.get('list', []):
for media in post.get('media', []):
if media.get('type') == 'video':
video_url = media.get('source', {}).get('source')
if video_url:
print(f"Video URL: {video_url}")
except Exception as e:
print(f"Error: {e}")# Download with cookies and headers
wget --load-cookies cookies.txt \
--header "User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (compatible)" \
--header "Referer: https://onlyfans.com/" \
-O "output.mp4" \
"https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4"
# Batch download with rate limiting
wget --load-cookies cookies.txt \
--wait=2 --random-wait \
--header "User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0" \
-i onlyfans_urls.txt# Download with full authentication headers
curl -b cookies.txt \
-H "User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36" \
-H "Referer: https://onlyfans.com/" \
-H "Accept: */*" \
-o "video.mp4" \
"https://vz-{CDN_ID}.b-cdn.net/media/{HASH}/720/video.mp4"
# Test URL accessibility
curl -b cookies.txt -I \
-H "User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0" \
"https://cdn3.onlyfans.com/dash/files/{USER_ID}/{POST_ID}/{FILE_ID}/source/source.mp4"Due to OnlyFans' authentication requirements, the most reliable approach involves:
#!/bin/bash
# OnlyFans download strategy prioritizing authenticated browser sessions
download_onlyfans_content() {
local user_id="$1"
local output_dir="${2:-./downloads}"
local cookies_file="${3:-cookies.txt}"
echo "OnlyFans Download Strategy for User: $user_id"
# Step 1: Verify authentication
if ! verify_authentication "$cookies_file"; then
echo "✗ Authentication failed - please update cookies"
return 1
fi
# Step 2: Extract video URLs using browser monitoring
echo "Step 1: Extract video URLs using browser network monitoring"
echo "1. Open browser with OnlyFans logged in"
echo "2. Open Developer Tools → Network tab"
echo "3. Navigate to user profile: https://onlyfans.com/$user_id"
echo "4. Export network activity as HAR file"
echo "5. Run: extract_urls_from_har network.har > video_urls.txt"
read -p "Press Enter when HAR file is ready..."
# Step 3: Process extracted URLs
if [ -f "video_urls.txt" ]; then
echo "Step 2: Processing extracted URLs..."
process_video_urls "video_urls.txt" "$cookies_file" "$output_dir"
else
echo "✗ video_urls.txt not found"
return 1
fi
}
verify_authentication() {
local cookies_file="$1"
# Test authentication with a simple API call
local response=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" \
"https://onlyfans.com/api2/v2/init")
if [ "$response" = "200" ]; then
echo "✓ Authentication verified"
return 0
else
echo "✗ Authentication failed (HTTP $response)"
return 1
fi
}
extract_urls_from_har() {
local har_file="$1"
# Extract OnlyFans video URLs from HAR export
jq -r '.log.entries[] |
select(.request.url | contains("cdn") and (contains(".mp4") or contains(".m3u8"))) |
.request.url' "$har_file" | \
grep -E "(onlyfans|b-cdn)" | \
sort -u
}process_video_urls() {
local url_file="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
local output_dir="$3"
mkdir -p "$output_dir"
while IFS= read -r video_url; do
echo "Processing: $video_url"
# Extract filename from URL
local filename=$(basename "$video_url" | cut -d'?' -f1)
local output_file="$output_dir/$filename"
# Skip if already downloaded
if [ -f "$output_file" ]; then
echo "⚠️ Already exists: $filename"
continue
fi
# Try multiple download methods
if download_with_ffmpeg "$video_url" "$cookies_file" "$output_file"; then
echo "✓ Success with ffmpeg: $filename"
elif download_with_wget "$video_url" "$cookies_file" "$output_file"; then
echo "✓ Success with wget: $filename"
elif download_with_curl "$video_url" "$cookies_file" "$output_file"; then
echo "✓ Success with curl: $filename"
else
echo "✗ Failed all methods: $filename"
fi
# Rate limiting
sleep 3
done < "$url_file"
}
download_with_ffmpeg() {
local url="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
local output_file="$3"
# Extract cookies for headers
local cookie_header=$(awk '/onlyfans/ {printf "%s=%s; ", $6, $7}' "$cookies_file")
ffmpeg -hide_banner -loglevel error \
-headers "Cookie: $cookie_header
User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36" \
-i "$url" \
-c copy \
-movflags +faststart \
"$output_file" 2>/dev/null
}
download_with_wget() {
local url="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
local output_file="$3"
wget --quiet --load-cookies "$cookies_file" \
--user-agent="Mozilla/5.0 (compatible)" \
--header="Referer: https://onlyfans.com/" \
-O "$output_file" \
"$url"
}
download_with_curl() {
local url="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
local output_file="$3"
curl -s -b "$cookies_file" \
-H "User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (compatible)" \
-H "Referer: https://onlyfans.com/" \
-o "$output_file" \
"$url"
}detect_available_qualities() {
local base_url="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
# OnlyFans quality patterns
local qualities=("source" "1080" "720" "480" "240")
local available_qualities=()
for quality in "${qualities[@]}"; do
local test_url=$(echo "$base_url" | sed "s|/[0-9]\+/|/$quality/|")
# Test if quality is available
local status=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" "$test_url")
if [ "$status" = "200" ]; then
available_qualities+=("$quality")
echo "✓ Available: $quality"
fi
done
# Return best available quality
printf '%s\n' "${available_qualities[@]}"
}
select_optimal_quality() {
local available_qualities=("$@")
local preferred_order=("source" "1080" "720" "480" "240")
for preferred in "${preferred_order[@]}"; do
for available in "${available_qualities[@]}"; do
if [ "$preferred" = "$available" ]; then
echo "$preferred"
return 0
fi
done
done
# Fallback to first available
echo "${available_qualities[0]}"
}robust_download() {
local video_url="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
local output_file="$3"
local max_retries="${4:-3}"
local retry=0
local delay=5
while [ $retry -lt $max_retries ]; do
echo "Attempt $((retry + 1))/$max_retries: $video_url"
# Check if URL is accessible
local status=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" "$video_url")
case "$status" in
200)
# URL is accessible, attempt download
if download_with_ffmpeg "$video_url" "$cookies_file" "$output_file"; then
echo "✓ Download successful"
return 0
fi
;;
401|403)
echo "✗ Authentication error (HTTP $status)"
echo "Please update cookies and try again"
return 1
;;
404)
echo "✗ Content not found (HTTP $status)"
return 1
;;
429)
echo "⚠️ Rate limited (HTTP $status), waiting ${delay}s..."
sleep $delay
delay=$((delay * 2)) # Exponential backoff
;;
*)
echo "⚠️ HTTP $status, retrying in ${delay}s..."
sleep $delay
;;
esac
((retry++))
done
echo "✗ Failed after $max_retries attempts"
return 1
}manage_session() {
local cookies_file="$1"
# Check session validity
if ! verify_authentication "$cookies_file"; then
echo "Session expired, please update cookies"
return 1
fi
# Monitor for session expiration during batch operations
local start_time=$(date +%s)
local session_duration=3600 # 1 hour typical session length
check_session_validity() {
local current_time=$(date +%s)
local elapsed=$((current_time - start_time))
if [ $elapsed -gt $session_duration ]; then
echo "Session may have expired, verification recommended"
verify_authentication "$cookies_file"
fi
}
export -f check_session_validity
}# Diagnose cookie issues
debug_cookies() {
local cookies_file="$1"
echo "Cookie file analysis:"
echo "===================="
# Check if file exists and is readable
if [ ! -f "$cookies_file" ]; then
echo "✗ Cookie file not found: $cookies_file"
return 1
fi
# Check file format
if head -1 "$cookies_file" | grep -q "# Netscape HTTP Cookie File"; then
echo "✓ Netscape format detected"
else
echo "⚠️ Non-standard cookie format"
fi
# Check for OnlyFans cookies
local of_cookies=$(grep -c "onlyfans.com" "$cookies_file" 2>/dev/null || echo 0)
echo "OnlyFans cookies found: $of_cookies"
# Check cookie expiration
local current_time=$(date +%s)
while IFS=$'\t' read -r domain flag path secure expiry name value; do
if [[ "$domain" == *"onlyfans"* ]] && [[ "$expiry" =~ ^[0-9]+$ ]]; then
if [ "$expiry" -lt "$current_time" ]; then
echo "✗ Expired cookie: $name"
else
echo "✓ Valid cookie: $name (expires $(date -d @$expiry))"
fi
fi
done < "$cookies_file"
}
# Refresh cookie guidance
refresh_cookies() {
echo "Cookie Refresh Instructions:"
echo "============================"
echo "1. Open OnlyFans in browser and log in"
echo "2. Open Developer Tools (F12)"
echo "3. Go to Application/Storage → Cookies → https://onlyfans.com"
echo "4. Export cookies using browser extension or manual copy"
echo "5. Save in Netscape format as cookies.txt"
echo ""
echo "Required cookies for OnlyFans:"
echo "- sess (session identifier)"
echo "- auth_id (authentication ID)"
echo "- auth_uid (user identifier)"
echo "- fp (fingerprint)"
}test_authentication_levels() {
local cookies_file="$1"
echo "Testing OnlyFans authentication levels:"
echo "======================================"
# Test basic site access
local basic_status=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" \
"https://onlyfans.com/")
echo "Basic site access: HTTP $basic_status"
# Test API access
local api_status=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" \
"https://onlyfans.com/api2/v2/init")
echo "API access: HTTP $api_status"
# Test user profile access
local profile_status=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" \
"https://onlyfans.com/my/profile")
echo "Profile access: HTTP $profile_status"
# Overall authentication status
if [ "$api_status" = "200" ] && [ "$profile_status" = "200" ]; then
echo "✓ Full authentication verified"
return 0
elif [ "$basic_status" = "200" ]; then
echo "⚠️ Partial authentication - may need login"
return 1
else
echo "✗ Authentication failed"
return 1
fi
}handle_rate_limiting() {
local url="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
local max_wait="${3:-300}" # Maximum wait time in seconds
local wait_time=10
while [ $wait_time -lt $max_wait ]; do
local status=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" "$url")
case "$status" in
200)
echo "✓ Rate limit cleared"
return 0
;;
429)
echo "⚠️ Rate limited, waiting ${wait_time}s..."
sleep $wait_time
wait_time=$((wait_time * 2)) # Exponential backoff
;;
*)
echo "Unexpected status: $status"
return 1
;;
esac
done
echo "✗ Rate limit timeout exceeded"
return 1
}
# Adaptive rate limiting
adaptive_download_rate() {
local base_delay="${1:-2}"
local current_delay="$base_delay"
local success_count=0
local fail_count=0
adjust_rate() {
local result="$1" # "success" or "failure"
case "$result" in
"success")
((success_count++))
if [ $success_count -gt 5 ]; then
# Speed up if consistently successful
current_delay=$(( current_delay > 1 ? current_delay - 1 : 1 ))
success_count=0
fi
;;
"failure")
((fail_count++))
if [ $fail_count -gt 2 ]; then
# Slow down if failures occur
current_delay=$((current_delay * 2))
fail_count=0
fi
;;
esac
echo "Current delay: ${current_delay}s"
sleep $current_delay
}
export -f adjust_rate
export current_delay
}verify_content_access() {
local user_id="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
echo "Verifying access to user content: $user_id"
# Test user profile access
local profile_url="https://onlyfans.com/$user_id"
local profile_response=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s "$profile_url")
# Check for subscription status indicators
if echo "$profile_response" | grep -q "Subscribe for"; then
echo "✗ Not subscribed to user: $user_id"
echo "Subscription required to access content"
return 1
elif echo "$profile_response" | grep -q "Following"; then
echo "✓ Active subscription detected"
return 0
else
echo "⚠️ Unable to determine subscription status"
return 1
fi
}
check_content_availability() {
local post_url="$1"
local cookies_file="$2"
# Check if specific post is accessible
local status=$(curl -b "$cookies_file" -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" "$post_url")
case "$status" in
200)
echo "✓ Content accessible"
return 0
;;
403)
echo "✗ Content forbidden - subscription required"
return 1
;;
404)
echo "✗ Content not found"
return 1
;;
*)
echo "⚠️ Unexpected status: $status"
return 1
;;
esac
}verify_download_integrity() {
local video_file="$1"
echo "Verifying video file integrity: $video_file"
# Check file exists and has size
if [ ! -f "$video_file" ]; then
echo "✗ File not found"
return 1
fi
local file_size=$(stat -f%z "$video_file" 2>/dev/null || stat -c%s "$video_file" 2>/dev/null)
if [ "$file_size" -eq 0 ]; then
echo "✗ File is empty"
return 1
fi
# Basic video validation with ffprobe
if command -v ffprobe >/dev/null 2>&1; then
if ffprobe -v error -select_streams v:0 -count_frames \
-show_entries stream=nb_frames -csv=p=0 "$video_file" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
echo "✓ Video file integrity verified"
# Get video information
local duration=$(ffprobe -v quiet -show_entries format=duration \
-of default=noprint_wrappers=1:nokey=1 "$video_file")
local resolution=$(ffprobe -v quiet -select_streams v:0 \
-show_entries stream=width,height \
-of csv=s=x:p=0 "$video_file")
echo "Duration: ${duration}s, Resolution: $resolution"
return 0
else
echo "✗ Video file appears corrupted"
return 1
fi
else
echo "⚠️ ffprobe not available, basic checks only"
echo "File size: $file_size bytes"
return 0
fi
}
repair_corrupted_video() {
local input_file="$1"
local output_file="${2:-${input_file%.*}_repaired.${input_file##*.}}"
echo "Attempting to repair corrupted video: $input_file"
# Try basic repair with ffmpeg
if ffmpeg -err_detect ignore_err -i "$input_file" \
-c copy -avoid_negative_ts make_zero \
"$output_file" 2>/dev/null; then
echo "✓ Repair attempt completed: $output_file"
# Verify repaired file
if verify_download_integrity "$output_file"; then
echo "✓ Repaired file verified"
return 0
else
echo "✗ Repair unsuccessful"
return 1
fi
else
echo "✗ Unable to repair video file"
return 1
fi
}# Legal compliance checklist script
legal_compliance_check() {
echo "OnlyFans Content Download - Legal Compliance Checklist"
echo "===================================================="
echo ""
echo "Before proceeding, you MUST verify:"
echo ""
echo "✓ [ ] You have explicit permission from content creators"
echo "✓ [ ] You comply with OnlyFans Terms of Service"
echo "✓ [ ] You respect all applicable copyright laws"
echo "✓ [ ] You comply with DMCA regulations"
echo "✓ [ ] You respect creator intellectual property rights"
echo "✓ [ ] You comply with local privacy laws (GDPR, CCPA, etc.)"
echo "✓ [ ] Content is for personal use only"
echo "✓ [ ] You will not redistribute downloaded content"
echo ""
echo "REMEMBER: OnlyFans content is protected by:"
echo "- Creator copyright and intellectual property rights"
echo "- Platform Terms of Service"
echo "- Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)"
echo "- Various international copyright laws"
echo ""
read -p "I understand and agree to comply with all legal requirements (yes/no): " answer
if [ "$answer" != "yes" ]; then
echo "Legal compliance not confirmed. Exiting."
return 1
fi
echo "✓ Legal compliance acknowledged"
return 0
}- Creator Consent: Always obtain explicit permission from content creators
- Personal Use Only: Downloaded content must remain for personal use
- No Redistribution: Never share or redistribute downloaded content
- Respect Privacy: Maintain strict privacy of all downloaded content
- Support Creators: Continue supporting creators through official channels
secure_cookie_handling() {
local cookies_file="$1"
echo "Implementing secure cookie handling for: $cookies_file"
# Set restrictive file permissions
chmod 600 "$cookies_file"
# Verify no world-readable permissions
if [ $(stat -c "%a" "$cookies_file") != "600" ]; then
echo "⚠️ Warning: Cookie file permissions too permissive"
chmod 600 "$cookies_file"
fi
# Check file ownership
if [ "$(stat -c "%U" "$cookies_file")" != "$(whoami)" ]; then
echo "⚠️ Warning: Cookie file owned by different user"
fi
echo "✓ Cookie file secured with 600 permissions"
}
# Automatic cookie cleanup
setup_cookie_cleanup() {
local cookies_file="$1"
local cleanup_delay="${2:-3600}" # 1 hour default
echo "Setting up automatic cookie cleanup in ${cleanup_delay}s"
# Schedule cleanup
(
sleep "$cleanup_delay"
if [ -f "$cookies_file" ]; then
shred -u "$cookies_file" 2>/dev/null || rm -f "$cookies_file"
echo "✓ Cookies automatically cleaned up"
fi
) &
local cleanup_pid=$!
echo "Cookie cleanup scheduled (PID: $cleanup_pid)"
# Trap to cleanup on exit
trap "kill $cleanup_pid 2>/dev/null" EXIT
}secure_download_environment() {
local download_dir="$1"
echo "Setting up secure download environment: $download_dir"
# Create secure download directory
mkdir -p "$download_dir"
chmod 700 "$download_dir"
# Set restrictive umask for new files
umask 077
# Disable shell history for sensitive commands
unset HISTFILE
export HISTFILE=/dev/null
echo "✓ Secure environment configured"
}
secure_file_cleanup() {
local file_path="$1"
if [ -f "$file_path" ]; then
# Secure deletion using shred if available
if command -v shred >/dev/null 2>&1; then
shred -vfz -n 3 "$file_path"
else
# Fallback to overwrite and delete
dd if=/dev/zero of="$file_path" bs=1M count=$(( ($(stat -f%z "$file_path" 2>/dev/null || stat -c%s "$file_path") + 1048575) / 1048576 )) 2>/dev/null
rm -f "$file_path"
fi
echo "✓ Secure file deletion completed"
fi
}# VPN verification for privacy
verify_vpn_status() {
echo "Checking VPN/Privacy status:"
# Check current IP
local current_ip=$(curl -s https://api.ipify.org)
echo "Current IP: $current_ip"
# Check if using VPN (basic detection)
local ip_info=$(curl -s "https://ipapi.co/$current_ip/json")
local org=$(echo "$ip_info" | jq -r '.org // "Unknown"')
if echo "$org" | grep -qE "(VPN|Proxy|Hosting|Cloud)"; then
echo "✓ VPN/Proxy detected: $org"
else
echo "⚠️ Direct connection detected: $org"
echo "Consider using a VPN for additional privacy"
fi
# DNS leak test
local dns_servers=$(nslookup google.com | grep 'Server:' | awk '{print $2}')
echo "DNS servers: $dns_servers"
}
# Tor integration for maximum privacy
setup_tor_proxy() {
echo "Setting up Tor proxy for maximum privacy"
# Check if Tor is running
if curl -s --socks5-hostname 127.0.0.1:9050 https://check.torproject.org/ | grep -q "Congratulations"; then
echo "✓ Tor is running and working"
# Configure tools to use Tor
export HTTP_PROXY="socks5://127.0.0.1:9050"
export HTTPS_PROXY="socks5://127.0.0.1:9050"
echo "Tools configured to use Tor proxy"
else
echo "✗ Tor not available"
echo "Install and start Tor for maximum privacy"
return 1
fi
}remove_metadata() {
local video_file="$1"
local output_file="${2:-${video_file%.*}_cleaned.${video_file##*.}}"
echo "Removing metadata from: $video_file"
# Remove metadata using ffmpeg
if ffmpeg -i "$video_file" \
-map_metadata -1 \
-c copy \
"$output_file" 2>/dev/null; then
echo "✓ Metadata removed: $output_file"
# Verify metadata removal
local remaining_metadata=$(ffprobe -v quiet -show_format "$output_file" 2>/dev/null | grep -c "TAG:")
echo "Remaining metadata tags: $remaining_metadata"
return 0
else
echo "✗ Failed to remove metadata"
return 1
fi
}
# Comprehensive privacy cleanup
privacy_cleanup() {
local download_dir="$1"
echo "Performing comprehensive privacy cleanup"
# Remove temporary files
find /tmp -name "*onlyfans*" -type f -delete 2>/dev/null
# Clear browser cache (optional)
echo "Consider manually clearing browser cache and cookies"
# Remove shell history entries
history -c 2>/dev/null
# Secure delete log files
find "$download_dir" -name "*.log" -exec shred -u {} \; 2>/dev/null
echo "✓ Privacy cleanup completed"
}implement_respectful_limits() {
local max_concurrent="${1:-2}"
local min_delay="${2:-3}"
local max_daily_downloads="${3:-100}"
echo "Implementing respectful download limits:"
echo "- Maximum concurrent downloads: $max_concurrent"
echo "- Minimum delay between requests: ${min_delay}s"
echo "- Daily download limit: $max_daily_downloads"
# Create rate limiting file
local rate_file="/tmp/onlyfans_rate_limit_$(date +%Y%m%d)"
check_daily_limit() {
local current_count=$(cat "$rate_file" 2>/dev/null || echo 0)
if [ "$current_count" -ge "$max_daily_downloads" ]; then
echo "Daily download limit reached ($max_daily_downloads)"
echo "Please wait until tomorrow to continue"
return 1
fi
echo $((current_count + 1)) > "$rate_file"
echo "Daily downloads: $((current_count + 1))/$max_daily_downloads"
return 0
}
export -f check_daily_limit
export rate_file
}
respectful_delay() {
local min_delay="${1:-3}"
local max_delay="${2:-8}"
# Random delay between min and max
local delay=$(( min_delay + RANDOM % (max_delay - min_delay + 1) ))
echo "Respectful delay: ${delay}s"
sleep "$delay"
}This comprehensive research has analyzed OnlyFans' sophisticated video delivery infrastructure, revealing a security-focused multi-CDN architecture utilizing Amazon CloudFront and BunnyCDN for global content distribution. Unlike many other platforms, OnlyFans implements robust authentication and access control mechanisms that significantly impact download strategies.
Key Technical Findings:
- OnlyFans uses dynamic URL patterns with authentication tokens and subscriber verification
- Multiple CDN endpoints provide redundancy but require proper authentication headers
- Stream formats include both direct MP4 and HLS with quality levels from 240p to 4K
- Strong anti-bot protections and rate limiting mechanisms are actively enforced
- Content access requires valid subscriptions and active session management
Based on our research, we recommend a browser-first authentication strategy combined with respectful download practices:
- Primary Method: Browser network monitoring with authenticated session extraction
- Secondary Method: Direct CDN downloads using extracted URLs and session cookies
- Tertiary Method: HLS stream processing with proper authentication headers
- Backup Methods: Custom web scraping with robust session management
- Explicit Creator Consent: Always obtain permission from content creators
- Legal Compliance: Full adherence to copyright laws, DMCA, and ToS
- Personal Use Only: Downloaded content must remain strictly personal
- No Redistribution: Never share or redistribute downloaded content
- Privacy Respect: Maintain absolute privacy of all downloaded content
- Creator Support: Continue supporting creators through official channels
Essential Tools for OnlyFans Content:
- Browser Developer Tools: Primary method for URL extraction
- FFmpeg: Most reliable for authenticated video downloads
- cURL/Wget: Direct downloads with proper authentication headers
- Custom Scripts: Session management and authentication handling
Not Recommended:
- yt-dlp: Limited OnlyFans support due to authentication complexity
- gallery-dl: Minimal OnlyFans compatibility
- Generic scrapers: Ineffective against OnlyFans' security measures
Essential Security Measures:
- Use VPN or Tor for enhanced privacy protection
- Implement secure cookie management with automatic cleanup
- Remove metadata from downloaded files
- Use secure file deletion methods
- Maintain restrictive file permissions (600/700)
Rate Limiting Recommendations:
- Maximum 2-3 concurrent downloads
- Minimum 3-5 second delays between requests
- Daily limits under 100 downloads per account
- Exponential backoff for rate limit responses
- Respect platform bandwidth and server resources
Success Factors:
- Valid, non-expired session cookies are absolutely essential
- Proper HTTP headers matching browser requests increase success rates
- Browser-based URL extraction provides highest reliability
- Robust error handling and retry logic improves download success
Common Failure Points:
- Expired or invalid authentication cookies
- Missing required HTTP headers (User-Agent, Referer)
- Subscription verification failures
- Rate limiting and IP blocking
- Dynamic token expiration
Areas for Continued Development:
- Enhanced Session Management: Automatic cookie refresh mechanisms
- Mobile App Integration: Analysis of mobile app video delivery
- Advanced Anti-Detection: Improved browser fingerprinting evasion
- Subscription Analytics: Better understanding of access control patterns
- Privacy Enhancement: Advanced anonymization techniques
Given OnlyFans' active security development, this research requires regular updates:
- Weekly: Authentication method validation and cookie format checks
- Monthly: CDN endpoint testing and URL pattern verification
- Quarterly: Tool compatibility updates and security measure analysis
- Annually: Comprehensive architecture review and legal compliance update
The techniques documented in this research provide a foundation for OnlyFans content downloading while emphasizing the critical importance of:
- Legal Compliance: Always operate within legal boundaries
- Creator Respect: Prioritize creator rights and intellectual property
- Technical Excellence: Implement robust, efficient, and respectful solutions
- Privacy Protection: Maintain highest standards of privacy and security
- Ethical Usage: Use these techniques responsibly and ethically
Remember: This research is provided for educational purposes. The responsibility for legal, ethical, and respectful usage lies entirely with the implementer.
Last Updated: January 2025
Research Version: 1.0
Next Review: April 2025
Legal Notice: OnlyFans content is protected by copyright law, creator intellectual property rights, and platform terms of service. This research does not constitute legal advice. Consult with qualified legal counsel before implementing any content download strategies.